You’ve got an incredible ministry team. You’ve got awesome volunteers. You’ve surrounded yourself with amazing people who love serving kids and students in your ministry. Now, what can you do to equip, engage, and inspire them? The answer might be beyond the walls of your office or building. It might be time to for your team to get away together for a conference, a retreat, or even a fun getaway.
Here are 3 reasons why you should consider getting away with your team….
Getting away helps escape the normal routine
Sometimes, the best thing for a team is to get out of the ordinary to spark new ideas and develop new inspiration. If you’re looking to do something new, exciting, and different, then you need to get your team out of their normal environment and routines.
“… where we meet shapes the discussions we’ll have … Location drives content. It’s why we should be as picky about where we talk as we are about what we actually discuss.” – Bob Goff, Everybody Always
Some of the best team discussions I’ve had weren’t in a conference room or on video conferencing; they were around a dinner table, sitting on beanbags at a conference center, or at a campground pool. Escaping your normal routine truly allows people to let their guard down, think differently, and move forward in new ways.
Getting away gets everyone on the same page
One of the most valuable assets a team can have is a unified, strong vision. Going away to a conference or team retreat can provide that time for everyone on your team to hear the same thing, experience the same thing, and provides the time to communicate about vision.
Getting away build relationships
Every January, my team serves at several different events across the country. It never fails that our best memories, best belly laughs, and best quotes come from those times when we are all away together. I want the team on which I serve to have strong friendships and to enjoy being around one another. Getting away together as team, seeing new things, serving together somewhere differently, and even eating at new restaurants together builds those solid relationships to help create a healthy and fun team culture.
Some of the most valuable times with ministry teams on which I have served have been those times when we’ve been able to get away together as a team. The time away from your normal setting can be valuable to refresh your team’s minds and spirits. So, go ahead! Plan a team retreat, plan an all-day meeting at the local bowling alley, or attend a conference like the ETCH Family Ministry Conference in Nashville this October.
Micheal Walley serves as the LifeWay Kids Event Producer. He is a graduate of Mississippi College and now lives in Nashville, Tennessee. Micheal has been serving in Kids Ministry from the moment he was “promoted” out of kids ministry himself. He loves coffee, leadership, all things creative, and his wife, Anne Marie.
