My Ministry Setting Is A “Mega” Size
Your Question:
“How can I best serve in a mega ministry setting?”
The Issues:
Serving in a “mega” (over 2,000 people) church or organization means that the ministry must have a very large CM team, be guided by a strong set of CM policies and procedures, and do a great job at developing relationships with the crowds of children who fellowship there.
Scripture Foundation:
“Late in the afternoon the Twelve came to him and said, ‘Send the crowd away so they can go to the surrounding villages and countryside and find food and lodging, because we are in a remote place here.’He replied, ‘You give them something to eat.’They answered, ‘We have only five loaves of bread and two fish—unless we go and buy food for all this crowd.’ (About five thousand men were there.)But he said to his disciples, ‘Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.’ The disciples did so, and everyone sat down. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them. Then he gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.” Luke 9: 12-17
Short Answer:
When God blesses a church or ministry, the number of people who fellowship there increases. This is a basic principle and process. A mega church or organizaton has been blessed by God, and now involves a significant number of people (over 2,000).
Jesus’ handling of the large number of people who flocked to hear Him is an excellent “template” for how you should deal with the large number of children who visit the CM. First, we must “feed” them! This clarifies that we are not simply “babysitting” them while the “real” ministry happens to the adults! To “feed” children means that we must give them a “meal” that satisfies their needs. This “meal” includes physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual food. This requires a good curriculum, child-focused CM team members, excellent CM team training, and a safe environment in which to develop relationships.
Jesus divided the large group into smaller groups of 50 people. This reflects what you should consider regarding the large number of children who come to the CM. How do you divide them into smaller groups? Mega churches or organizations tend to incorporate large group programs where children of multiple ages gather together to experience a time of worship and some sort of lesson or talk. This is usually done out of necessity because there aren’t enough CM team members to facilitate smaller groups. But, this doesn’t match what Jesus did. He broke the larger group into smaller groups of 50. Did He do this to facilitate the building of relationships or did He do it to help with the distribution of food? Because this was a one-time encounter, He probably divided them into smaller groups to facilitate the distribution of food. Today, we understand that building relationships with the children is a vital part of fulfilling the “Great Commission,” and that relationships aren’t easily built in large groups.
A good way to enhance relationship-building even within a large group setting is to break the large group of children up into smaller groups (under 10 children), and to have them interact with a CM team member for discussions or other lesson-focused activities. This can be done in the large room by using tables and chairs, or simply sitting in small groups on the floors. Relationships are built by having the children interact with the same CM team leader week to week. You should probably incorporate a rotation plan for the CM team members (download the document, “CM Team Rotation Overview” for help in developing a CM team rotation process), but even with a rotation plan, the children can be with the same team member for at least 4 weeks. If you have enough CM team members to divide the children into age group rooms, that would still be better than grouping them into a large, multi-age group. Many churches incorporate a “hybrid” plan that utilizes small group rooms and a large group worship time. The children are checked into the smaller rooms for an introduction and lesson, then they travel in groups to the larger room for worship. After the large group experience, they return to the smaller rooms for a time of application or activity where their parents pick them up at the end of the service. This “hybrid” plan provides a good balance of smaller group encounters and a large group worship experience. The “hybrid” plan requires a facility that provides both large and small rooms, and a separate team to run the large group experience.
A mega ministry also requires “mega communication.” If the Lord blesses you with enough CM team members to minister to the large number of children, your communication with the team, and the parents of the children, must be significant! This communication includes email, text, online, and in-person interactions. To prevent parents from feeling “lost,” make sure to have enough CM team members serving as greeters in the hallways. These “greeters” also serve as security and assistants during the service. The greeter team members need to know how to deal with emergencies, lost parents, lost children, restroom issues, and other needs apart from the lesson.
Hopefully, your mega requirements are supported by a mega budget. A mega CM should spend most of its budget on the CM team. Today’s curriculum can be expensive, but if you are spending most of your budget on the curriculum, your CM team may not be strong enough to support the mega expectations. A mega CM should have paid area coordinators to support the CM director. The structure of the CM leadership should have multiple levels within it. (See the section of this website on developing the CM leadership structure, ) As a CM director, you need to be clear and strong about the needs of the CM team. If the CM team is not large enough, strong enough, and organized well, the entire CM can crumble. If this happens, the “mega” concept can implode on itself and the entire church can be harmed. So, be strong and stand up for the needs of the CM. God has blessed the church, and that is why it is the “mega” size.
He has called you to lead the children. Remain submissive to the leadership, but don’t “cower.” For more help in understanding the setting of the children’s ministry, click on the APPENDIX link below.
Visit other articles in the “Understanding Your Ministry Setting APPENDIX”
