STRATEGIC PLANNING
for the
COMMITMENT LEVEL MODEL

Every organisation, whether it is a business or nonprofit organisation, such as the church, should be involved in planning ahead to ensure that all involved are aware of where the organisation is heading and is then able to evaluate and make the necessary corrections along the way.

1. THE STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS
Strategic planning is a process where an organisation plans itself down a course of action knowingly. It moves away from the philosophy that plans on yesterday's actions and hopes for the best. Strategic planning involves strategy formulation (deciding where an organisation is today and where it should be tomorrow) and strategy implementation (deciding how to get an organisation to where it should be tomorrow).

Steve Chalke presents a strategic planning process (The Christian Youth Manual, Page 85):

Step One: Where are we? This is a diagnostic examination of where the group is now. The strengths, weaknesses and needs of the group are considered.

Step Two: Where do we want to go? Once priorities are determined, long-term goals are written down, prioritised and the top three tackled as soon as possible.

Step Three: How are we going to get there? Now short-term objectives are set to answer the question: How are we going to get from where we are to where we want to be?

Step Four: What are we going to do and when? The short-term objectives are time tabled and acted on.

Step Five: How are we doing? This final stage assesses progress that is being made. The effectiveness of the methods being used and the goals that were set should be continually evaluated. This stage should lead back into stage one where the process starts again.

Another planning process involves the following steps:

(1) Context Analysis - members of the planning team research various topic to get a picture of the context in which the group is operating: the socio-political situation in the country, the theological and social influence on teenagers, the economic situation of the group and the people and economic resources in the group.

(2) SWOT Analysis - they determine strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the group and make a list of the SWOT details.

(3) Mission Statement - each member writes down five statements that represent the mission of the group, by completing the sentence, 'We exist to...'. They make a list of the statements and develop a mission statement for the group. Example: "Our youth group is a ministry of First Baptist Church, geared to fulfil the great commission among all youth of the area through evangelism and discipleship."

(4) Ministry Areas - each person writes down five areas they think the youth group must emphasise. For example, (a) youth development, (b) culturally-inclusive ministry (c) evangelism, and (d) relevant programming. They use a consensus method to get the group to identify their five key ministry areas.

(5) Action Plan - the group writes a plan for each of the key ministry areas as they answer the following question: "What needs to be done for each key ministry area to achieve success?" The action plan has three aspects: What must be done? Who will do it? By when must it be done?

2. STRATEGY FOR CHILDREN'S MINISTRY
Youth leaders must discover how they begin a ministry to children that will complement the work of the church and will provide specialised ministry into the lives of children. They need a planning process that will determine what needs to be done to minister effective among children.

If a new group is going to be started an individual with the burden for the ministry should communicate the vision for a children's group to the church and enlisting the support of volunteers. They should meet and after praying for God's direction and enabling, begin a planning process by researching the following areas:

A. What are the general needs of the target group? (ie. the children)
B. What is the purpose of the ministry? (ie. evangelism, discipleship, etc.)
C. What is the group hoping to achieve? (ie. your goals)
D. What past or present children's ministry does the church have?
E. What ideas do they have for the future? (brainstorm)
F. What are some of the road blocks to overcome? (ie. challenges or threats)
G. What resources are available for the ministry? (personnel or finance, etc)
H. What group identity do the leaders want to create? (ie. name)
I. When should the ministry be scheduled? (Friday meetings, Saturday outings?)
J. Who is available for the leadership team? (select helpers, create portfolios, plan meetings, etc.)
K. What marketing and publicity is needed? (to attract children and advertise the group)

3. STRATEGY FOR TEENAGE MINISTRY
Effective ministry to teenagers must involve teenagers in the ministry. The youth leader must: (1) let youth belong: they need to feel that they belong to a group, that they are a vital part of the group, (2) let youth share: as they contribute to the group they will become involved in discovering God's truth, and (3) let youth participate: through a leadership team youth are able to be involved in ministry.

One of the ways to ensure youth involvement in the ministry is through the functioning of a leadership team. The benefits include: youth get involved in the work of ministry, the work load is shared, youth leadership potential is developed and youth are trained in team work.

A. Learn to Delegate
Youth leaders fail to involve other because they think that they are able to do the job better than anyone else. Often a history of work not being done by others reinforced the view that it is better to do the job themselves than to involve others. Learning the art of delegation will help the leader to involve young people. This art will begin as the youth leader considers the following questions: What am I doing that does not need to be done at all? Which of my activities could be handled by someone else? What do I do that wastes the time of other people?

Delegation is learning how to identify the work being done and devising methods of passing these pieces of work on to other people, while maintaining a check on the delegated work. There is a Japanese proverb that says: "A wise prince knows even how many ashes are in the stove in the kitchen." This should read: "A wise prince does not necessarily know how many ashes there are in the stove, but he knows someone who does know how many ashes there are in the kitchen stove." The biblical principle is found in Ephesians 4:11-13 and Acts 6:1-4.

A youth leader should realise the need for delegation when: (1) the big jobs are not getting done, (2) deadlines are being missed, (3) time is spent doing tasks that others can do, (4) there are people, who if trained, could handle the job better than the leader, (5) there is an imbalance in the work load of team members, and (6) there are individuals who need new worlds to conquer.

When delegating, leaders must remember that when they delegate work they retain responsibility for its performance and they must establish lines of accountability with the person they delegate to.

B. Establish a Team
There are two main ways the youth leader can build a team: (1) by elections and (2) approaching young people and asking them to serve. Whatever method chosen the following requirements must be fulfilled by team members: they have given their life to Christ, they have a personal relationship with Christ, they show consistency in spiritual life, they are prepared to take responsibility, they are prepared to be servants, they are teachable, they attend church services and team meetings regularly. The following are the responsibilities of team members: to plan, prepare, pray, set an example and fulfil their function on the team.

C. Establish Ministry Portfolios
Each team member needs a specific portfolio. The following are examples: youth leader, chairman, vice-chairman, secretary, treasurer, caterer, worship leader, music director, games director, publicity, care, prayer, evangelism.

D. Clarify Job Descriptions
A job description helps people know what their tasks are, and why they are in the organisation. It helps them to know what is expected of them, and lets other people around them know what they are doing. Job descriptions put teeth into organisational structure, give clarity in relationships and ensure goal-orientation. The following is a suggested layout for a job description:

(1) The Job Summary - this shows where the person fits into the overall structure of the organisation and mentions the end result that the position exists to accomplish.

(2) The Job Duties - the activities necessary to get to the end result are listed.

(3) Organisational Relationships - the interpersonal and accountability relationships are explained.

(4) Qualifications - this is a list of what the person should be and know in order to accomplish the job.

(5) Training and Development - the skills necessary to do the job must be developed, so opportunities for development are detailed.

E. Determine Ministry Vision
A youth group must determine the reason for their existence and a clear vision statement must be drafted and shared with the group. The following questions are helpful in formulating ministry vision: Why do we exist? What are we uniquely equipped to do? What should we be doing according to God's Word?

F. Practise Forward Planning
The group needs to consider where they come from and where they are going and then determine what needs to be done to get there. A planning process is necessary to get the group to where itshould be!

G. Design Relevant Programmes
The last step is to plan specific programmes. These need to be relevant to the needs of the youth and involve teenagers intellectually, socially and spiritually.

4. STRATEGY FOR YOUNG ADULT MINISTRY
Building a young adult ministry has a lot in common with building a wall. In the book of Nehemiah we read about a man who set out to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem. Nehemiah's first step was to accept the challenge, then he got down to the task before him. Along the way he overcame physical and human obstacles. His prayer in the midst of the task was, "O God, strengthen my hands." To those who tried to detract him from his goal, he responded, "I am doing a great work, I cannot come down!"

A closer look at Nehemiah's strategy provides guidelines for young adult ministry:

A. Establish Clear Objectives
Before Nehemiah began he worked out what he wanted to accomplish. He knew what he was called to do and he shared it with people around him who would be willing to help with the project.

B. Have Specific Goals
He knew what he was aiming at, so he was able to lay out a step by step process to achieve his objective. He knew a wall was not a wall until it was completed.

C. Recruit Others to Help
Then Nehemiah enlisted workers. He never intended to do the job by himself. He knew it was too big a job for him to tackle alone. You cannot build walls or a ministry without a task force. There are always those who want to watch and those who want to help build - identify those willing to help and pull them into the ministry.

D. Develop a Unique Ministry
Nehemiah was careful not to get blown off his course by the agenda of other people. It is dangerous to adopt someone else's ministry because it seems to work for that person. Develop a ministry based on the needs and concerns of the young adults within your local church. Each ministry is different and cannot be copied.

E. Continue Despite Distractions
Nehemiah learnt to watch out for distractions and interruptions. He seemed to face a new one every day, and so will a young adult leader. Some come from within the ministry and some from without. Stay committed to what you were called to accomplish and do not get thrown by distractions or difficulties.

F. Evaluate Progress Continually
Even though there may have been time when progress was slow, Nehemiah was quick to spot what was needed to be done and then make the necessary corrections to ensure that the building was successful. Continual evaluation to determine the effectiveness of the ministry is essential if success is to be achieved. Questions to evaluate ministry: Am I building this ministry for myself, my reputation and my glory? What will I leave behind for others to build on when I move on? Who am I training and discipling in this ministry? Do others understand what I am trying to build? Have I communicated my vision? Do others feel a part of the ministry? Do the people that I am building with know that I love and care for them? When I leave will people say, "What a foundation he left for us to build on" or "What a mess!"

5. STRATEGY FOR SINGLES MINISTRY
"Sure we'd love to have a singles ministry. But we're such a small congregation. We have neither the numbers nor the resources to get one going. It takes a big church to be successful with singles." I wonder if you have ever heard that before. Worse yet, maybe you have even thought it before. Well, experience with young adult groups reveal that some very fine singles groups have grown in rather small churches. It does not take a big church or a massive kick-off to minister effectively to today's single population. If this is true, what approach will ensure effective ministry to single adults? The following are keys to success with single adults:

A. Start with a Planning Team
As a leader with a vision for young adult ministry the biggest mistake is to do it alone. When you name the group, plan the socials and lead the meetings the singles feel unnecessary, they sense no ownership and will refer to it as your group. It's imperative that you find others to share the leadership load. Invite single adults to join you on a planning team. Let this team meet a few times to evaluate ministry purpose, discover the target group and their needs and creative methods to reach them. Brainstorm methods and approaches and then delegate the work. Get the various members to take on responsibilities such as co-ordinating socials, welcoming newcomers, preparing advertising and keeping the finances straight. Keep the jobs for each person specific and manageable. You need to share up-front leadership and behind the scene work. Encourage women to join men in visible leadership roles to provide female role models for the other single women. Choose busy singles with careers to form the planning team as they will most likely be individuals who know how to get things done, and they will draw other singles to the group. The way a singles group grows is through the networking singles do in their communities, workplace and circles of friends. As the small nucleus become enthusiastic and begin to share the leadership, the potential group contacts will increase. And with greater contacts comes additional resources, creativity and respectability. A singles ministry is not like a youth group. Youth need adult leaders, lots of direction, and limited responsibility, whereas young adults are ready to assume high levels of ownership and responsibility. Team ministry provides the opportunity for growth, both in the team member's lives and in the group.

B. Make Singles Ministry a Priority
If you begin by trying to squeeze a young adult ministry into the fringes of your activities and schedule, the young adults will feel squeezed. Single ministry takes time, lots of it. They have questions that need answers and crises that demand response. The time needed for planning meetings requires commitment to running the group. Other involvements may have to be released so that you are free to make this ministry a priority. Making singles ministry a priority will communicate to the singles that they are important. Most singles have felt strongly at some time that they were unimportant to someone. In making them the priority of your ministry and the church they will pick up the signal that they are important, that they count and have a vital role to play. The result will be a decision on their part to make the group a priority in their own lives.

C. Focus on Discussion Meetings, Not Socials
Most groups begin with this philosophy: "Young adults are so over committed that we must only ha- say, the third Wednesday of every month. What they need most are social events. Let's make the events fun-orientated and we will attract other young adults." There are a few flaws with such reasoning:

(1) Infrequent meetings are not effective - infrequent meetings make it difficult for young adults to remember meeting dates and difficult to develop deep and meaningful friendships.

(2) Socials are not sufficient to keep young adults - they need a place of their own where they can discuss needs that are unique to them. Socials do not provide the substance needed for Christian growth, and they lack the consistency that is needed to form a group identity. It is not the fun events that will be the highlight of the group but the opportunity singles have to open up to others and have their concerns addressed.

(3) Weekly meetings cause less schedule conflict - not all the singles will make every meeting but at least they will not be confused about when the group is meeting.

D. Meet off the Church Grounds
Many singles are afraid of churches. Negative feelings exist due to poor childhood experiences or bad experiences during separation or divorce. What an older person feels about attending a rock concert, singles feel about attending church: they fear that they will not fit in, or not find people like themselves, or that they will be judged for who they are or how they live. The best solution is to meet away from the church facilities. This meeting place should be an informal, non-threatening setting that will serve as a bridge to the church. A home for initial meetings is ideal, although a larger venue must be discovered as the group out grows the home.

E. Advertise Well
The extent and the quality of the advertising will determine the response that is received. It is best to advertise wider than the local church. Check with the singles to see what channels they already use. The local community should be informed of the ministry, using local newspapers, radio channels and other avenues. A good form of advertising is to print business cards with the name of the group, address and a contact number. The word must get out to where the singles are found.