Author: Kenny Conley

One of the most important things we can/should do with our time is to DEVELOP our staff, right? The quality and impact of your ministry is directly connected to how you empower others. This is the tricky part of delegation, isn’t it? It’s hard to let go of our responsibilities, isn’t it? We have programs, events and pet projects that are like children to us. I think I remember reading that if someone can do what you do at about 70% of the quality, then you should give it away. Once we find enough things to give away, we...

Last year I celebrated 20 years of vocational ministry. I can very easily divide the 20 years into two halves. The first half was 10 years of doing ministry on my own and the second half was a decade of doing ministry in community. If I could go back and visit 20-year-old Kenny, I’d give him this advice: “Never do ministry alone. Find your tribe.” You might not have any staff. When it comes to family ministry, you’re it. It’s easy to feel alone and isolated when you’re the only one carrying the burden of ministry to the next generation....

Before the days of Family Ministry and NextGen teams, the process of finding and leading volunteers was all over the map. Wait, who am I kidding? For most in ministry, a comprehensive strategy for volunteers is lacking. The good news is that a NextGen ministry structure creates a foundation for healthy volunteer systems. Let’s take a look at what often is and what could be. Volunteer Recruitment The one thing every children’s ministry and youth ministry can agree on is this: we need more volunteers. Outside of this one point of agreement, everything else is different. Youth ministry usually...

Wow! Orange 2018 is over and it’s back to normal life. Sort of, right? The point of conferences like Orange is that things don’t go back to normal again. The big idea is that something changes. It’s an idea. A new perspective. Maybe it’s some new relationships. Whatever it is, hopefully, something has changed and this week (and every week after) is a little different than before. The NextGen track at Orange was STRONG. So much content to help NextGen leaders get to the next level of their leadership. However, something interesting always happens at the Orange Conference. I...