Fall Planning

Can we talk about the fall? I know you have a summer to navigate, but that means you need to prep early so you aren’t caught behind when the season shifts.

First there is something so amazing about fall. Temperatures start to cool off, after a long summer which can be a refreshing thing. The trees begin to change color, with beauty all around us. We are on the verge of the Holiday Season, Halloween to Thanksgiving to Christmas, you can feel the nostalgia in the air. School starts for everyone, giving us all a “normal” schedule again. Not to mention the greatest time of year, Football Season (I know for some you could care less, but this means fall to me). When fall hits and you get those flannels out there’s something cozy about it. Plus you have an amazing opportunity to get the students and their families focused again on the work you all share. Summer’s crazy open schedule is over and its time to come back together as a community.

Planning for the fall can be an exciting and important task. It’s an opportunity to set a vision for the upcoming season and to develop strategies that will help students and their families grow in their faith and relationships with each other.

The first step in planning for the fall, like all other seasons, is to assess the needs of your youth group. What are their strengths and weaknesses? What are their interests and passions? What issues are they facing in their personal lives or in the community? These questions will help you to identify the areas where your youth group needs support and guidance.

Summer’s crazy open schedule is over and its time to come back together as a community.

Once you have identified the needs of your youth group, the next step is to set goals for the fall. Since the fall is a time of nostalgia and “re-gathering” of the group, traditions tend to dominate the calendar. Utilize those traditions like Halloween parties, trunk or treat, Thanksgiving Dinners, Football games, Band contests, Christmas Parties and Fall Retreats to be the vehicles to achieve the goals your ministry needs.

For instance every year we used to throw a Costume/Halloween party. Our students loved good Halloween parties. All the costumes, candy, games etc. was just fun for them. We had lots of nerds who liked Cosplay and a lot of theater kids who loved to dress up, it made for a fun season. One of my goals was to empower the students to own the ministry. So every year I would give aspects of the planning over to the High School small groups. They made the night their own. Because of that we had droves of kids show up, not because of the event but because their friends were excited about it and passed that excitement on to each other. Every year it was a part of our calendar and every year I used it to achieve similar goals for the fall.

Setting goals is one thing, but you should regularly assess your progress towards your goals. This allows you to make adjustments to your plan if necessary and to celebrate your successes along the way. Regularly telling stories reminds your students about the work God is doing among them. Those stories are also crucial for getting buy-in from the church at large, maintaining momentum with parents and keeping everyone engaged and motivated.

One of the major things I keep in mind when I am planning for the fall is ensuring that students do not feel guilty for not being able to participate in certain activities or programs due to their busy schedules. I literally tell the kids that I know they are busy and don’t want them to feel alienated because they can’t attend an event. I know it sounds counterintuitive to “growing” a youth ministry, but what it does is reminds us that we are actually discipling students to live in their day to day lives, not live at the church building so we can hit some arbitrary metric.

You should never want to compete, you should always show your students how to find joy in the midst of where they live every day, which means you may have to pair things back and meet the students where they live.

Because we get caught up in all the things we want for our students its hard to remember, sometimes, that students have busy lives outside of the youth group, with school, extracurricular activities, and family commitments. It’s important to create a culture within the group that values balance and understands that students may not be able to participate in every activity or program.

The way we do this is to communicate clearly our expectations about participating. This includes clearly communicating the dates and times of activities or programs, as well as any ways they can own the program. By doing so, students are able to plan ahead and make informed decisions about their involvement in the youth group. It lessens the guilt and shame while telling them we hope they can be part of what we are doing.

Inevitably, though, you will have students that just can’t take part in what you are doing. Make note of those things. You will find out two things that will help you. 1) Students are in a community where God has placed them. That means those places are not in competition to what you are doing they are opportunities for your students to see God at work there. You should take time and ask those students how you can be praying for them and just because they miss your activity they are still part of the group. Then have the student/adult leaders pray for them as you begin your program. 2) Check planned events, if you keep running into problems, maybe you should adjust your programming so you can be part of what is happening with the students. I have paired my program back in the fall so I could both coach sports teams and tailgate at band competitions/sports games because that’s where the students were. You should never want to compete, you should always show your students how to find joy in the midst of where they live every day, which means you may have to pair things back and meet the students where they live.

By creating a culture of balance, grace, and understanding, students are more likely to feel supported and valued within the youth group. This can lead to increased engagement and investment in the group as a whole, as well as stronger relationships between youth and their leaders. Not to mention when they graduate they may actually start to notice the work God is doing in the places they are living, and who knows they might join him there.

As you plan the fall make sure you keep in mind what is important. Its important to set goals that empower your students to own the ministry, not just have fun, and remember those things are not mutually exclusive, they can work together. Its also important to ensure that students do not feel guilty for not participating in certain activities or programs due to their busy schedules. By communicating clearly about expectations and requirements, and by creating a culture of grace and understanding within your group, students are more likely to feel supported and valued within the group, and to continue to be engaged and invested in their faith and relationships with each other.

Happy planning…