5 Tips for Reconnecting with Students

School is beginning and Fall is right around the corner. There is this infectious energy in ministry that begins to grow. Families return from vacations. Students are looking to find their groove for the year to come. So much has happened during the past three months, and their lives have altered in a variety of ways (physically, emotionally, spiritually, psychologically). As a leader, make the most of this time. Use these opportunities at the beginning of the year to your advantage. How you begin a new year and the energy and investments you make will often determine how the rest of the year will go.

Here are a few tips on how to reconnect with your students:

1. Spend Time with Them. Talk to them. There’s so much growth that takes place over the summer months. Spend some time with your students and have them share their stories and the adventures they experienced over the summer months. This gathering could also happen over a meal. Invite your students over to your house or go out and just spend the evening enjoying each other’s company and telling stories. You don’t need to pair it with a bible study unless that might help. There’s just something about sitting together in a group (maybe even around a fire) and take turns telling stories about what happened this past summer.

2. Do Some Research! Find out what they are interested in this coming school year. Gather their sports and activity schedules. Set some dates when you can go watch them and cheer them on. Also, don’t go by yourself. Bring other students along to cheer their peers on as well. It’s a powerful statement not just when the leader shows up, but when the rest of the group does as well.

3. Set some Goals. When I was a small group leader, I had my students set goals for the year. We’re about to spend a lot of time together. What is it that we hope to accomplish or think that God wants us to accomplish during our time together? Have your students consider where they might want to be in a year and then use that information as the leader to help challenge your students to go deeper and further.

4. Bring Them with You! If it’s a new year, you’re most likely going to need supplies. Want to reconnect with your students? Take a group of them shopping for the supplies that you need. You’ll have some extra hands to help, but you’ll also give them opportunities to pick out some things they might want or need. Use this time to get them excited about the year to come.

5. Call Them. You could text them, but you cannot communicate much excitement over a text message. There’s just something about getting a phone call and spend a few moments connecting with your students and then extending to them a personal invitation for coming to group or to an event. I’ve had so many students respond to a personal invitation more than any text message or email that hit their inbox.

As you begin this year make sure that you’re personally connecting with and investing in the lives of your students from the beginning. Involve them in your ministry as much as you can. Show them that you care by showing up in their lives before you expect them to visit yours.