As 2023 quickly moves away from us, it is crucial that we look ahead and make plans for 2024.
This is no trivial matter. We must look ahead at 2024 and invest our time wisely. We cannot enter the new year haphazardly. Rather we should enter with a heart of surrender and passion for the adventures God has planned for us.
Here is a good start for you. These are 10 ministry goals you should set and track throughout the coming year. So...here we go. 10 ministry goals you need to set for 2024.
Salvations
How many people are coming to Christ? Of course, God is the only one who transforms people's lives and draws people to Himself. But He uses people to share the Gospel with others.
Are we reaching kids with the Gospel?
Are we reaching parents with the Gospel?
Acts 1:8 reminds us that we are to take the Gospel to the world. But we do not go alone. We have the Holy Spirit who goes before us and prepares the way.
Baptisms
This is another number that only God can make happen. If you are faithful to share the Gospel, you will see kids and parents follow Jesus in baptism. Here's another resource that can help you with this. It's a class called "Baptism for Kids." It's a class for kids and parents who are considering being baptized. You can get more info. at this link.
Attendance
This will help you determine if you are growing or not. Remember...anything that has life in it...grows. God gives the increase and He grows His church. We must get outside of the walls of the church and reach people with the Gospel.
A going church is a growing church.
You can't minister to empty seats.
Guests
Track how many guests are coming. This will help you with follow up and assimilation. Guests are the lifeblood for a church that wants to grow and reach people.
Guests return
In order to assimilate into the church, guests obviously need to come back and get involved. It is important to track this. This will also reveal how well you are doing at getting guests to return.
The national average for guest return is about 7%. Focus on guest return and you can see many more return. At this link is a strategy that I used to go from a 7% return rate to a 38% return rate.
New Volunteers
If I could only pick one goal to focus on, it would be this one. Volunteers are the lifeblood of every ministry. Grow your volunteer team and you will see your ministry grow. The success of your ministry will rise and fall on the strength of the volunteer team you build.
Have you read my book "The Formula for Building Great Volunteer Teams?" This book will help you build a strong volunteer team. It's available at this link.
VBS (or whatever you call it) Volunteers and Attendance
VBS is still a great way to reach kids and families if you are strategic. It's also a great way to enlist more volunteers.
I would encourage you to set a goal for both of these.
Work hard. Pray hard. See what God does.
Ratios
It is extremely important that you have the correct volunteer-to-child ratios. This is something you should keep an eye on weekly. Here are the ratios I recommend for each age group.
Infants - 1 to 2 (1 to 1 ideally)
Crawlers - 1 to 3
Toddlers - 1 to 4
2-year-olds - 1 to 4
3-year-olds - 1 to 6-8
4-year-olds - 1 to 8
5 year-olds through 5th grade - 1 to 8
Set a goal to follow the ratios you have laid out.
Budget
Determine your budget and stay within it.
One helpful way to determine your budget is this. Determine what it cost per child to run the ministry on a weekly basis. Then multiply that times the number of kids in your ministry. The good thing about doing your budget this way is it gives you the flexibility to ask for more funding as your ministry grows.
Time Spent with Jesus and in His Word
The most important goal you will set is the time you spend with Jesus. It is easy to get so busy working for Jesus that you stop spending time with Jesus. Don't let this happen. Guard your time with Jesus and don't let anything get in the way of your relationship with Him.
Out of your time spent with Jesus will come the power you need to do ministry effectively. The only way you are going to reach your goals is through Jesus' power and blessing.
Set these 10 goals. Pursue it. You are going to be amazed at what God does in you and through you in 2024.
