Every children’s minister wants their ministry to grow. I believe God wants your ministry to grow as well. In order for our ministries to children to grow, we must be willing to grow in our leadership abilities. Individual growth always comes before corporate growth.

The number one key to growth as a leader is evaluation. Change will never take place without constant evaluation. If you don’t identify ways that you can grow as a leader you’ll never reach your next level. Let’s look at some areas we should evaluate on a regular basis.

First, how’s your attitude? Here are some questions I ask myself on a regular basis: Do I have the heart of a servant? Have I made my Pastor look good this week? Have I made my Pastor’s life easier this week? Am I an asset or a liability to my Pastor? Am I a team player? What is my attitude about others around me? Am I grumbling and complaining? Am I enjoying the trip? Do I have a heart after God? Am I thinking about me and my wants too much?

The second area to evaluate is your priorities. Could you make a list of the top ten priorities for your life and ministry right this moment? If you don’t have priorities you can’t keep them. Proverbs 28:2 says, “When a country is rebellious, it has many rulers, but a man of understanding and knowledge maintains order.” It’s one thing to know your priorities, it’s another thing entirely to live according to those priorities.

The third area to evaluate about yourself is time management. In other words, ask yourself: How am I spending my time? Am I spending time daily with the Lord? Is my family suffering while my ministry is flourishing? Am I making time for my personal growth and development? Are you identifying the time robbers in your life?        Once you identify the areas that need improvement, you must come up with a plan to implement the needed changes. It’s your time, act like it!

The fourth area I evaluate on a regular basis is my performance. Am I being a team builder or a one-person show? What am I doing that someone else can do? Have I communicated clearly to all my workers what they are to do? Speaking of communication, am I a clear and skillful communicator? Am I skilled at solving problems? Can I be relied on to complete assignments and keep commitments? If you had to rate your level of leadership on a scale of one to 10 what would it be? Are you meeting the needs of the children and families of your church?

It’s up to you to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses on a regular basis. If you’ll make personal evaluation a habit in your life, you’ll grow as a leader!

I got a sweet email recently…

“We hosted Yancy here for a concert. She was great! The kids loved her. Even though the attendance was not what I had hoped for, her performance was professional, enthusiastic, scriptural and fun. Most of all, I appreciate her passion for ministering to children. She has a new group of fans!”

I lost my dad – also in ministry – to lung cancer earlier this month and I especially appreciated folks telling him when I did a good job.

I am proud of my kids! They both love Jesus and want to make a difference in others for the kingdom.

My girls are my greatest sermon!

Checkout Yancy’s ministry and music at www.yancynotnancy.com

Jim Wideman is doing a great series of posts about the ten marks of a super leader – something we can all learn from!

1. A super leader has to see things before they happen. Long before I ministered to thousands of kids I saw it. Long before I had a national ministry I saw it. I don’t pastor the ministry I have, I pastor the ministry I want to have. See the vision. Set the right goals. See what needs to be improved. Develop the plan to get it done!

2. A super leader connects with other leaders. You must feel comfortable with the leaders above you. There must be a connection with co-workers. You must be respected by those you lead. Seek out friendships and relationships with leaders who will help you sharpen your skills and thinking.

3. A super leader can assess priorities and see what is important and throw off that which is unimportant. Life can get complex; a supper leader keeps things simple. Know how, what, and who to delegate to.

4. A super leader gives order. Flowcharts, job descriptions, policies, and procedures are a great place to start. Keep updating. One of my favorite questions is, “Is there a better way to do what we are doing?” Training helps to maintain order.

See the rest at Jim’s blog.

See yesterday’s post for more of Jim’s thoughts on seeing your dreams come to pass.

Once you have determined where you are going and where you are, the next step is to determine some reachable short-term goals. I’m a very step-oriented person because God blesses us by steps. Psalm 37:23 says, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.” If God orders our steps, then why do we think in leaps and jumps? Steps help us to move from where we are to where we want to end up. It’s one thing to identify steps to take, and it’s another  to commit to walking out those steps. How badly do you want them? Bad enough to change? Bad enough to organize? Bad enough to try things you’ve never done before? Now you have a plan. People follow people who have a plan. Start with the most logical step. Keep your steps in order. Don’t get ahead or behind. Stay on time. Always let God guide your steps and make sure your plan is His plan.

Now build your faith by sharing your vision with others. Faith comes by hearing, so it’s good to hear your vision even if you are the only one talking about it. The more I hear it, the more excited I get and the more I believe it is going to come to pass. Not only does this build your faith, but passing your vision along also builds your team.

Never stop serving but – more importantly – never stop dreaming.

Proverbs 29:18 tells us, “Where there is no vision people perish.” Vision is the key to seeing your plans turn into reality. Not only do people perish without a vision, ministries don’t get off the ground without vision.

Stephen Covey has taught us that the second habit of effective people is to start with the end in mind. I like to say it this way: “If you aim at nothing, you’ll hit it every time.” If you’re going to see your dreams come true you must identify what you want. Picture how Jesus wants your ministry to end up. That’s your target. Dare to see your ministry through Jesus’ eyes. When the fat angel sings, how do you want your ministry to end up? Keep this vision before you at all times.

The next step to seeing your vision come to pass is to define your vision. Habakkuk 2:2 tells us to “write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.” It’s not enough just to have a goal. You need to write it down and make it plain. The ticket to developing a plan and strategy to move from Vision-land to reality is to know where you are right now. You cannot develop a plan to get where you’re going if you don’t know where you’re starting from.

This week we’re looking at four things a successful coach should instill in his or her team and expect from each player. Re-read parts one, two, and three for background.

4. DO YOUR JOB. Do what you know to do. Team players understand their roles and do them with all their might. A valuable team player must possess knowledge of the game, continually being a student of the game. It’s imperative to know and follow the game plan. Know your job or position. Always be loyal to your coaches.

The best teams in the world review and evaluate constantly—not just the accomplishments but also the mistakes. Take blame, but never assign any. Never talk bad about teammates at any time. Never talk bad about the coaches or the front office. Share any and all victories together. Value your team and you’ll enjoy the value of teamwork first hand.

This week we’re looking at four things a successful coach should instill in his or her team and expect from each player. You can see one here and two here.

3. OVER-COMMUNICATE. Let those above you know what’s going on. No surprises. Ever. Surprises hurt the team. Let those around you know what’s happening and what they should be doing. The military calls this the “need to know.” Talk with the team. Build a relationship with your teammates. Don’t take things personally. A good communicator is a good listener. Be determined to learn from everybody, not just your coaches. This includes learning from your own mistakes.

This week we’re looking at four things a successful coach should instill in his or her team and expect from each player. You can see number one here.

2. GIVE A LOT. Let your teammates slam-dunk while you take an assist. Rejoice in the abilities and accomplishments of those around you. An excellent team player prefers for others to excel. The motto is, “It doesn’t matter who gets the credit.” Never complain, but seek opportunities to motivate others. Don’t be negative. You cannot maintain a winning attitude and be negative. Being positive is a choice! A team player compliments others and hands out praise. In ministry we can’t control every event, but we can control our responses to it. Do your best even if you go unnoticed. Always ask, “What’s best for the team?” Never be too busy to help others. The team that gives a lot accomplishes a lot.

No matter how great an individual player you are, a team can make you or break you. As a children’s pastor I have worked hard assembling and developing my teams. My least favorite times in ministry have been on staffs where everyone did their own thing, not functioning as a team. A team can always accomplish more than an individual, but children’s ministers often insist on doing things themselves rather than build a strong team. I believe every ministry leader should see himself or herself as a coach and desire to build a super team.

There are four things a successful coach should instill in his or her team and expect from each player, and we’ll address them in the next few days.

1. BE ON THE BALL. Team players must be alert to what’s going on and able to assess the situation for themselves and the team. A team player puts the goals, needs, and good of the team first, rather than individual goals, wants, and needs. Each member of the team must value the team. Don’t ever think about quitting the team in hard times. Don’t let setbacks stop you. See problems as challenges and situations for your team to excel. Get after it—work it with all your might to make your team be its best.

We said yesterday that individual growth must always come before corporate growth. If you want your ministry to grow, you must be willing to push yourself toward growth. Constant evaluation is necessary to ensure growth, specifically evaluation in four areas. Read about the first two here.

3. Is my time managed well? How am I spending my time? Am I spending time daily with the Lord? Is my family suffering while my ministry is flourishing? Am I making time for my personal growth and development? Am I identifying the time robbers in my life? Once you identify the areas that need improvement, you must come up with a plan to implement the needed changes.

4. How am I performing? Am I being a team builder or a one person show? What am I doing that someone else can do? Have I communicated clearly to all my workers what they are to do? Am I a clear and skillful communicator? Am I skilled at solving problems? Can I be relied on to complete assignments and keep commitments? On a scale of 1 to 10, what is my level of leadership? Am I meeting the needs of the children and families of my church?

It’s up to you to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses on a regular basis. Make personal evaluation a habit in your life, and grow exponentially.