| Position
Paper: Ministry Guidelines
Minimum Age Requirements for Ministry Participants
Definitions
Service Oriented Ministry:
Activities that are focused on serving others, either inside
or outside of the church. The following are examples of Service
Oriented Ministries:
- Set-up/Tear-down of Musical Instruments
- Visiting Convalescent Homes
- Collecting Communion Cups
- Fellowship Hall Clean-up
Leadership Oriented Ministry:
Activities that include various forms of leading others and might
include some form of adult level interaction among peers. The
following are examples of leadership-oriented ministries:
- Worship Team
- Sunday School Teaching
- Congregational Teaching/Preaching
- Small Group Leadership (e.g., HomeGroup, Men’s Bible
Study, Women’s Bible Study)
Requirements
Service Oriented Ministry:
Ministry leaders may seek the participation of any church member
(or church member’s child.) Ministry leaders must always
consider the maturity and physical capabilities of younger prospective
participants. Parental consent is required when it is not implied,
for example: parental consent is required before a ministry leader
takes a child to a convalescent home, but a HomeGroup leader is
free to direct a child in the task of cleaning-up the fellowship
hall when it is that HomeGroup’s week to clean-up. Any young
person (i.e., person under the age of 18) shall be under the direct
supervision of the ministry leader when that young person is participating
in the ministry.
Leadership Oriented Ministry:
Ministry leaders may seek the participation of any church member
20-years-old or older. Ministry participants must be members—in
good standing—of Tree of Life, believers, and have a spiritual
maturity level appropriate for the role.
Exceptions
Understanding that God works in ways that we do not always understand,
there are times when exceptions to the minimum age requirement
must be considered. When a ministry leader and parents discern
unique characteristics that they feel qualify a particular young
person to minister at an adult level, they may request eldership
consideration for an exception to the minimum age guideline. Due
to the leadership nature and potential exposure to spiritual attack,
pride, and adult-level peer interaction inherent to these positions,
eldership involvement is necessary to discern the appropriateness
of appointing any person under the age of 20. Again, due to the
nature of these positions, the elders shall be unanimous in their
discernment before a person under the age of 20 is appointed to
this type of position. No person under the age of 13 will be considered
for an exception to the minimum age requirement for ongoing ministry
involvement.
Exception Requests
The parents (when applicable), elders, and ministry leader(s)
shall work together to discern whether or not an exception to
the minimum age requirement is appropriate. When considering a
person for an exception to the minimum age requirement, the elders,
parents, and ministry leader(s) must consider the following four
guidelines carefully:
| Spiritual Maturity |
The ability to manage the exposure
to additional spiritual attacks.
The ability to overcome the pressure and temptation of pride. |
| Gifting in Ministry |
The ability to adequately perform
the functional requirements of the role. |
| Ministry Discipline |
Attendance, punctuality, organization,
etc. |
| Social Maturity |
The ability to interact with adults
at an adult level in adult situations.
The maturity to witness adults interacting in adult situations
without disorientation or discouragement. |
If any one of these guidelines is not met, an exception to the
minimum age requirement will not be considered.
Ministry Mentoring
Every exception to the minimum age requirement will be regarded
as a mentoring situation (any young person between the ages of
13-20 that is accepted into a ministry). Thus, the ministry leader
or designated member of the ministry shall have direct oversight,
in a mentoring capacity, of the person for whom the exception
was made. The mentoring requirement will have both a practical
aspect and spiritual aspect. For example: in the case of a young
person serving in the Worship ministry the practical aspect of
their mentoring will be the person who interacts with them most
directly regarding their musical role on the team. The spiritual
aspect of the mentoring will be concerned more with the spiritual
issues that come with this ministry. The mentor role for both
aspects can be filled by one adult in the ministry or shared.
It would be shared if for instance a male adult was mentoring
a female young person musically, but the spiritual mentor should
be one of the adult women in that ministry.
Special Occasion Exceptions
The focus of the above age guidelines is concerning ongoing
participation in ministry. We recognize that there should be exceptions
made for special occasions to allow the participation of the younger
children under the age of 13. This exception allows, for example,
Christmas choirs of children, or special performances of songs,
skits, etc. The reason we will continue this exception is that
these events will always take place under direct adult supervision
and are understood to be oriented toward performance. This allows
for special periodic performances by either groups of children
or an individual child at the discretion of the Worship team leader.
However, this exception does not become the basis for ongoing
ministry involvement for the children involved until the child
in question reaches the age of 13 and seeks a ministry exception
role.
|
