Back in December, our founder and CEO William Vanderbloemen predicted that the world should prepare for what he’s coined “The Great Covid Job Churn,” as people look for new opportunities coming out of Covid. We are already seeing plenty of evidence that this exact prediction is coming to fruition, as millions of people have quit their jobs, and many more are considering it.
After a long 16 months, the country is opening. People are coming back to church. And we predict that this fall will be one of the biggest Back To School rushes for churches ever. Are you ready for it? Are you staffed for it?
The pandemic’s effect on our youth
As we begin to understand the consequences of this pandemic, one thing is clear: our youth have suffered tremendously. If you are a parent or are even a person who remembers being young, you know that being middle and high school age is not without its challenges. Our teens have now had to navigate the normal stressors of being young, as well as facing isolation from classes moving online, fear for the state of a world they have little control over, and the expectation of keeping up with school despite everything previously mentioned. This rising generation of Believers is as tired as we are, and they need encouragement.
Come this fall, students will be in school full-time, full-speed, for the first time in over a year. If we want to steward our youth well, and if we want them to turn to the church rather than to the world as they enter into an inevitably stressful season, they are going to need a student ministry at church to help them adjust and keep them spiritually healthy.
If you want your students to feel cherished, welcomed, and encouraged by your church body, you need to create spaces and opportunities specifically for them. Without a pastor specifically ministering to them, students will not feel comfortable approaching the church with their needs and worries. Whether you have 15 teens or 150, if your church does not have a student pastor, you need one now.
Why hire now?
The fall is not the time for you to begin a student pastor search. Students are going to return from summer vacation and immediately start setting their patterns and habits for the next school year. After almost two years of isolation, they are going to be looking for involvement. They will be joining clubs, sports teams, and social circles, and their schedules will fill up quickly. You want to already have systems and schedules in place so that as they seek encouragement and community, they find it in the church before they simply do not have time for the church.
The job market is ready: thousands of equipped Americans are looking for new, meaningful work. Your students are ready: they have suffered months of isolation, and they need specialized care from the church. The only question is whether you are ready. The need is there, and the tools to fulfill that need are there. Your church simply needs to begin the search, and begin now.
We’ve helped churches like yours from across the country find the perfect leaders to guide their student ministries. Check out some of the work we’ve done finding student pastors for Northcliffe Baptist Church, Highlands Community Church, and Dawson Memorial Baptist.
Don’t delay! Vanderbloemen is ready to help you hire your next student pastor.
