Youth Ministry Etiquette

What do you do when a kid from another youth group shows up in your youth ministry? I like using the word “etiquette” when talking about this issue in youth ministry because I doubt many youth workers think about “etiquette” when doing their jobs. Normally we think about who can be the loudest, the wackiest, and have the best program. But etiquette is important when working with the local youth workers in your town to make sure that you are not adding to a problem. We all want to see our youth ministries grow, but more importantly we want to see families’ spiritual needs met. When a kid from another youth group shows up at your door, you must call his youth pastor and tell him about it. It is my belief that you must do everything in your power to help that student get back to their youth ministry. Having a family within one church community is the best for them and the church. You may need to be a mediator for the student and his youth pastor. You may need to solve a family problem or disagreement. But whatever you do, get the student back into his youth group. As youth workers in the same community you should talk about these things before they happen and know that you have each other’s back. The harder you work to build community amongst local youth pastors, the more effective everyone will be in building the Kingdom.