H7 Story: Producing Producers
“The world has enough consumers. At FCC, we are structured to produce producers for the sake of our community and the kingdom of God.”
–Scott Wakefield
There are many ways that FCC is structured to produce producers. One of the especially cool ways we do this is that, starting in 6th grade, we don’t just “allow“ our kids to serve but we try to “teach“ them to serve, often by being guided by more seasoned servants! It is truly beautiful to watch mature Christians come alongside our younger generation to pass on the heart of Christ to serve. Disciplemaking—teaching by modeling—is what produces the producers our world needs!
This intergenerational discipleship is part of how we apply Team Code Maxim #7: “We multiply influence by reproducing leaders.“ We believe that cultivating a heart to serve is critically important for producing producers who will become future pillars on which the church and our community thrive. And we want to be certain to begin instilling godly leadership tools at an early age!
Two men who model this value of teaching our next generation to serve are Volker Kemmann and Bill Richards. They naturally come alongside and involve young ones, inviting them to join in on tasks to teach them and to share their knowledge. How cool is that?! And what an important example for the rest of us?! If you’re an adult serving in some area where young people also serve, how can you likewise help our young people to serve?
“So… What does this look like more practically?”
So glad you asked! :o) We start engaging our youth in our churchwide vision to “Worship & Serve” as early as 6th grade! They are encouraged to begin serving on our teams for Tech, Guests, Multisite Setup/Cleanup, and even Preschool (i.e., nursery and toddlers, but not elementary until they’re in High School). In fact, one of the first things we try to do is sit down with both the 6th grader and the parents, to set expectations, show them how to use our serving softwares (Basecamp and Planning Center Services), and how find a good fit for serving!
–Scott Wakefield
There are many ways that FCC is structured to produce producers. One of the especially cool ways we do this is that, starting in 6th grade, we don’t just “allow“ our kids to serve but we try to “teach“ them to serve, often by being guided by more seasoned servants! It is truly beautiful to watch mature Christians come alongside our younger generation to pass on the heart of Christ to serve. Disciplemaking—teaching by modeling—is what produces the producers our world needs!
This intergenerational discipleship is part of how we apply Team Code Maxim #7: “We multiply influence by reproducing leaders.“ We believe that cultivating a heart to serve is critically important for producing producers who will become future pillars on which the church and our community thrive. And we want to be certain to begin instilling godly leadership tools at an early age!
Two men who model this value of teaching our next generation to serve are Volker Kemmann and Bill Richards. They naturally come alongside and involve young ones, inviting them to join in on tasks to teach them and to share their knowledge. How cool is that?! And what an important example for the rest of us?! If you’re an adult serving in some area where young people also serve, how can you likewise help our young people to serve?
“So… What does this look like more practically?”
So glad you asked! :o) We start engaging our youth in our churchwide vision to “Worship & Serve” as early as 6th grade! They are encouraged to begin serving on our teams for Tech, Guests, Multisite Setup/Cleanup, and even Preschool (i.e., nursery and toddlers, but not elementary until they’re in High School). In fact, one of the first things we try to do is sit down with both the 6th grader and the parents, to set expectations, show them how to use our serving softwares (Basecamp and Planning Center Services), and how find a good fit for serving!
Of the many ways to serve, a common favorite among our young boys is serving on the Tech Team! They love it, and at times, the Tech Crew has been filled with youngsters excited to learn how to push all those flashy buttons! Wes Ford, our Tech Director, does an excellent job of teaching them in quite a few roles: sound, lights, presentation software, cameras, to name a few.
Among our young girls, a favorite is helping in our Preschool Kids area. This is a great environment for teaching them not only how to lead and teach others about Jesus, but it also models motherly nurture from older women who serve!
At our Afton and South Greene locations, many of our youth and students help with the many “setup & cleanup“ duties. This can look like setting up chairs and breaking them down, mopping floors, setting up tables, or even putting out signs. (Btw, at FCC, we say “setup & cleanup“ to help reinforce the idea that we wanna leave things better than we found them. We don’t say “load-out & load-in” and certainly not “setup & takedown” as that sounds practically destructive!)
We also have lots of kids who serve on the Guest Team! As Connections Director Kendra Hinkle puts it, we are serving our guests “from street to seat!” This often looks like greeting you at the door with adorable little smiles, handing out Worship Guides, helping serve our own locally-roasted and freshly brewed Catalyst Coffee, serving communion, collecting the offering, and passing out Bibles. mission statement for the Guest Team is: “show our guests God is for them by how well we serve them." This motto exemplifies how this is a great team to How cool that teaching our kids what it looks like to show others that God is for them can mean putting it into action like this?!
Among our young girls, a favorite is helping in our Preschool Kids area. This is a great environment for teaching them not only how to lead and teach others about Jesus, but it also models motherly nurture from older women who serve!
At our Afton and South Greene locations, many of our youth and students help with the many “setup & cleanup“ duties. This can look like setting up chairs and breaking them down, mopping floors, setting up tables, or even putting out signs. (Btw, at FCC, we say “setup & cleanup“ to help reinforce the idea that we wanna leave things better than we found them. We don’t say “load-out & load-in” and certainly not “setup & takedown” as that sounds practically destructive!)
We also have lots of kids who serve on the Guest Team! As Connections Director Kendra Hinkle puts it, we are serving our guests “from street to seat!” This often looks like greeting you at the door with adorable little smiles, handing out Worship Guides, helping serve our own locally-roasted and freshly brewed Catalyst Coffee, serving communion, collecting the offering, and passing out Bibles. mission statement for the Guest Team is: “show our guests God is for them by how well we serve them." This motto exemplifies how this is a great team to How cool that teaching our kids what it looks like to show others that God is for them can mean putting it into action like this?!
At FCC, we believe helping young people “Serve on the team” is part of Helping Young People Find and Follow Jesus! Do your children display a heart to serve others like Christ? Are they learning that in practical ways that we can help with by having them serving on the team? If not, let us know; we’d love to come alongside you and help make that happen!
Posted in Tell the Story