We’re Looking for a Few Good Staffers

A summer staffer humourously salutes another staffer

A summer staffer humourously salutes another staffer

Year after year we hear the same question from youth pastors, “Where do you find your staff?” Youth pastors love our staff.  More specifically, they love the relationships that students build with the summer staff and the impact it has on their students.  Crossings is known for its great staff.  They are also known for the relentless pursuit of intentional relationships with students.  We have a history of finding Gospel-centered college students from all over the country.  Our staff are not only essential to what we do at Crossings, they are Crossings.

Well, here is a behind the scenes look at how we do it and what we look for in our future staffers.  We rate our applicants on a scale from Must Hire – No Hire.  If you are applying to be a summer staff, or ever want to be a summer staffer, check out what we look for in the interview process.

What makes a must hire?

  • Shares the Gospel on a regular basis. Great staffers share the Gospel with students not just at camp, but all the time.  We are looking for college students who have a passion for telling others about Jesus.
  • Growing in their personal relationship with God. Great staffers are growing staffers.  Staffers who are pursuing Christ and growing in their personal walk with Christ make the best staffers.  They serve out of the overflow of what God is doing in their own lives.
  • Working with students. Great staffer are already working and ministering to students.  They have a passion for student ministry and they are not waiting to get plugged in.  Most often we find them serving as small group leaders at their church.
  • Willingness. Great staffers do whatever it takes to advance God’s kingdom.  They are not hung up on position, comfort, or preference.  When we ask them if they would be willing to do something other than lead Bible study, they answer by saying they are willing to serve wherever they are needed. 
  • Hard worker. Great staffers work hard.  Past performance is the best indicator of future behavior.  Being a staffer is hard work. We find future staffers working hard in whatever they are currently doing.  They not only work hard, but they work as unto the Lord. 

What make them great staffers?

  • The Triangle: Love God, Love People, Be a Servant. At Crossings, and as followers of Christ, we believe that there is no greater calling than what Jesus states as the greatest commandments – to love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind, and to love your neighbor as yourself. Framing these words, “Love God, Love People, Be a Servant” around a triangle helps to remind us of His great calling. We simply call this, “living out the triangle.” The triangle, and more importantly the words that go with it, are foundational to everything we do at Crossings and hope to see done by those we get to serve. We relentlessly remind the staff of this truth.
  • Gospel. At Crossings we believe that we must proclaim the Gospel.  We challenge staff to constantly share the Gospel with students in everything they do. We require them to memorize the Crossings six points of the Gospel before they even arrive at camp.  See Crossings six points of the Gospel at https://gocrossings.org/about-us/cross-over/
  • Relationships. At Crossings we believe relationships are essential to life change.  Each year we hire more staff to build relationships with students.  We program specific time each day devoted to seeing our staff build relationships with students.  It is our goal that through those relationships, every student on our properties has a one-on-one Gospel conversation with our staff.
  • Excellence. At Crossings we believe that we are to work as “unto the Lord.” That means we give everything we have to serve with excellence.  Our staff are held to a standard that is unobtainable apart from God.  We desire to work hard to remove barriers so students can experience Christ for the first time or grow deeper in their relationship with Him.

How do they do it?

  • By Abiding in Christ. John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” Staffers’ ability to connect with students, communicate the Gospel effectively, work long hours with minimal sleep, and still have the excitement of a wild honey badger is only by the grace and power of God working in and through their lives.
  • By Playing to their Strengths. God has uniquely gifted and wired each person differently.  At Crossings we use a tool called Predictive Index to help understand people’s motivating needs and behaviors.  By understanding how a person is hard-wired, we can serve them better by allowing them to serve in ways that play to their strengths.  We also use this valuable tool to understand what motivates them and how to help them deal with conflict.
  • By Seeing a Bigger Picture. Last year alone, God used Crossings to see 794 salvation decisions, 751 calls to ministry, $165,094 given to missions, and over 11,125 people come to camp.  Understanding that we are all a part of something much bigger than ourselves helps us to make decisions to strengthen our mission. 

Our summer staff play an essential role at Crossings.  They are in essence the hands, the feet, the face, and the heart of Crossings.  We trust them with a mission far greater than they, or even we, realize.  We rely on them to communicate the most important message in human history to students.  We expect them to serve willingly and humbly to a cause greater than all of us, all with the relentless pursuit and love that we experience from our heavenly Father above.  The staff of Crossings can only be explained in one way – God.

 

 

Student pastors, we’d love to hear from you!  Are there outstanding college students in your ministry who love God, love people, and want to serve this summer?  If so, please let us know!  By filling out our staff referral form, you’ll actually kick-start the application process for them!

Click here to recommend a college student for Crossings Summer Staff!