Don’t let the fear of turning students off keep you from teaching and challenging them with God’s word. Sometimes, we may think that keeping things simple will keep students happier. The overall message of Jesus was simple – love God and love people and he showed us practical ways to do this. But Jesus wasn’t … Read more
Church staff may be best described as coaches – helping the church be their best in ministry and in witness. Most every ministry role comes with the team leadership territory. One of the best ways to replicate ourselves is to develop a solid team and move them forward together in the mission! This can be … Read more
What would be your first guess as to the average age of youth workers in local churches? Most of us may imagine a young 20 something who speaks the student’s language with lots of energy. There are obviously a million styles, situations and settings for local church youth ministry and the leaders vary just as … Read more
Leaders are developed most naturally through these three means: Relationship – Leadership quality people have almost always had a solid relationship with someone who mentored and showed them the way. Whether it was a family member, a parent or other significant person, a relationship is at the core of a leader’s effectiveness. If you love … Read more
I’ve been in lots of rural churches over the years. The ministry style and mindset is totally different. However the goal for youth leaders is the same – to love Jesus and love kids. Here are some generally unique aspects of youth ministry in a rural church setting. 1) It’s cyclical. At one point, there are … Read more
I recently asked the question: What is the image of your youth ministry? In this post, I want to give some ideas toward building a positive image of youth ministry in your church and community. As a reminder, we don’t want to make something seem good – we actually want it to be good! Most of the image of your youth ministry will … Read more
Every ministry or organization has an image. It’s what people think about you. We don’t just want people to think we’re great and doing well – we want to actually be great and doing well! In order to create that kind of culture in your organization, people need to believe it. What is that people think about you? What is the … Read more
Tonight the 2012 Ignition Middle School Conference will be kicking off! I’m excited about a weekend of ministry to 6th, 7th, and 8th graders from the community and the region! This will be the eighth year for Ignition Conference. And since we typically host more than one each year, this is actually my 16th Ignition … Read more
As I have been driving around, meeting with youth ministry leaders from all styles, sizes and brands of churches, I have been encouraged and inspired. There are a ton of youth ministry leaders around our state – volunteer and paid – who are all about seeing young lives transformed by the power of the gospel. I … Read more
It seems that once a student gets a drivers license, their days in youth group become numbered. It’s hard to compete with school, part-time jobs, and social lives of a mobile upperclassman. I recently heard it succinctly put this way, “older students in our youth ministries will either lead or leave.” It’s easy to become … Read more