Why Hospital Calls Matter!!!

I don't hear much in youth ministry about those making hospital calls, and rarer still do I read on blogs or on leadership other than chaplains doing the Hospital calling.

Hospital Calls matter!!

Why?

1. It helps let the people in your congregation know you care.

2. It gets you out into the community. I can't tell you how often I meet someone in the community just by going to the hospital.

3. It helps by just listening. Listening to people's stories.

4. It gives opportunity to share Jesus - to pray, and sit and be an example.

5. It helps you to be a life-long learner. I've done a Ground Rounds (Hospital Tour and Seminar series) which helps and currently doing some CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education) this Spring in a course of Clinical Pastoral Visitation.

6. It gives opportunity to share of yourself. And know yourself and limitations.

7. It gives you an opportunity to encourage. Thank the Doctors and Nurses for being the healing hands of Jesus. Ask that the Great Physician use them in a mighty way.

8. It helps with confidentiality. I've becoming a better leader, because I'm listening more. Trying to be there, but not totally understanding and not trying to give out to the whole world what is, or isn't happening.

9. It helps you to depend on God more. Praying for God's Will to be done. Sometimes that has been the hardest prayer I've been praying. God let your will be done, and not mine. I would love to see healing, and God does heal; just sometimes not in the way I would like.

10. Hospital calls are to be short, concise and helps you to be a better leader. I usually have certain days I goto the hospital to visit. We need more Ministry minded leaders that are out making hospital calls: listening, praying, and learning what God is teaching them and others in the medical profession.

Other thoughts or ideas?

Ministry Myth: It is all about Relationships!

Seems this ministry myth is going strong. I've seen a lot of ministries, and especially youth ministries based upon the relationships of the youth pastor to the student. Relationships are not the end. Relationships are not the goal. Relationships are the means, the tool in which one points to well, Jesus.

God doesn't say I want just a relationship with you. God wants all of you.

Ministry isn't all about Relationships. Ministry is about, well, Jesus.

You do have to have a relationship with someone to point them to Jesus. You can't just go up to any yahoo on the street, and say, "If you were to die tonight, do you know where you'd spend eternity?" People don't even think in the realms of dying tonight, eternity; nor contemplate destination. In fact it probably turns them off to the message of the gospel, rather than attracts them.

Want to reach people, who seem to know about Jesus? Be real. Don't think relationships are the end all to be all. Ministry is more than getting in a small group and thinking I have a great relationship with everyone and have community therefore this is it. Ministry is centered on God, not relationships. Sometimes we forget that.

So You want to get published ....

Here are some Helpful Hints.


1. Write what you know about.

2. Write all of your book / article / manuscript first.

3. Proofread and have someone proofread it for you.

4. Re-write your material.

5. Do your research well. Research how to get published, ask other authors, write often, get exposure. Writing on your blog doesn't count as being a "Published" author. Attend seminars on being a published. The National Youth Worker's Convention use to have a great seminar entitled: "so you want to get published..."

6. Be patient - get guidelines from a variety of publishers and submit your manuscript. Follow-up though. Just because you haven't heard from them - doesn't mean they're interested in your work, in fact the opposite is usually true.

7. Sometimes self-publishing is the way to go and get your foot in the door.

8. Start small. Write for magazines, journals at first. Know the INs and OUTs of the Publishing industry. Just because you wrote an great devotional for your Summer camp, doesn't mean the Youth Ministry World will be excited about it.

9. Write a good proposal. Why would people want to read your book? what experience do you have? What are some books that are comparable in market? If you say this is a unique idea ... try again ... search google and amazon for comparable books and publishers.

10. Keep it simple. Don't try to make the publishing process too complex. If at first you don't succeed - try and try again.

Some Resources:

Book Publishing advice


How to get published Guide


Having a Website etc for your book


Vantage Press


You can buy this book: The Complere Idiot's Guide to getting Published


Ten Simple Rules for getting published


How to Get published article by Adam Mclane
Good insight for those in the youth ministry field.

Some Ole Marko quotes

"Contrary to much of our current thinking about the importance of powerful youth ministries to the lifelong spiritual development of future adults, research proves otherwise: a teenager who attends a church's worship service on a regular basis and does not attend youth group is more likely to attend worship services as an adult than a teen who is active in youth group but doesn't attend worship services with other age groups." pg. 33 Dan Kimball's The Emerging Church.

"Extracting a Ministry model from one church and injecting it into another without thought of context is one of the primary flaws in ministry practice today." pg. 32 The Emerging Church.

Hence why I wrote: I hate Doug Fields



There are some ministries that do try to
imitate
all the flash and Hi-tech though.

Three Types of People in Churches.

I'm recognizing there are three types of people in our congregations.

I. Those learning about God and getting ready to serve. (The Lost and Unsaved)

II. Those currently serving and passionate about ministry.

III. Those just sitting on the sidelines doing nothing.

The first two are the ones I want in my ministry. The latter I say go find somewhere else to get to, or get serving.