Pathfinders

Introduction

God asked the church to be a community of people sharing a common purpose in fellowship, continually growing in faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God. Paul describes the church as “His body, the fullness of Him who filleth every thing in every way” (Eph. 1:22).

God calls us into His body for the purpose of establishing a saving relationship with Him and community with one another. The Holy Spirit convicts our minds and leads us to repentance and plants us within the church.

Water baptism marks our entrance into the body of Christ and also symbolizes the baptism of the Holy Spirit experienced by a new disciple. “I tell you the truth unless a man is born of the water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God” (John 3:5). The Holy Spirit is the vital life force of the church.

When the church serves the world it is an expression of the love of Christ to the world. It is the body of Christ serving the world’s needs and being used by the Spirit as an agency of salvation.

Thus, the church is a servant body. It was created for service. It serves the Lord in praise, serves one another in love and serves the world in humility. “For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10).

God calls every member of the church into ministry. The church is a kingdom of priests set free to minister for Christ. Our priesthood is to each other within the church and to the world. A Pathfinder director, like any other church officer, is a ministering servant of God.

It was during the middle ages that the clergy became distinct from other members, as a superior element in the church. The biblical concept of laity includes all believers as ministers in the body. In actuality, however, the church body still has a great distance to go before effectively applying this concept. You should view the work of Pathfinder director as a ministry to which God calls people; it is His will operating in their lives.

God supplies each person in the church with the resources for ministry—scripture, spiritual power, God’s character, and spiritual gifts. A Pathfinder director is equipped for his or her ministry by the gifts received from the Holy Spirit. These spiritual gifts are special abilities given by the Holy Spirit to make your ministry effective and build up the body of Christ.

Duties of the Pathfinder Club Director

There are various elements that make up the Pathfinder Club program. The main ones are listed below. The following also gives us an idea of the Pathfinder Club director’s involvement in each:

Programming. A large share of the Pathfinder director’s time is involved in organizing Pathfinder Club programming. These include a wide variety of activities such as regular club meetings, Pathfinder Sabbath each year, social events, campouts, and outreach projects. The programming of the Pathfinder Club is designed to provide varied and interesting opportunities for children. The goal is to lead each child to a relationship with Jesus.
Planning. The Pathfinder director develops a yearly calendar of activities and a budget. The Pathfinder Club staff gets involved by giving suggestions that might improve and expand on the ideas already presented. All plans must pass the approval of the church board and it must coordinate with the program of the local conference.
Recruiting and supervising. The Pathfinder director is responsible for recruiting staff to help with club The Pathfinder Club staff is made up of volunteers: adults and youth. All staff is under the supervision of the Pathfinder director.
Teaching. The Pathfinder director assists the young people in learning out- door skills; developing spiritual values (which of course is of prime importance to us as a church), and serving in ways which could be beneficial in saving lives in their communities. Crafts are always an enjoyable part of the meetings and the Pathfinder director should be right there (along with her or his staff) to answer any questions pertaining to completing various projects assigned.
Listening to parents and children. The effective Pathfinder director enjoys young people and can relate to them in a way that makes them feel comfortable around him. He or she should let them know by their actions and words that he/she is their friend and is there to listen to them when they have any problems, especially those of a spiritual nature.
Communication. The Pathfinder director should make sure the children, parents and the entire church are made aware that there is a viable Pathfinder Club. The program should be promoted in all departments since there are areas of interest for all ages.

Resources

For a list of recommended resources, free downloads and websites visit MinistryKits.AdventSource.org

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You can call AdventSource at 402.486.8800 for additional information or if you have questions about ministry. For ministry-related articles, videos, and free downloads visit AdventSource.org.