I recently spent the evening with a group of close friends around a bonfire in my backyard. Our time together began early and it ended late. To be honest, none of us noticed the time slip by because we were so engaged with one another in taking turns telling stories... read more
One of the greatest threats to the large-group worship gathering for students is the monotonous boredom that can mount with a predictable worship experience. A college professor of mine used to say, “Never do the same thing always,” and it was some of the best pieces of advice I ever... read more
I once watched a youth pastor speak to a crowded room of students during a youth ministry event. The 30 minutes that he was on stage was painful to witness. It was not because his illustrations were bad. It was not because of poor exegesis. It was not because of... read more
One of the hidden benefits of having an online presence as a church is the opportunity to have families worship together in the comfort of their own home. The challenge is to supplement a worship service designed for adults so that youth can grow from that experience as well. One... read more
A recent Gallup poll shows that the average tenure of a youth pastor in the local church is only 18 months. If this is true, that is barely enough time to memorize the names of the students in the program, let alone enough time to have a long-lasting impact on... read more
Episode 19: Worship through music! It’s honestly probably one of the harder things to pull off during a worship experience. Especially if you aren’t a musician or don’t have a background in sound or playing an instrument. At the same time it can feel like an expectation to include a... read more
Episode 19: Worship through music! It’s honestly probably one of the harder things to pull off during a worship experience. Especially if you aren’t a musician or don’t have a background in sound or playing an instrument. At the same time it can feel like an expectation to include a... read more
Episode 18: Hear Ye! Hear Ye! That’s right ladies and gentlemen, we are talking about ANNOUNCEMENTS. How can we go from viewing them as a “necessary evil” to getting the most out of this time in our programming. It pains us to see this part of a worship experience go... read more
Episode 18: Hear Ye! Hear Ye! That’s right ladies and gentlemen, we are talking about ANNOUNCEMENTS. How can we go from viewing them as a “necessary evil” to getting the most out of this time in our programming. It pains us to see this part of a worship experience go... read more
My first year in student ministry I worked with middle schoolers. I was fresh out of Bible College and anxious to grow a youth program and see students experience Jesus. We met weekly on Wednesday nights for a typical youth ministry night full of games, worship and teaching. I quickly... read more
Episode 17: Let’s talk about guests.. visitors.. people who are coming to your program for the first time. Maybe they are there for Easter, coming with a friend, or just moved to town and googled your church and showed up. It is so important that they will have a good... read more
Episode 17: Let’s talk about guests.. visitors.. people who are coming to your program for the first time. Maybe they are there for Easter, coming with a friend, or just moved to town and googled your church and showed up. It is so important that they will have a good... read more