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How To Start A Royal Rangers Ministry
There are four basic steps to establishing a
Royal Rangers outpost to minister to the boys and young men in your
local church or fellowship.
The Pastor: The pastor is the
key to having a successful Royal Rangers ministry . If he is fully
aware of how evangelically effective Royal Rangers is, he will
support the ministry wholeheartedly. First, he must learn about
Royal Rangers. If your pastor wants to learn about Royal Rangers,
this Web site is a great place to start. It is best if he is the
one to initiate the program in the church to ensure congregational
and staff support for this vital ministry. He should discuss with
the congregation the basic needs of the boys and recommend that
the program be adopted.
The Church: The congregation should
recognize that the Royal Rangers groups are a part of the "total
church ministry." Also, they should realize that the
men in the church should assume responsibility for the promotion,
leadership
and financing of the work. The church is also responsible to
screen its leaders for the safety of the children in the church.
Some churches may choose another leader or ministry to exercise
authority over the Royal Rangers.
Ministry Oversight: The church's
board or department head
should promote and oversee Royal Rangers. Those individuals
must
become
familiar with the aims, purposes and mission of this ministry.
Outpost Council: An Outpost
Council is appointed by the local Men's Ministries Committee
or the church board. It is comprised of three to five men who
are interested in ministry to boys, capable of leadership and
willing to spend time developing the program. This council is
responsible for appointing leaders, securing a meeting place,
finances and equipment and honoring advancements.
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Because the commander is looked up to
as an example by the commanders and boys in Royal Rangers,
the Outpost Council
should consider the qualifications of a good commander, as
suggested by the following guidelines:
- Is the candidate a born-again Christian, well-grounded
in the Word of God?
- Is the candidate loyal to the church?
- Are the candidate's habits and ideals above reproach?
- Does the candidate have a heart for ministering to boys
and enjoy working with them?
- Does the candidate have a consistent testimony in daily
Christian living?
- Is the candidate able to lead and delegate authority?
- Does the candidate possess good judgment?
- Is the candidate willing to accept responsibility?
- Does the candidate command the respect of other men?
- Does the candidate cooperate with the program of the
church?
- Will the candidate take leadership training?
- Is the candidate 21 years of age or older? (Lieutenant
commanders must be 18 or older.)
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Outpost Commander: Each outpost
group of Royal Rangers needs a leader (called "commander")
and, when possible, a lieutenant commander. A survey
ascertaining
the number of interested boys in each outpost group will help
in determining the number of groups and leaders needed.
After you have established
your outpost, you can receive a great deal of assistance
and help with implementing
the program through chartering your
outpost. In order to obtain chartering, you must meet
minimum requirements, including:
- A qualified leader and, if possible, one or more assistants
- At least five boys who have met the recruit requirements
- A registration fee for each participating boy and adult
- Holding three regular meetings
Along with being officially recognized as a
Royal Rangers outpost, your ministry will receive helpful materials
such as:
- An outpost number and an official charter certificate
- Membership cards for the boys in your program
- Quarterly publications of High Adventure for your boys and High
Adventure Leader for your commanders
- Award program enrollment, making your group eligible to participate
in the Outpost Commander's Award Program
- Selected brochures that highlight the many areas of ministry
available to Royal Rangers participants
- Royal Ranger Data Manager CD for each chartered church
- Other benefits, such as participation in the Leadership Training
Academy; national training camps; sectional, district and national
camping activities; and the Royal Rangers of the Year program
(which ranges from local to national competition)
Training
is the key to a successful Royal Rangers ministry . Leaders
should endeavor to receive all
the knowledge available to them about Royal Rangers. A
novice leader
should obtain, the Royal
Rangers Leaders Manual. The next step is enrollment
is the Ranger
Basics Module of the Leadership Training Academy to
enable him to meet the challenges of leading boys.
In addition, the national office conducts
National Training Camps, designed to help give more assistance
to leaders
in the Royal Rangers ministry . For information on what training
camps are available, visit the Training
section of our web site.
(Taken from the Royal
Rangers Leaders Manual, pages 243-244.)
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The following suggested outline
for the first meeting follows the reular meeting plan for
the groups.
Before the Meeting:
Arrive early to prepare the room and be ready to greet
the boys and their parents and guardians.
While the Boys and Parents Arrive
The
commander and his assistant should welcome each boy and his
parents or guardians. Keep the boys busy
with games, puzzles or
crafts before the meeting begins. At the starting time,
play games for about 5 minutes.
Suggested Game
Materials: 8 1/2 x 11-inch
paper
Play: Place a box or small garbage can (or make an
X with masking tape) on the floor at least 10-feet
from the standing line. Instruct the boys and parents
to make paper airplanes and fly them into the container
or marked area. See how many times they can hit the
mark.
Opening Ceremony
Have leaders present the colors with the United States
flag in the center surrounded by the Royal Rangers flag and
the Christian flag. Lead in the Pledge of Allegiance. Open
in prayer.
The pastor or senior commander should greet
the audience and introduce and introduce each commander.
Ask the families to introduce themselves. Distribute any
pertinent information related to the church.
Explain the ideals and purposes of Royal
Rangers using the information from the kit. Demonstrate how
Royal Rangers will open doors to adventure, friendship and
fun. Explain how commanders will work with them to make activities
and programs a success.
Distribute the Royal Rangers catalogs.
Let the boys and parents look at the uniforms, awards and
accessories.
Discuss how the boys can obtain their uniforms. Explain how
they can earn and wear everything.
Speaker: If
possible, invite a speaker who is familiar with the
program such
as a section or district Royal Rangers commander.
Question-and-Answer Time
Give opportunity for people to ask questions.
Closing Ceremony
The pastor or guest speaker should end the meeting with
some closing thoughts and prayer.
After the Meeting
Serve refreshments. Be available for further questions.
Make sure you have plenty of handbooks,
workbooks, Leaders'
Guides and flags for each group. Give the proper materials
to group commanders and instruct them to study the introduction
and the first lesson for next week. Each commander should
be ready for his separate group meeting next week.
Between Meetings
Before
the second meeting, call all parents and thank them for attending
the first meeting. call those unable to attend and encourage
them to send their boys to the second meeting.
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| Begin your second meeting with
an Opening Ceremony. This can be done all together as an
outpost or in your individual groups.
Make sure commanders are prepared to lead
theri meetings. Instruct them to used the program with the
aid of the Leaders Guide, Royal Rangers Leaders Manual, workbooks
and handbooks.
During the Business/Patrol Corners collect
the chartering dues. |
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Your outpost should meet once
a week for at least one and one-half
hour. It is important that
you and the boys have an enjoyable time together. Every meeting
should provide both fun and accomplishment for the boys.
Plan a well-rounded program in every meeting so the boys
will always
be anxious to return. A meeting that has only fun with no
accomplishment causes the boys to soon lose interest.
Begin and end each meeting on time. This
is good training for the boys in managing their own affairs.
It also helps inspire confidence in the boys' parents.
For additional outpost meeting ideas,
refer to the High Adventure Leader and the Outpost
Activities Book. |
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