Being a Children’s Pastor means wearing a lot of hats. There’s the curriculum hat. The budget hat. The supply organizer hat. The graphic designer hat. And many more.
But if you and I were to narrow it down to the essentials, what would they be? What are the three or four hats that, if I spent most of my time there, would make my team and me most successful? Here are the four I landed on:
Connector
Being a good Children’s Pastor starts with being a good connector. I need to make sure I’m having weekly group and one-on-one meetings with my team. I need to keep my boss in the loop about what’s happening. I must make connecting with parents, volunteers, and kids throughout the week a priority. They are the reason I do what I do. Most importantly, I need to connect with God throughout the day, every day.
Communicator
I don’t mean being a good teacher. While that’s certainly important, my communicating shouldn’t stop there. Other people can teach, but as the lead Children’s Pastor my focus needs to be wider. I need to make sure the lines of communication are open between us and parents, us and volunteers, and me and my team. The #1 secret to powerful communication: Never assume anyone knows anything.
Coach
Coaching is two-fold: training and correcting. I need to provide the tools my team needs to succeed. I also need to gently and lovingly point people back on the right path. Sometimes that’s a kid who needs to apologize. Other times it’s helping leaders work through conflict. And other times it’s pointing out a blind spot that is causing pain. Coaching is helping people get better every day, rather just when they mess up.
Caregiver
Above all, a Children’s Pastor needs to give care. Maybe that’s a band-aid to a child who scraped their knee. Or thank you notes to your volunteers who went to summer camp. Or spontaneously taking your team out to lunch just because. Have systems in place to make sure everyone is cared for in a meaningful way.
Your job as a Children’s Pastor isn’t to do everything. Your job is to make sure everything gets done. Build a team to help.
Jeff McClung 
Thanks Jeff for this post. This one is very encouraging to me and will help me focus in on my role as I continue to grow in it.