How to Destroy Your Outpost
(In sorta no particular order)
Below is a list of fatal and cancerous methods that will surely bring your Outpost to an ineffective and non-estistant state. This list isn't comprehensive, yet does make a couple good points. Feel free to add to the list. If you notice you are doing any of the follow, then change is in order.
1. Neglect regular prayer for the ministry of your Outpost - Are we praying for the Holy Spirit to guide our leaders, touch the lives of our boys, and to do His work in all of us? Are we praying every day? Praying together as a team? Are you praying with your boys? Praying on Sunday church and weekly meetings? Are we even starting and ending our meetings in prayer? Failure to surround your Outpost in prayer will sufficate your Outpost more than anything else.
2. Neglect getting the support of your pastors - Your Outpost is not its own island at your local congregation. Has the Outpost leadership plugged into the vision of the pastoral staff? Has your Outpost connected the vision of Rangers in with the vision of the church? Is you Outpost reaching past church politics and towards effective unitiy? Are you seeking the right people in and out of the church for any conflict resolution? Remember, your pastors are the key to the support and success of your Outpost.
3. Neglect advancement and Bible merit work - Nothing like running a baby sitting club or activities only group that will lose your boys over the years. Sure younger boys love fun and games, yet if they are not challenged and are growing, you will lose them over the years. And when they see a lack of substance in your Outpost, they will move on to the endless things out there that are offered to kids and teens. The sign of a successful outpost is their advancement program.
4. Neglect training for your leaders and boys - Sure most of us are busy with family, work, maybe school, and a million other things. Maybe we think giving up another weekend afternoon or weekend is a pain and a drag? Maybe we feel we are good on our own and training is a waste? Take a close look at truly successful outpost and you will find an abundence of training for both boys and leaders. Your leadership starts with the call and willingness, then is empowered through training. Maybe our untrained ways of doing things is why we fall short and sufficate our Outposts? Better yet, maybe our lack of using that training we have is doing the same thing?
5. Failure to plan - Time, time, time.. Seems people these days are very busy or pre-occupied. Sometimes we just don't want to but that time and energy in to planning and preparing. What about planning meetings? Drafting calendars? Inventory? Purchasing gear and materials? Studying lesson plans? Getting training? Etc, etc, etc.. If we fail to plan, we plan to fail. And the trend in Rangers in recent years shows an increase lack of planning across the board.
6. Neglect using the "patrol system" - Its evident at many events and campouts that outposts don't use the patrol system. Then again the good OP are the ones that have an active display of their patrol spirit on campouts and other events. Sure it's a lot of initial work, building a patrol into a functional team, working on projects, and delegating leadership to the boys. An outpost that doesn't actively have and work through patrol truly isn't an outpost at all. And we do our boys and outpost a disservice by neglecting to teach them teamwork and leadership through patrols. If you take the effort to build up patrols, you'll notice more discipline, less behavior issues, more working together, and functional structure that helps make meeetings run more smooth.
7. Keep your Outpost isolated to your local church - There are a lot of solo outpsts out there that keep within the bubble of their own local congregation. Of course its healthy for an Outpost to participate and be a part of the entire church family, yet that church family extends outside a church building and local area. Sure your outpost can plan campouts, events, and activities, which you should be doing, yet why not join in on the same things with other outposts in your section and the district? The larger pool of servant leadership and resources offers more, even better opportunities that your local church just might not be able to do on their own. Your boys can also be impacted further in Christ by men and boys from all over, while making new friends. You limit your boy's experiences by limiting it to just the bubble of your own outpost.
8. Neglect to charter - Many leaders question the value of chartering. Unfortunately it costs money to administer the ministry program of Royal Rangers. In Rangers we are extremely fortunate to have countless volenteers serving on staff in all levels. It cost money to plan, promote, and execute the planning of Royal Rangers events and activities. Charter is where it starts. Sure your church can run an "illegial" outpost, purchasing all the materials needed to run your outpost. And sure it is costly to charter, plus buy material, and pay the registration fees for events. Good and continuous planning will go a long way in financing your own outpost, your section, the district and beyond. Neglecting to charter might not directly bring an end to your outpost, yet will sufficate the higher support levels that make Royal Rangers happen. Besides, Rangers is a good deal when it comes to scouting, even more so when it comes to other activies available to kids and teens. Chartering is well worth the investment in supporting a ministry program that will reach, teach, and keep boys for Jesus Christ!
9. Don't give "honor" where honor is due & Fail to encourage - We need to honor and encourage both our boys and leaders. The "council of achievements" is a time to honor boys for their hard work and their accomplishments. In our Royal Ranger training we are taught to give encouragement regularly to all our boys and to honor them in a timely fashion when they achieve a merit, advancement, high honor, or other goal. Yet do we honor and encourage our leaders? What about that long time leader that so selflessly serves and gets the job done? If we're not honoring our faithful leaders, do you think that will encourage others to step up? Have we created a healthy environment of fellowship, honor, encouragement, grace, and love? Without honor and encouragement, we discourage the future of our boys and leaders, creating a shallow and cold Outpost that very few will want to be a part of.
10. Do things on your own power and own ways - Your Outpost can be chartered, at every Royal Ranger event, churning out GMA's, have full pastoral + church support, and be doing everything right. Yet if the driving force of the Church isn't the driving force of your Outpost, as in Jesus and the Holy Spirit, you better close up shop and stop doing your boys thea mjor dis-service. When the day is over, it really is not about advancements, GMA's, Sabers, 10-points of an Outpost meeting, and the endless busy work. It is about impacting the lives of boys and young men for Christ, through the empowering of the Holy Spirit. In the end, we are just vessels, where God does all the work. And all it takes is for us to open our lives to be a vessel to reach, teach, and keep boys for Jesus Christ! Do what we do as Royal Ranger in the love of Christ, since love is the greatest thing of all!
Ponder these things and make a consistant effort to be functional, rather than dysfunction in your outpost. The long term benefits of following healthy principal will out-weigh the vast initial work and invvestment in building a successful outpost.
In His Service,
Shawn Shevitz
1994 Penn-Del GMA from OP 7 & OP 19
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