Making the Team

Making the Team: Qualifications for Ministry to Youth and Children

These words come sharply to any person striving to join a team . . . "Did you make the cut?"  Whether in sports like football, soccer and basketball, or ministry, to children or youth, the goal is the same¹: to win the prize!  The makings of a championship team do not come without cost.  The price of personal sacrifice and commitment is essential² of every player; they are indispensable ingredients that comprise every winning team.  Within the heart³ of every champion is where the choices must be made to guarantee the success of the whole.

The members of our ministry are an elite team of individuals committed to the purpose of our church: We exist to glorify God by reaching people for Jesus Christ and helping believers grow to be like Him.  This is end zone, this is the medal, this is the prize.

Ministry Team Members are . . .

• Servant Leaders⁴
• Teachers that are held to a higher standard⁵
• Ambassadors: We represent Jesus Christ to the community by our example of faith, conduct and speech.⁶

From the Bible we see that ministry is expected⁷ and that ministry is a privilege.⁸

Therefore, Ministry Team Members must . . .

• Be a signed covenant member of The Fellowship
• Complete a  Uniquely You Questionnaire ,  Ministry Application , and three references cards and allow us to conduct a background check.
• Be a member of the Life Links ministry by demonstrating a regular commitment to a Relational Group or Service Group.
• Demonstrate a regular commitment to weekend services
• Demonstrate a regular commitment to spiritual growth by participation in Men's prayer group, Women's Bible Study or Fellowship Community College, etc.
• Be loyal to team and staff
• Be committed to Christian manners, attitudes and behaviors both "on and off the field."

"Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.  They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.  Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air.  No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize." 1 Corinthians 9:25-27

¹1 Corinthians 9:24-27  "Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.  They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.  Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air.  No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize."

²Luke 9:23-24  "Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it."

³Romans 10:8-10  "But what does it say? 'The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,' that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: That if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

⁴Luke 22:24-27  "Also a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. Jesus said to them, 'The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves."

⁵James 3:1  "Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly."

⁶2 Corinthians 5:20  "We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God."

⁷Luke 9:23  "Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me."

⁸2 Corinthians 8:1-5  "And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches.  Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.  For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God's will."

Ephesians 1:3-14  "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.  For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.  In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.  And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.  In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.  And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation.  Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of his glory."

Ephesians 2:13  "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ."

Hebrews 11:35-39  "Women received back their dead, raised to life again.  Others were tortured and refused to be released,  so that they might gain a better resurrection.   Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison.  They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword.  They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— the world was not worthy of them.  They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.  These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised."