I have been out of youth ministry for 10 months, and there are a few things I miss. Relationships with leaders. Great weekend retreat experiences (although I don’t miss late nights and early mornings). The kids. There is something about middle schoolers that is great. They’re so impressionable. Full of energy and life. Creative […]
The Underdog Kids
‘This is not an argument in favor of orphanhood and deprivation,’ Brown writes, ‘but the existence of these eminent orphans does suggest that in certain circumstances a virtue can be made of necessity.’ [143] Instead of responding in a ‘let me control your behavior’ way, the teacher needs to think, ‘How can I do something […]
Making Lemonade
This blog post originally appeared back in 2010 on our youth ministry blog, archived at GaytonChurch.org. At that point in time, we were trying to make a lot of good come from disappointing situations, and it’s a lesson a lot of us would do well to remember. For some reason, I thought it would be […]
Why I’d Rather Separate Jr. and Sr. High in Youth Ministry
Tim Schmoyer posted “Why I’d rather combine Jr. And Sr. High at Youth Group,” and outlined his reasoning. I want to respond with the opposite position. 1.) High school kids can leave a huge impact on jr. highers. I don’t discount the fact that high schoolers can have a great influence on middle schoolers. Over […]
Keeping Your Job and Your Sanity: Part III
Missed Part I and Part II? During these months, I started to take solace in this quote: “I can’t apologize about where God is calling me.” I just didn’t know where God was calling me. That seems direct and to the point. But the issue is also much larger. If I place all hope in […]
Keeping Your Job and Your Sanity: Part II
Missed Part I? The pastor had visions of a new building, with increased fellowship space, new offices and a new place for the youth ministry to call home. The existing youth space was the original sanctuary and had been renovated by the students. They didn’t want to see it go away, but the reality of […]
Keeping your Job and Your Sanity: Part I
I bought into the myth. The myth that a vital, thriving ministry to youth, college students and young adults would draw families into an aging church. Youth don’t have money to tithe, and young adults just don’t tithe. But their families bring money. And more people.
high school.
I met the principal of the local high school tonight and realized maybe we’re missing out on a huge opportunity in youth ministry. We look for the latest and greatest youth ministry resources on trends and what students are going through. Teachers and school administrators interact with these students everyday. Youth Ministers spend time with […]