By: Dan Bender
How are Family Ministry Environments Structured?
Family Ministry at Hebron Church is set up with the following structure. We are all familiar with houses. We use the practicality and versatility of the home for imagery. We focus on 3 environments.
#1 The Foyer - The place where people enter in, get to know and become known.
(ex. gatherings and fun opportunities)
#2 The Living Room - The place where people get to come together regularly and share their day to day or week to week. (ex. Wednesday and Sunday programming)
#3 The Kitchen - The place where people spend intentional time together.
(ex. trips, retreats, small groups, and service opportunities)
What does it take to make Family Ministry happen?
Family Ministry at Hebron Church is an ALL HANDS on DECK situation.
Family Ministry is done by the families of Hebron with support of the larger church family, which is supported by the Family Ministry Staff. The purpose of Family Ministry Staff is to create and curate opportunities for the church family to engage, encourage and empower the families to fully live into the reality that they are the PRIMARY faith influence in the lives of their children and are primarily responsible for raising them in faith.
Everyone at Hebron Church has a role to play in Family Ministry.
It all starts with support through prayer. Everyone should be praying.
It then comes to being present. Opportunities need people to make them happen.
This is where we need people passionate about serving families and families committed to being served. You have to show if you want to grow.
What are the current needs? Simple as ABC and 123.
For Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings we need to make sure that we have at all times 2 adults in every room. This is not just a request, but it is what Pennsylvania expects us to have for proper safety coverage. Because of what it takes to do Family Ministry in these rooms, often we need 3 people.
Every (birth through 12th) room needs 1 Adult Primary Facilitator, 1 Adult Assistant, and 1 Adult/Student Helper as numbers dictate.
Think of it this way.
A - Adult Primary Facilitator
B - Adult Assistant
C - Adult/Student Helper
This requires a lot of people power to pull off. Which is why we need you to step up and become a part of what is happening every week.
What is the REALITY?
Kids need stability. They need people who are caring and consistent.
Primary Facilitators need to average 75%-85% being present to be effective in leading. 85% is a sneaky statistic because that is when BURNOUT sets in. God knows this. He set it up. Rest 1 Day, work 6.
If you are keeping score, 6/7 = 85.71428571%
We need to start getting people plugged in and serving so that we can have a more sustainable Family Ministry. One where people are engaged in what is happening with this next generation and providing respite to those who have been holding down the fort over the last year or more.
We have a lot of ministry opportunities that need to be filled. They range from behind the scenes preparations for weekly programming, to special event needs, to being present with kids during programing and supporting them in the community by showing up to cheer them on at a game or activity.
What is the ASK?
We are going to ask that God would inspire you to serve. Then inspire you to get your clearances. Then inspire you to have a 15-minute orientation phone call, ZOOM call or in person meeting with Dan Bender. Then inspire you to be behind the scenes or be present as we look to inspire an everyday faith in THIS GENERATION. They always say it just takes 1. That is true.
We are going to ask that Family Ministry families who are not already serving fill 1 spot per semester.
We are going to ask that the greater church family who attend the 9:00 AM or 11:15 AM service and are not already serving, fill 1 spot per semester.
We are going to ask students (6th-12th) to be a helper 1 time a semester.
What happens NOW?
Welcome to EveryONE.
EveryONE is our New Volunteer Pipeline. This Pipeline is owned by the Connections Team partnering with the Family Life Ministry Team and partnering with other teams as things come to pass. As the staff liaison to both teams, it is good to launch it using Family Ministry because that is where the biggest needs are and biggest area of impact.
The need is apparent. It’s time to plug in. Sign ups are coming.
We will begin to place those who already have clearances.
We will help those who do not have them acquire them. Some needs do not require clearances if they are behind the scenes, but the vast majority do.
We will offer an orientation to each type of need so you can be confident.
We will follow up with you after you serve. We will eventually create an EveryONE Board so you can see what the needs are in real time.
Much, Much, Much More to Come.
