My church is just a few blocks away from Panera, which serves as my second office. On occasion, we hold our staff meetings there. I also regularly meet with adult leaders and students there. I do so for many reasons. As a youth worker, I want to...
In junior high, I was a member of my school's volleyball team.
I loved being part of the team. I even enjoyed playing volleyball. Here's the catch: I wasn't very good. I just happened to attend a school that was so small that in order to field a...
It's easy, I think, for teens to pity people, to feel sorry for someone else. It's much harder for teens to cultivate and develop empathy, the ability to feel and understand another person's experience. This is true, I'm afraid, even for church...
When they hear how much of a role my student leaders have in creating our ministry's vision, other youth workers often look at me as though I'm crazy. They wonder, Why would you entrust your teens with creating your vision?
To which I say, Why...
In response to last week's post, “What's the Catch?”, Kyle asked a great question:
I love the catch-free scenarios that we can come up with. The only thing I struggle with is making that connection of a kickball game attender to something else...
On Saturday, my youth ministry gathered together to play the summer's hottest game: Slip 'N Slide Kickball.
One of my seniors, a student leader in my ministry, came up to me at the start of the event, eager to share with me her experience of...
A few weeks ago, we looked at 3 types of parents that you'll work with as a youth pastor. Today, we'll continue looking at strategies for dealing with each type of parent. Here are 7 strategies for working with spaceship parents – those who are...
What the book's about: Unlocking Mission & Eschatology in Youth Ministry is part of the series, "A theological journey through youth ministry", which tackles pressing theological issues as they relate specifically to youth...
In junior high, I began accompanying my school's weekly chapel service on the piano. It was a way for me to use my gifts to serve and glorify God even as an introverted kid. It was also what made hours of practicing the piano start to feel worth...
A few weeks ago, we looked at 3 types of parents that you'll work with as a youth pastor. Today, we'll continue looking at strategies for dealing with each type of parent. Here are 7 strategies for working with airplane parents, those parents who...