The Minecraft server is private, or whitelisted. This decreases issues with bad actors. This also means I have a line of communication with everyone on the server, so it's easier to inform people of news or talk to someone when there's a problem.

I'm very lenient on who we add to the server. If they are willing to follow the rules and I have a way to communicate with them, then they can join. I just need to know their username and their relation to you (friend, sibling, cousin, a second account you own, etc.)