The national KidMin17 conference was held April 19-21 at First Assembly in Ft. Wayne, Ind., with over 1,000 kids’ pastors and children’s leaders attending. The following is an overview provided by Danielle Christy, one of the conference attendees.

Most mistakes in ministry are not catastrophic. However, when a new leader makes some mistakes it can shake their confidence. By knowing the most common mistakes a new leader makes, you can help watch and coach them through it.

So you’ve done it! You’ve gotten the volunteers you have been hoping and praying for. But you begin to notice you are losing people as fast as you are gaining them. What’s going on? You try to make sure they have all the materials they need and even have helpers in their class. What more could they possibly want? One word: Encouragement.

When I think of the word Volunteers, my mind immediately goes into panic mode! Do I have enough? Will they be on time? Will their kids get sick at 10:00 pm on Saturday? Will they be prepared? Most kid’s pastors will understand the panic that ensues with that word volunteer. A little more panic comes to mind when you talk about recruiting volunteers. I will be honest, when I started out as a kid’s pastor, recruiting was the scariest and most intimidating thing in my job description. But over the past few years, I have come to LOVE recruiting and here is why: When you are actively recruiting and training volunteers you are completing God’s purpose for believers.

A few years ago, I started a journey down a new leadership path. I really had to evaluate what was the most important thing for me to be doing as a leader. I was doing a lot of stuff, but was it the most important thing?

Let’s face it, most leaders in children’s ministry started out by agreeing to serve for a brief time period. Then at some point it became their passion. But how can we help ensure that leaders become confident in their ability to share their faith with the next generation?