Have you ever been to a little league baseball game? If not, you might be surprised to know that there are really two games going on. The first is between two teams of adorable eight-year-olds. The second is much more sinister, and if you’re not paying attention, you might even miss it:

“Why didn’t you play my kid more?”

“I can’t believe you made so-and-so sit the bench!”

“Did you really tell my kid to bunt? Don’t you know that she’s a power-hitter?!?”

Yep. It’s between the parents and the coach, and it can be BRUTAL!

So, then, why would anyone want to be a coach, especially if it means constantly being scrutinized for every decision that they make? Interestingly, that’s the exact reason why I love having the opportunity to coach others in ministry.

When you agree to coach someone, you’re not just agreeing to help them. You’re also committing to making sure that you’re at the top of your game. You are offering to allow someone else to put your ministry, your decisions, and even your entire life under a microscope…and while that might not sound pleasant at first, trust me, you and your ministry can only benefit.

When I compare my own leadership to what it looked like when I first started in ministry, I can say the following:

• I now work a lot harder at making sure I’m actually practicing what I preach.
• I now make decisions much more purposefully.
• And I now have a lot more respect for men and women who are first starting out in ministry and those who have been serving twice as long as I have.

And I owe a lot of that growth to letting others put my leadership under a microscope, or as I like to call it…coaching.

Josh Boldman

Josh Boldman is a Youth Ministry Team member and the student
ministries pastor at White Chapel Church of God and campus