A Valuable COVID Lesson Ministers Can Learn from Taylor Swift

I’m in a variety of different Facebook ministry groups. And while I keep seeing a lot of people who are working really hard and trying to come up with new ideas for how to minister to people now, there is also a big group of people who clamor for going back to “normal”. They miss what they had and are very sad about losing that old way of ministering to people because of COVID.

I get it that people are upset and discouraged by how ministry changed. I really do understand that. In my student ministry we had some serious momentum right before COVID hit. Then, all of a sudden, it changed. The momentum we had paused immediately.

But here is the thing, we didn’t stop doing ministry. We rethought how we could minister to students online and eventually back in person. And, I am excited to say that while our ministry looks really different now, and is smaller in numbers, I believe we are back to some real momentum again. Ministry is happening and lives are being positively impacted for Christ. We didn’t let COVID get us down. We adapted and changed because our students needed us.

You know who else adapted? Taylor Swift. On Friday, December 11th, she dropped her 9th studio album. While it was very exciting for her loyal fan base, what was particularly impressive was that this was her second album she released in 2020, the year in which everything was shut down at one point or another. She made her second album just like she did her 1st one, in the privacy of her own home. Very few artists have released any albums during COVID, yet Taylor has released 2 albums with the first one, “Fokelore” gaining her 6 Grammy nominations, her most ever.

The amazing thing is how she recorded these albums. She didn’t record them at a recording studio like she normally would. She didn’t have her band with her either. She didn’t have those options with the shut down happening. So, she recorded at her home and used technology to bring in different band members. In fact, she didn’t spend in person time with those who recorded and produced with her until she record the Disney+ show highlighting how she made “Fokelore”.

So what’s the lesson Minsters can learn from this? Simple, adapt and keep moving forward. This year has been extremely challenging and, as I said above, ministers have had 2 different responses. They either complained about not being able to do ministry the old way. Or, they have adapted and found new ways to minister to others.

I am a firm believer that in order to be successful in ministry long term you have to keep adapting and changing as people and circumstances change. The ministers who haven’t done that in 2020 have suffered some serious setbacks. However, those who have seen online ministry as an opportunity and not a problem, have made positive strides in reaching others during this really challenging time.

Look for opportunities. Look for new ways to minister. Taylor Swift didn’t let COVID affect the way she was going to reach her fans. Don’t let COVID demoralize your confidence or keep you from fulfilling the path God has for you and your ministry. Choose to see the opportunities and new ways to do ministry, no matter what he circumstances are.

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