Picture this: Students walk into your space. A few students are shooting a basketball and celebrating. Three freshman girls are sitting on the couches talking about the next “Edikted” sweatshirt they saw online. Another student is eating a snack. A leader has started playing Uno with a few students, and some middle school boys are […]
September is National Suicide Prevention Month. Of course, this is something that’s more important than just one month, but it’s a great reminder that we don’t always know what’s going on beneath the surface in a student’s life. Mental health has become a much bigger topic over the last decade or so. We see students […]
This is probably one of the most unhinged titles of any blog post I’ve ever written. But I believe in this deeply, and the concept has gone viral recently on socials. Atheism is not a threat to Christianity. It’s an opportunity to experience Christianity from a fresh perspective. And when we incorporate this paradigm into […]
A healthy student worship team gives teenagers meaningful opportunities to use their gifts, grow as disciples and serve the church. One of my favorite parts of youth ministry is seeing students use their gifts to serve. In our ministry, we talk a lot about using the gifts and talents God has given us to build […]
In some ways, youth ministry is the best job or role anyone can have. There’s nothing more rewarding, and quite frankly, nothing more fun than discipling the next generation. When you’re leading in youth ministry, you play games on a regular basis. You order and eat pizza all the time. Watching funny videos, laughing with […]
You probably got into youth ministry for pretty much one reason: you want to raise up the next generation of Christ followers. Much of what that entails is you pouring out your knowledge, your expertise, and your relationships with teenagers and adolescents in the next generation. It means that you get to share what you […]
Have you ever walked into your small group completely ready? You looked over your questions, took notes during the message, and even planned exactly what you wanted to ask. Then everyone sits down. You catch up for a minute, look around the circle, and ask, “So…what did you think about the message?” And…nothing. Suddenly every […]
Dribble a basketball. There’s nicotine in cigarettes. Have a wide stance on defense. Throw a spiral. Run routes. Type 2 diabetes can be improved through diet and exercise. Use your forearm to hit a volleyball. These are all topics I taught and centered my career around as a physical education teacher. I was a P.E. […]
I’m sure we all have felt like we didn’t fit into a group at one point in our lives. Maybe it was at church, or at a new school, or even at a new job. Whatever the case, we can all relate to this feeling of not belonging. I believe that a huge need for […]
One of the biggest buzzwords in youth ministry is partnering with parents. It’s something we started to realize a couple of decades ago. Or maybe re-realize. I’m not sure what the right word is there. But at some point, youth ministry began to reestablish the idea that parents are the primary spiritual influence at home. […]
