Category: youth ministry
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Is the youth room making your church sick?
Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up…
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Happy, Healthy, and Simple Adult Relationships
So Lisa, who lived with us briefly after finishing her undergrad at Grace College– but also essentially lived in our ministry for several years during high school, got engaged last night. That’s a continuation of the parade of weddings we’re in for in 2014 from students in Romeo. This morning our dear friend Barb posted…
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Your Ministry Life, Unexpected
Last night things just kind of went sideways, for me. Kristen and Paul went to the Aztecs game– the reason being that I try not to miss Wednesday night high school small groups. So the value I was trying to express is that I’m making Wednesday night with my guys a priority. With Megan headed…
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Faithfully Playing Your Role in Chapter 3
Youth ministry has a painful double-edged sword. One the one hand, youth ministry plays a critical role in the faith development of teenagers. It’s incredible to be part of life transformation at such a defining point in their lives. On the other hand you are only reading one chapter on a teenagers life. You get–…
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A Youth Worker’s Hierarchy of Needs
If you aren’t familiar with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, this post might not make much sense to you. (Or TV shows like Survivor!) Question: Did I nail it? What’s missing? What’s wrong? Let me know in the comments.
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The “No Drop-Off” Thing
Sometimes I hear about a thing. And the thing is attached to such a good sound byte that it sticks. And then that thing kind of takes a life of its own before you’ve really thought about it much. And that’s what I think happened with the “no drop-off” thing that’s found favor in family…
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Why I’m Investing in Frontline Innovation
In the past few weeks I’ve invested a ton of my energy in Open. Open is a series of open-source-styled youth ministry training events that I dreamt about for nearly 2 years and was finally able to launch last Fall. When we launched it we quickly learned that it wasn’t just a dream I had……
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Pro Tips for Leading Small Groups
So, you’re leading a small group this school year in the youth ministry? That’s so cool. Whether it’s your first season or your 35th thanks for investing in the lives of teenagers. It might not seem like it every week, but it makes a huge difference. So… I’m a small group leader. How do I…
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The Anxiety of Teenagers
I loved Rhett’s talk at The Summit last fall. He and his book struck such a chord with me personally and I heard lots of feedback from people in attendance who felt the same way. When I think about anxiety and other issues that we’re hearing more and more about in regards to teenagers I’m…
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This Better Be Worth It
It’s Wednesday afternoon. I’ve got one eye on finishing up my work, one eye on the clock so I don’t forget to pick up the kids from school, and another eye on a lesson I’m supposed to teach at youth group. The problem is that I only have two eyes. There’s only one of me.…