Adult Leader Handbook
Table of Contents:
Purpose of Ministry……….…….……………………………………………………………3
Why are we Here?..………….….……………………………………………………………3
Full Cycle Evangelism…………………………………………………………….4
Opportunities to Serve………………………………………………………….………....6
The Process………………….….……………………………………………………………….7
The Guidelines…………………….…………………………………………………………..7
The Qualifications…………………………………………………………………..……….10
General Guidelines/Consequences...………………………………………….……11
Commitments of a Leader………………………………………………………..…..…11
Volunteer Worker Application…………………………………………………………13
Purpose of Ministry
What is our Purpose?
Fortunately God did not leave our purpose up for grabs. We do not have to create or invent a purpose, we must simply discover what God says our purpose is. The following is how we achieve what God has called us to.
Matthew 28:18-20: “Jesus, undeterred, went right ahead and gave his charge: ‘God authorized and commanded me to commission you: Go out and train everyone you meet, far and near, in this way of life, marking them by baptism in the threefold name: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Then instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you. I’ll be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the age.’”
o We must make disciples
o The way we do this is through training youth at Uturn
Mark 12:28: “One of the religion scholars came up. Hearing the lively exchanges of questions and answers and seeing how sharp Jesus was in his answers, he put in his question: ‘Which is the most important of all the commandments?’”
o Love God
o By lifestyle and worship
o Love your neighbor
o By Ministry and Relationships
Luke 4:18: “God’s Spirit is on me; he’s chosen me to preach the Message of good news to the poor, sent me to announce pardon to prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to set the burden and battered free, to announce, ‘This is God’s year to act!’”
o Evangelism
o Large Events (Such as: Battle Cry, New Year’s Eve Party)
Ephesians 4:12: “To train Christians in skilled servant work, working within Christ’s body, the Church.”
o Equipping in Ministry
o Reaching the Lost
o Assist youth in falling in love with God
o Assist youth in connecting in relationship with each other
o Provide a place for healing
o Equip youth for ministry
o Release youth to minister
Why are we here?
We are committed to reaching Portland area youth, to help them love God and others; to be healed and to be trained and released to minister to others.
Full Cycle Evangelism
The Power of “Full Cycle Evangelism” is demonstrated when a Christian youth takes one of their friends through this cycle, then their friends each lead other friends through the cycle.
Friendship
A Christian builds an authentic friendship with a Pre-Christian
1 Corinthians 5:9-12: “In the letter I wrote you I told you not to associate with immoral people. Now I did not mean pagans who are immoral or greedy or are thieves, or who worship idols. To avoid them you would have to get out of the world completely. What I meant was that you should not associate with a person who calls himself a believer but is immoral or greedy or worships idols or is a slanderer or a drunkard or a thief. Don’t even sit down with such a person. After all, it is none of my business to judge outsiders. God will judge them. But should you not judge the members of your own fellowship? As the scripture says, ‘Remove the evil person from your group.’”
Shared Story/Invitation
At some point in a friendship the conversation of God should come up, at which point the Christian teen could ask:
“Why do you not go to church?”
“It is boring, it doesn’t work, Christians are hypocrites.”
“Oh really, that is what I thought before I went to Uturn…Would you like to come withme next week?”
Entry Level Event/Conversion
A Christian invites their friend to an event that breaks down misconceptions of Christianity, present Christ in creative ways, it’s fun, relational and spiritual. The dream is that the visitor would make a commitment to Christ. (Uturn is our event)
Obviously, when it comes to conversion, it is a given that prayer and the power of the holy spirit will soon follow. However, sincere friendships, shared stories, and an invitation to a quality service can aid in the process.
Growth
God has called us to make disciples. For this reason, we will provide quality care for the new believer. It is the belief of the Uturn staff, that when we are prepared to care for them then God will give them to us. To aid in their growth we have…
1. Small Groups. Every member should seek out a small group that fits their needs.
2. Large events. An example would be our large battle cry event, a fall kick-off or our weekly service.
3. Weekend Service. Every week youth are encouraged to attend the weekend service this will give them more of an opportunity to dig deeper.
Group Ownership
In the process of the growth of youth it is discovered that God has given them gifts and talents that He intended for them to use in ministry to others. With this discovery comes a platform in which these gifts can be developed and utilized.
Reproduce Self
1 Corinthians 4:14: “I write this to you, not because I want to make you feel ashamed, but to instruct you as my own dear children. For even if you have ten thousand guardians in your Christian life, you have only one father. For in your life in union with Christ Jesus I have become your father by bringing the Good News to you. I beg you, then, to follow my example. For this purpose I am sending you to Timothy, who is my own dear and faithful son in the Christian life. He will remind you of the principles which I follow in the new life in union with Christ Jesus and which I teach in all the churches everywhere. Some of you have become proud because you have thought that I would not be coming to visit you. If the Lord is willing, however, I will come to you soon, and then I will find out for myself the power, which these proud people have, and not just what they say. For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of words but of power. Which do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a whip, or in the spirit of love and gentleness?”
The concept of reproduction is when the new Christian brings a spiritual child to a Uturn event and becomes a spiritual parent taking his offspring through the full cycle so that the offspring will in turn be ready to be a spiritual parent.
Opportunities to Serve
Uturn
A mid-week evening program that targets the un-churched by providing a high-energy contemporary service. This service will speak to teen’s needs. It is a relational ministry that provides a forum for Godly adults to interact with seeking youth. The ultimate goal of Uturn is salvations.
Student Leadership
This program is vital to the growth of the students in leadership. They will come early on service days to do a bible study, set up for service and lead by examples in grades, showing up on time and adhering to other rules.
Large Events
These events are generally held quarterly.
Events include, but are not limited to:
New Years Eve Party: An all-nighter event held on New Years Eve. Activities include sermons, pizza, worship, watching the ball drop and fireworks.
Acquire the Fire (ATF): A yearly, 2 day event held at the Coliseum at the Rose Garden. Consists of bands, speakers from the Christian community and life-changing dramas.
The Process
“Uturn will have tons of happy go-lucky young people coming through the doors each week. These students will become our Spiritual Responsibility. Their parents will look upon us and always question something.” Pastor Ryan Murphy
The Uturn staff wants to makes sure the ‘Team’ is fit for the battle. The application process that has been put in place is designed for us to help you help them.
1. Visit for 3 weeks. This is a non-responsibility process where you don’t do anything in leadership except observe. (this has been put in place to allow you to make sure Uturn is where you should be, before you make a commitment)
2. Fill out the Adult Leadership Application and turn it in to Uturn’s pastoral staff.
3. Application will be reviewed by Uturn pastoral ataff (includes background check.)
4. Interview with Uturn pastoral staff.
a. Review application
b. Review ministry description
c. Review ‘Reduce the Risk’ policy
d. Instructions for Leadership Training
5. Read and sign standard covenant.
6. Begin serving at Uturn.
The Guidelines
The following guidelines will be required of any person who works in the Uturn ministry.
Team Guidance
Youth will not be in the primary care of only one adult. Teams of adults (preferable male and female) will supervise activities. This policy helps ensure appropriate levels of supervision and protects the adult from unfounded allegations. This policy also helps protect the student from ill-meaning adults.
Individual Guidance
Team guidance is preferable whenever possible. When team guidance is not feasible, notify another adult of the location and with whom you are meeting. Guidance should be given in a public place where the adult and student are in full view of others. Avoid seclusion. Female adults should counsel female youth and male adults should counsel male youth. A male and female team is generally appropriate for counseling either gender.
Long-term Guidance
Most youth workers have not received the proper training to provide long-term guidance counseling or format therapy for youth; therefore, youth workers should not meet with youth more than three times to discuss the same issue. Adults are encouraged to refer youth who have a serious need for counseling to the Uturn pastoral staff.
Informal Contact
(Independent of church activities) Informal contact refers to phone calls, letters face-to-face, or internet contact between an adult worker and a youth which is not connected to official church activities. The church recognizes that informal contact between worker and youth frequently occurs. For example, workers may hire teens as babysitters, or may see them during social events with the teen’s family. This interaction is usually legitimate and beneficial. However, Adult youth workers should seek permission of parents before having informal contact with a student. The workers should clearly state to the parent the nature of the contact and that it is not part of a church activity. Parents are responsible for monitoring this informal contact.
Confidentiality
Youth workers must report to the youth pastor if a minor youth discusses harming themselves or others, committing a crime or being abused. This is not an option. There are limits to confidentiality when working with youth. Questions about such cases or other issues of confidentiality must be discussed promptly with Uturn pastoral staff (or a member of the pastoral counseling department). Any serious issues discussed in confidence should be reviewed with one of the pastors, who will also protect the confidential nature of the discussion. Conferring with a pastor on sensitive issues is not considered breaking confidence.
Corporal Punishment
Hitting, spanking or other forms of punishment involving physical pain are never appropriate at Uturn activities. This rule holds true even if parents have suggested or given permission for corporal punishment. This is also true for parents of youth who are volunteering as an adult leader. They may not use any type of physical phunishment while attending a Uturn event. Adult Leaders must consult with the Uturn pastoral staff, if they need help with discipline techniques.
Open Door Policy
All youth events should be open door. This means the workers, parents or church members have a right to observe any youth activity. If somebody is interested in attending an event they should contact Uturn pastoral staff to check hours.
Dating or Sexual Involvement
No adult leader is to date a youth or be romantically or sexually involved with a youth. Any adult with prior incidents or sexual misconduct in this regard needs to discuss their situation with Uturn pastoral staff during their interview.
Misconduct
Workers must avoid even the appearance of misconduct in order to maintain parental confidence and avoid mistaken allegations. Any suspected or observed misconduct by other workers should be reported to the Uturn pastoral staff immediately.
Supervision
All Adult leaders are under authority and supervision of the Uturn pastoral staff.
Disobedience
Workers who disobey these guidelines may be reassigned or relieved from youth program duty at the discretion of the Uturn pastoral staff.
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Name
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Signature
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Date
The Qualifications
Christians who are in places of leadership in the church are required to be examples in faith, conduct and business affairs. To maintain a high standard for workers is one of the best ways to present Christ to the people of our community. Therefore, the following guidelines will be required of any person who works in the Uturn ministry.
1. Must be in agreement with the tenets of faith of Freedom Foursquare Church.
2. Must agree and follow all standards in Moral Failure code
3. Be a member of Freedom Foursquare Church or in the membership process and become a member within one year.
4. Be able to make a commitment for a school term.
5. Complete a Adult Leader Application and submit to a required background check. The application will be subject to final approval of the Uturn pastors.
6. Attend formal interview with one of the Uturn pastors.
7. Be loyal to the pastor and leaders at Freedom Foursquare Church.
8. Be faithful to your assigned position.
9. Be faithful to attend at least one weekend church service.