Weekend Teaching Series: Speedo! (summer one-off)
Sermon in a Sentence: We shouldn’t be ashamed to tell others about Jesus.
Weekend Scale of Difficulty: 4 out of 10
Service Length: 73 minutes

Understandable Message: Taffy spoke, and did a great job of being consistently engaging with students, whether it was showing video of his kids singing, or telling stories about his one year of swim in high school … and the Speedo he had to fit into. The overall message was clear – don’t be ashamed of God.

Volunteer/Student Involvement: Students made up the band and  ran cameras, lights, sound and directed the weekend. Volunteers jumped in to greet students and sat with them in the service.

Element of Fun/Positive Environment: The Bolts – an up and coming band that includes some former students in our ministry – did the music all weekend, including opening with one of their own songs. They also did a concert after the 6:30 service, which led to one of our biggest 6:30s in weeks.

Music Playlist: How He Loves, With Everything, We Shine

Favorite Moment: Taffy’s speedo story was strong. The Bolts were incredible. But it’s just hard to beat the video of Taffy’s 3-year-old singing Viva la Vida.

(I’m on vacation for another 10 days! This report was written by Josh Pease, an incredible intern just finishing up his 2 years. If you’re looking for a stud to hire, here’s one of them)

My times spent with kids in an un-programmed environment outside the walls of the church have been some of the most rewarding and effective discipleship moments for me. Youth group events are only one way to minister to kids.

With the new school year right around the corner, there are great opportunities to connect with your youth group kids and meet new students who need to hear about Jesus. These 12 ways to connect are divided into three main categories, each category moving to a deeper level of relationship.

Ways to meet new kids and hang out with current youth group kids
1. Volunteer coach a sport at a local school – Coaching gives you a chance to meet dozens of kids. I had the opportunity to coach track this past Spring and I still have kids who call or text me for advice or just want to talk.
2. Give out free food at lunch – Last Fall I bought a couple dozen tacos from Taco Bell and passed them out to kids at lunch, just asking for their name. I met tons of new kids, a few who I still keep up with.
3. Volunteer at a school club that fits your interest
4. Tutor for free – Some schools have after school tutoring, volunteer for that in a subject you know well.

Connect and develop relationships with kids
5. Ride with a sports team to away games – Great idea from the guys over at YL Help
6. Help a student work on a project or hobby – Especially helpful during science fair season, or other big school projects. Participating in their personal hobbies are great ways to connect, too.
7. Offer to drive a student to something they want to do
8. Meet a student’s friends and/or family – You can meet an exponential amount of kids by constantly meeting students’ friends and then meeting their friends. It takes time and effort but it’s well worth it.

Disciple kids/transfer life skills to kids
9. Ask a student to help you complete a project – Let them know you need their help and/or expertise.
10. Invite a kid to hang out with your friends and/or family – Let them know that you are human too, not just some guy or gal who still hangs out with high schoolers all the time. Exercise wisdom here and keep good boundaries.
11. Invite a student to help you lead a certain event, then evaluate it afterward – This is a great way to transfer leadership skills through hands-on learning. For example, I invited one kid to help me lead a video game night, asking him to consider “What do video games have to do with Jesus?” During our debrief time (which ended up going just as long as our video game time) we talked about video games as a means to build relationships and how relationships are key to evangelism and discipleship. I bet he learned more through that experience than any youth talk.
12. Be a student of God and invite a kid to learn with you – Pray with a kid, or listen to a sermon together, or read the Bible together. Be an avid learner and invite kids along to learn with you.

There are plenty of other ways to connect with kids. How are you planning to develop relationships with kids this new school year?

Nick Arnold is the youth pastor at New Hope Community Church in Sunland, CA. Hit up his blog at http://ministryallies.com and his Twitter @nickarnold.

One of the main worries of youth pastors and Christian parents is that their youth will run away from God shortly after leaving high school. This topic has been touched on a lot and mentioned even more. However, lately I have been really thinking over why some Christian kids, stay Christian and why others decide Christ was just something from their childhood.

As youth pastors it’s a huge deal that we all have to face and that I think to some degree can be prevented. While most people that have written or talked on this topic took the angle of why students LEAVE but I am going to relate reasons why I think they will STAY:

Students who stay Christians are:
1. Involved in Ministry
2. Have Strong Spiritual Leaders
3. Have experienced God  (and hold on to their experience of God)
4. Receiving Positive Messages (in and out of sermons)
5. Are Seeing God Work

Now, I know this list isn’t a comprehensive list nor do I claim that it is the only reasons, but from my life experiences and from the life of youth I have seen grow up in the church and either STAY or LEAVE. This seems to be a fair list.

Then, the question becomes, as a youth pastor how are you doing on this? Are your youth involved with ministry in your church AND in your youth ministry? Do your youth have strong spiritual leaders that can help them push themselves and grow? Have your youth had the chance to experience God on their own or do they just hear about it from you? Do they hold on to that experience, remembering it and cherishing it? Are they receiving positive messages? Both from sermons and from 1 on 1 time with them? Are they seeing God work in your life? In the church? In the world?

I am going to admit I am not perfect at this in fact I am developing ways right now that I can involve my youth more. I am trying to create places and ways for them to see and feel the experience of God.

Join with me as we help youth become Christians and STAY Christians.

Mark Knight is the Youth Pastor at Burien Free Methodist. Follow him on Twitter @youthpastormark or read his blog http://youthpastormark.blogspot.com.

I was never good with numbers. Math in High school for me consisted of naptime; which was caused the teacher waking me up by yelling my name. I once bought a lottery ticket – just to see what would happen. I lost by one number – each number I picked was one number off. I learned at a very early age that numbers were not my friends.

In this journey we call youth ministry, I’ve learned that numbers are not our friends either. Sure, we keep records of attendance; keep track of how many students showed up this week vs. last week, or last year at this time. Those are important. If you can’t track the fruit of your ministry, than maybe you don’t have any fruit; and if you don’t have any fruit, then you might be in danger. But that’s for another post.

But once we cross that very thin line and start to judge our ministry based on the amount of students are showing up; we’ve walked into a minefield. Sadly, I’ve walked into that minefield a few too many times. Walking through that ‘danger zone’ (.. Top Gun’s theme just popped in mind) has allowed me to learn a few lessons:

1. Focus on the Few. In John 6, he writes about Jesus feeding the 5,000. I can’t help but wonder – of those 5,000, how many just wanted a free meal? How many were caught up in the crowd and just “going with the flow?” And how many were there for the specific purpose of hearing God? It didn’t matter. All that mattered was the one boy that shared his lunch, gave and was used for God’s glory. It doesn’t matter how many you have coming out and why they are coming out. Once you can set your sights on those that are there to be used by God and for God – it makes it all worthwhile.

2. Bear your “Fruit.” Church Leadership will want to see your “fruit.” For them, the numbers are important. Keep a record of attendance. Use spreadsheets to keep track, make graphs, and show those above you where the ministry is at. Print, photocopy, email, hand out, share with the leadership where you’re at.

3. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. This has been hard for me. Pride, fear, doubts all set in. But once I took that step and just asked, I was surprised with the results. You might be surprised with who will say yes when you ask.

4. Plan for Growth. Ok, so you don’t have hundreds of students attending every week. Nor are they all perfect. But if you start to focus on the few, build them up and give them opportunity to serve – you will have growth. So why not start today and plan for that growth? Whether it is in location, volunteers or curriculum – plan.

Andy Disher is the Director of Student Ministries for a church in  Ontario, Canada. He blogs as a 3-year youth ministry rookie at http://ymrookie.wordpress.com.

Listen and act – these are secrets to creating a dedicated team of volunteer servant leaders. Creating a family of leaders who last requires getting their input into the decisions you make – especially decisions which directly affect their areas of service. From my perspective as a youth ministry volunteer, I know firsthand that these two actions have helped me last in ministry.

The day one of my leaders quit, I asked him to list what we needed to fix in his ministry – he was leaving because he didn’t feel his ministry needs were being met. I took out a pad of paper to write down his ideas. At the end of the conversation, he said because I made him feel valued by listening and taking action, he would not quit. He committed to working with me to resolve the issues. What could have been the end of the road for a leader transformed into a stronger relationship formed from newly-minted and mutual determination to strengthen his ministry.

Years later, as I serve on the volunteer side of ministry, there have been times when I’ve wanted to throw in the towel because I felt ignored when I expressed my needs as a leader. Persistence on my part, however, has paid off. I’ve consistently communicated my needs and shown how not getting them met has hindered my effectiveness as a leader. Over time, this has helped build a sense of teamwork between myself as a volunteer and the staff of our high school ministry.

When the leaders of the high school ministry I serve in met my simple request of giving me students all from one school for my summer camp cabin, my effectiveness as a leader greatly increased. I knew from experience that students in my cabin will gravitate to the small group I teach during the school year. When I have 5 schools represented in my small group, there’s no way I can spread myself thin enough to keep up with their sporting events, plays, concerts, Christian clubs, etc.

You are wise to listen to your hands-on volunteers who work in the trenches directly with students as leaders of small groups, mission teams, camp cabins, etc. The simple steps of listening and acting can build a loyal team of long-term volunteers. These diehard servant leaders will consistently sacrifice to fulfill the vision of your ministry by pouring their lives into the spiritual health of your students.

Dennis Beckner has been a volunteer youth worker for 10 years in our high school ministry at Saddleback Church. Check out his blog for fellow youth workers at VolunteerYouthMinistry.com.

I have been a Youth Pastor for over 15 years. During this time I have served in only two churches and yet have been searching for a position for over a year. This search process has taken me far longer than expected to say the least. I have to tell you some churches have done extremely well at keeping me informed and others just have not even bothered to contact me back. I know first hand that it can be extremely discouraging when the search process takes longer than expected. In addition to this it can take a toll on the family. I would love to share with you some pointers that I have learned that has helped me keep my sanity during this process.

1. Don’t Give Up
I believe one of the first thoughts that enter our minds when the search takes awhile is “Am I really called? Is this what God really wants me to do? Why is it taking so long? “ Thoughts like this cant help but race through our mind. Please do not give up be confident in what God has called you to do. (Philippians 2:13)

2. Pray More
Use this time to grow even closer to God through a deepened prayer life. If you are not serving in ministry because you are in the search process then draw even closer to God through prayer. Deepen your prayer life not just for your own needs but use this time for some extraordinary intercessory prayer. This is time that you may not have had before.

3. Read and Memorize Scripture More
Use this time to dive even deeper into God’s word then you ever have. During this time your faith will be stretched dive deeper into God’s word. Use your down time to read God’s word even more and to memorize even more Scripture. Hide God’s word in your heart. (Psalm 119:11)

4. Read and Study More
Use this time to read more books. Catch up on some books that you have wanted to read. Soak up some great youth ministry knowledge there are so many great books out there that you can dive into that will give you great ideas. In addition find blogs of Youth Pastors and subscribe to them, read them see what is going on in the lives of other youth pastors. Why not start your own blog and talk about your search.

5. Build Deeper Relationships
Use this time to build deeper relationships with others. Take some time to invest more in other people. I know I was often so caught up in doing ministry I could rarely invest in others like I wanted to. Take this time to invest in someone’s life that you might not have had the chance to invest in.

6. Get Involved
This is the last one I will share though I could share so much more. Get involved in church. Just because you may not be the full time youth pastor does not mean that you should not be involved in church. I have been involved in my church for a little over a year now. I have had so many opportunities to contribute to the lifeblood of the church and the youth ministry that I am at. Don’t just drop out of ministry just because you are not getting paid.

In addition you must recognize that your involvement in ministry also will help you build some references. This is not your purpose in being involved but it is a benefit of being involved in church. I hope that if you are in the search process and it is taking a little longer than expected that this article will be beneficial to you.

Joshua Monda is a youth worker in waiting right now – check out his blog is www.baddaysbetter.com.

I was walking along my merry way in Walmart the other day, when I overheard a conversation between two people. I won’t take this time to hint at the gender, age, race, description, history, eye color, food preference, etc. of these two individuals, simply to avoid the very type of hate that I’m ranting about here. I also will admit, before I go on, that I didn’t hear the context of the conversation. I’m really just here to make my point, and move on with my life.

The said conversation involved a comment that went a little something like this, “Today’s teenagers just don’t have any respect for anyone these days. It’s a problem with the whole generation.”

It’s a good thing I was busy, or I might have blown a gasket.

I want to take a moment to redeem the apparently-ruined character of today’s teenagers.

1. There may be a few bad apples. I’m sure there aren’t ANY GROUPS OF PEOPLE that don’t have the same problem.
2. You’re prejudging, which is wrong, so stop it.
3. I have a strong sense of pride of my generation, and those coming behind me in it.

You see, we aren’t the types that have a blatant disregard for authority, or a sick sense of pleasure in runing the established order. Today’s teenagers, like anyone else, are in the process of learning how to do life. The very last thing they need is criticism along that path. Those who had a major, positive impact on my life were the ones who invested, not the ones who blindly recklessly me down, out of blind arrogance.

So check yourself, before the next cutting remark leaves your tongue. I have been radically saved by Jesus Christ, and am daily being made more iike Him. That’s a slow process, but I’d like to point out that I’m not seeing many “Walking Jesuses” these days either.

That’s my story. I’m sticking to it. If you’re offended, then comment – I want to hear your thoughts. If you agree, then comment – I’d also like to hear your thoughts. That’s all I got for today!

Mark Cox is the Student Pastor of Indian Springs Baptist Church in Bryant, AR. He blogs at www.thinknextnow.com and Twitters, too: www.twitter.com/markhcox.

We’re standing in line at McDonald’s on the way home from a week away at summer camp. Chris, a 75 pound ball of 6th grade boy is in line in front of me.

“Hey Rob,” he says, “How many double cheeseburgers can I get for ten dollars?”

“Um…nine,” I say.

Chris then turns around and says exactly what we all think he will, “I’ll take 9 double cheeseburgers please.”

Camp is just not a normal experience is it? I think that is exactly what makes it so good.

Summer camp is often the highlight of our students’ summer. It’s a week where they get away from home, stay up late, and have some of that independence they are desperate for. For many it’s a week where they just abuse themselves (and others) with the lack of sleep and horrible food. And at the exact same time it’s a week where they encounter God in a way they might never have before.

This past week at camp I watched our middle school students worship in amazingly authentic ways. I saw them engage with the speaker. I listened to them have deep and insightful conversations during small group times. It was beautiful!

And then the last day of camp came and I started hearing the phrase that always bothers me, “Don’t let camp be just another spiritual high. You can go home and continue to worship God just like you have this week!”

Now don’t get me wrong I totally understand the sentiment here. However, let’s be honest, it’s ok to ride a bit of a spiritual roller coaster. I would even argue that it’s pretty Biblical. Take a stroll through scripture and you’ll find people having amazingly intense experiences with God, crying out to God because they feel abandoned by him and absolutely everything in-between.

So why would we set our students up for failure by pushing them to try and recreate a summer camp experience all year? First, it’s impossible and they are just going to end up disappointed and a little disillusioned with God. Second, I am way more concerned about our students learning how to worship God in all the seasons and situations in their life.

Because really, we can’t order nine cheeseburgers every day.

Rob Bergman is the youth pastor at Windsor Crossing Community Church (www.wcrossing.org) in St. Louis, MO. See inside his world at www.youthcrossing.blogs.com/rob.

One of my favourite things to discover is a great question. Sometimes there’s nothing better to cut through life and challenge me, remind me, or encourage me.

In the midst of a busy year of student ministry, however, I often don’t make much time for great questions. I get wrapped up and in the day-to-day questions like: Did someone book those buses? Am I going to have any leaders for the grade 9 boys at the end of tonight? Should I really eat at a Macho Burrito for a third time this week?

If I’m not careful, day-to-day I can end up paddling really hard in the wrong direction without even realizing it. Over the years I’ve started to collect some questions that I ask myself regularly to help me make sure I don’t get lost for too long without realizing it.

Am I serving in my “sweet spot”?
As the student ministry year gets rolling and the pressure is on, we can have the tendency to work outside of our “sweet spot”. We find ourselves taking on things we just aren’t good at and then we wonder why we’re so tired. I’ve made it a regular habit to ask two questions of my coworkers and my volunteer leaders; what do you think I’m good at and what do you think I’m not good at? I’m often surprised at their answers. They can identify not only what I should or shouldn’t be doing but also who could help me in areas that drain me. Q. Am I doing the things that energize me or things that drain me?

What’s driving my decisions?
The church God loves is an incredible collision of humanity, divinity, and community, and it can get messy. So many of us can find ourselves making decisions because of what makes others happy, what gives us more political currency, or what’s easiest. What’s motivating your decisions, relationships, and time? Q. If God’s passion for students and not the pressure of people were your motivation, what decision would you be making right now?

Who am I giving my best?
A lot of my hair turned grey before I had the guts to ask myself this one. If you’re in student ministry for the long haul, you’ve got to wrestle with this one regularly. Is your family getting their fair share of your best time. Not your ‘exhausted on the couch time’, but your best time. As one veteran youth worker said to me, “at the end of the day, there are lots of youth groups in the world, but you only get one wife and kids.” Q. Would the key people in my life say I’m giving them my best?

How’s my heart?
Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. (Proverbs 4:23) I think this is one of those verses that carries a lot of freight for people who do what we do. We aspire to be like those we know who have grasped this principle, and weep for those we know who have stumbled over it. We all need to pause and look through the window to our own soul to see what God is saying. Do you need some time with God, some time to just laugh with some JHs, time with a mentor, time to get things right with your spouse, time to call up an old friend, time to watch ‘Lost’ ? Q. If God doesn’t look at the outward appearance, but focuses on the heart, what would he say about how you’re caring for yours?

Jeff Brodie (@jeffbrodie) lives in Barrie, ON Canada and is the Director of Student Ministry at Connexus Community Church; a strategic partner of North Point Ministries.

As adult leaders in student ministry, we’re in this to make a difference in the lives of students. We are compelled by something inside and by Christ Himself to see Jesus alive and well in their lives, to see them surrendered to the will and wonder of God, and to see the faith we hold dear passed on to their generation, in the context of their place in history, so that they might hold it dear and give it extravagantly.

However, while it may not be possible to be too eager for those things, I do believe that in our eagerness, we can go about things the wrong way. In our attempts to just “do something”, we end up doing the wrong things. And even with a heart to see teens drawn in we end up pushing them out.

Ministering to teens demands a few basic yet essential ingredients. I’ll list a few of them here, but don’t hold me to the order in which I list them.

1. A real-life relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
This one sounds like a no-brainer. However I can tell you that I have honestly seen youth workers exhibit little to no fruits of the Spirit. I’m not trying to be oversimplistic, but I think we need to agree that if there aren’t any fruits of the Spirit, then there isn’t the Spirit. A real-life living active relationship with God will over time cause us to be more loving, more joyful, more peaceful, more patient, kinder, filled with goodness, gentler, filled with faith, and controlling ourselves.

2. A willingness to do what it takes to build bridges into the lives of students.
I have known people with incredible amounts of knowledge of the Bible and even a passionate desire to teach it to students, but were blatantly honest that they had no intention of connecting relationally with students. They simply wanted to teach what they know. But without bridges of relatability, relevance, and genuine relationship, how did they suppose that information was going to be transferred in a way that sticks? I’m afraid that gone are the days when students simply sit and absorb information just because an adult is speaking.

3. A teachable heart.
I’ve been in fulltime student ministry for 15 years, and part-time before that and my opinion is there is nothing that will muck up a team of youth leaders more quickly than an adult who knows it all. A “don’t confuse me with the facts” attitude will kill a team effort in a heartbeat. The longer I’m a leader, the more I realize I’d better be a maturing follower if I want to lead effectively. So as a leader, devote yourself to learning, reading, listening, researching, and integrating. There are some great online (and free!) tools to help in this process. In fact, this site itself is meant to be a place of learning, growing, corporate reflection, sharing, and being enhanced as leaders. We need that so desperately.

4. The nerve to reproduce.
One of my earliest memories in life was being a very young boy, standing on an old wooden stool, next to the table that held our church’s mimeograph machine. My dad was the pastor and he’d set up the original copy (on wax paper), affixed to the ink drum, and feed the blank sheets into the machine while I–like a circus monkey–would turn that handle, spinning that drum, and making those copies. Making copies was hard work and while advancement in copy-machine technology has brought us to nearly painless push-button copy making, I’m afraid that reproducing ourselves in students is a bit more arduous than that.  But without reproduction, people will eventually wonder what it is you do (not out of the ordinary, maybe), but so will you.

What other ingredients do you see as key to fruitful ministry to students?

Jerry Varner is a Student Discipleship Pastor in the Richmond, VA area. He’s been at it for 15+ years and only asks for 15+ more – read Jerry’s blog at http://jerrythinks.blogspot.com.

In the Spirit of Martin Luther, I offer my 9.5 theses.

I suppose that, like Martin Luther five hundred years ago, most of us in ministry have strong feelings about what we’d like to change about the church. These are some of the convictions I’ve developed over the past decade of ministry. These are somewhat untried and untested ideas, but I really believe these things.

1. No one one church is or should act like it’s the whole body of Christ.
2. The value of denominations is in what they uniquely offer to the Body of Christ not what separates them from the rest of the Body.
3. “When God looks at a city, He doesn’t see many churches; He sees one church in many congregations.” – Ed Silvoso
4. For the good of the kingdom and for the wise use of God’s resources small churches need to join forces, pool resources, even merge together! (heresy, I know.)
5. God has blessed large churches to be a blessing to the rest of the body of Christ.
6. “The purpose of unity is not ‘unity for the sake of unity’ but to demonstrate that God’s truth is true.” – Mike King
7. A divided Body of Christ is a defeated Body of Christ.
8. Youth pastors and young pastors are the best candidates for forging unity (new wine and new wineskin and all that).
9. A church united is extremely difficult requiring, and thus demonstrating, the supernatural love of God.
9.5. This kind of love is what the world is waiting to see.

Those are my thoughts about building a better church. I’d love to hear yours!

Travis Deans is a youth ministry network coordinator who blogs www.travisdeans.blogspot.com and Twitters www.twitter.com/tdeans.

Now I just want to say right off the bat, I am no experienced veteran in ministry. I am a rookie when it comes to leading a ministry, but I have been hanging out and leading small group with students for 7 years. This summer was my first experience (did I mention it was a great experience?) at running a Junior High Youth Group. In that time I learned something huge, something that I as a leader will never forget, which even the most experienced leaders forget at times because speaking has become such a routine for them.

What I learned were two major things:

Remember Who You Are Talking To
Whether you are talking to junior high students or high school students, it is important to remember that they are… students. As a speaker, at least for the younger ones, I think we try to go all out and use the big words, Greek and Hebrew definitions, use the “Christianize” language to try to impress them to think we know what we are talking about. Something all youth leaders know is that students are the best “Fake Detectors” out there. You do not need to pretend to be a Dallas Willard or Brian McLaren on stage. What you do need to remember is that because you are the group’s leader, because you hang out with the students after service, at their school, and are just apart of their lives, they will listen to what you have to say (for the most part). Try to put your personality into your message so it is you up there, not a full on Bible Scholar trying to teach a Graduate School Lecture.

Also, we need to remember who you are talking to and not try to, for lack of a better phrase, “dumb it down.” Especially when it comes to junior high students, they are not dumb at all. They really want the real Bible stories; they left all the kid stuff back in the children’s ministries. We need to not forget that we need “speak the truth in love” as it is said. There are many stories in the Bible, which have to deal with real people, real controversy, and real sin. Students can handle a deep message, they want it. Even though junior highers don’t always seem like they are following along, they are. We need to be real and up front with them about what is in the Bible because it is the Sword of the Spirit and our main offensive against Satan.

We need to remember whom we are talking to. They are students who, for the most part, want to hear what you have to say.

Remember Who We Are Talking About-
Remember we are talking about the God of the universe, the God of all creation, the God of Everything. I think sometimes we can get caught up in just writing a message, but it is much bigger than that. You are telling students about the Almighty Father in Heaven. I think we just need to take a step back sometimes and think about that because with that in mind, you can create a message with the full intent of speaking to the students about God, and who He really is and is capable of.

Hope this is helpful to someone. It was helpful to me.

Justin Knowles is the interim jr high pastor at Pomona FBC in Pomona, CA. Check out his Twitter at twitter.com/jknowles07.

I work with Junior High students, ages 12-14 at Second Baptist Houston. When students and other youth pastors come in they are all expecting games and just fun for an hour on Wednesday nights and then just some goofy stuff on Sunday morning. Well, we have totally redefined how we do student ministry. We don’t do all of the games and fun stuff all the time, and for some reason students keep coming back.

But I think that if you treat a student with respect and show them that they are not just a “little/annoying/smelly/hitting puberty/loud/immature-Junior High/High school Kid” (as everyone calls them), then they will come back and bring everyone they know because they feel like you love them for them. Plus they feel very respected as a student and not some little child. We will very rarely do any sort of a game that is childish in nature.

Many people in ministry say, “oh you have to that is why they come, they only come for that stuff.” No, I disagree they come because they feel loved, loved the worship, never knew what was going to happen (had a element of surprise-never ever the same order or stuff) and the message was challenging, applicable and easy to understand.

So here is my challenge, instead of planning silly games, or cute things to get students to come – plan on making an experience for you students so that the second they step into your ministry they experience the Love of Christ and leave feeling challenged and wanting more.

Michael Head – Is the JHIG H Pastor at Second Baptist Church Houston. You can follow him on Twitter http://twitter.com/mycoolhead, and his blog at www.michaelhead.org.

While I can’t pretend to be an expert in this area, I have been through this a couple of times and thought I would share what I do know. There are a few major things you have to look at when you are planning a budget. It won’t give you final answers, but these are questions that will at least begin to formulate a direction you are headed.

1. Have you prayed about this?
I know it is cliché. I wish I could say I remembered this one up front every time but I am not that cool. The reality is though that you are spending God’s money to do God’s work so you NEED to stop and pray for the mind of Christ to work in your thoughts and heart.

2. What is your church/ministry vision?
Everything you do including the way you spend money should be easily traced to how you are trying to accomplish that vision.
EXAMPLE: Ours is reaching and growing so if I can’t quickly support that I am probably headed in the wrong direction

3. What are your ministry/church’s values?
For many it is the five purposes, excellence, technology, etc. If you are saying you value it put your money where your mouth is and prove it.
EXAMPLE: Our values are worship, grow, serve, and outreach. Those along with Staffing to create them are my focus.

4. What was your budget last year?
Plain and simple this tells a lot. Yes a budget can go up based on trends and potential, but if your budget was $2,500 last year it will most likely not be $20,000 next year.
EXAMPLE: Last year my budget was ……come on did you really think I would write that? I will tell you that I have had a budget go up by 50% and be reduced by 25%.

5. Where is your ministry going?
Where is your ministry going philosophically? Numerically? Short Term? Long Term? Are you adding programs?
EXAMPLE: Last year I was making a major shift in the way we did programming and hopefully creating awareness for outreach that needed to take place and our group was on the verge of a numbers boom.

6. Where is your church going?
Are you in a time of growth, decline, budget cuts, or alternate focus?
EXAMPLE: I have known churches that came to staff 9 months in and told them to plant on 10% of their budget being cut. I have also known churches who have started a second campus or planted a church and shifted funds and focus mid year.

7. What is the financial culture of your church?
How have others past and present made budgets and presented them?
EXAMPLE: I stole the spreadsheet format others had used in the past so that I would not be foreign in my presentation.

8. What are your must haves?
While we all know that a new wii would impact eternity because of the lives it would change, if you are honest with yourself your money may be better spent on leader appreciation.
EXAMPLE: While I have always had the dream for technology and part-time staff, those things didn’t happen in year one and have to be built toward.

9. What is your relationship with the person/group making the final decision?
Are you the new guy? Are you the seasoned veteran? Are you always asking forgiveness? Are you the guy who can do no wrong?
EXAMPLE: Perception is reality so if you are the new guy, know that you have earn trust and credibility. If you have let this group down before you may have to regain their trust. No matter which guy you are you cannot go wrong with organization and clarity in your thought and presentation.

Mark Artrip is the High School Pastor at Grace Church in Powell, Ohio. Check out his thoughts about youth ministry at www.markartrip.com.

As I’m writing this, I’m seriously wondering if youth ministry is even worth it. I’m normally not a negative person at all, but why try to put on a fake face? We are making a change in our student ministry this week (VERY minor, might I add) that might cost us a lot of students. And instead of changing to grow, we might be changing to rebuild… have you ever wondered if it’s worth it, too?

I mean, if this church hired you to be the vision caster for the students, why are so many parents arguing with you? You would think you’ve been there long enough for them to trust you. After they had seen their students grow like never before, you would hope they’ve got the idea that God is using you to change the students in a huge way. It seems like no matter how hard you try to communicate it, parent’s can’t get it in their heads that you’re not a social director and that you want more for their students than, “enough Jesus to make them come back after their wild college years” .. ugh!

So after being verbally accused, not trusted, and hurt time and time again why bother? Why give so much of yourself to people who it seems like only keep a count of the wrong things that you do? When it seems like nothing ever completely sinks into a student’s head, and they let you down every time you think they’ve figured it out finally. Why keep on trying? Wouldn’t being a Senior Pastor be a lot easier?

Because God called us all to this! This wasn’t cruel punishment for not obeying our parents or being mean to our youth pastors as we grew up. God knows that students need someone who will take a stand in their life and teach them that surviving life isn’t good enough. God knew that you would be strong enough to stand against a lot of people who are happy with the way things are and be able to lead the example for students to not be happy with the status quo. And however hurt, however annoyed, however helpless you feel please know that you’re making an eternal impact in God’s Kingdom forever.

Pray every day that God will use you to transform the passion that people have for “tradition” and “the way we’ve always done it” into a passion for eternity. A passion for the people far from God, a passion for justice, a passion for love and mercy. And one day, it’s going to sink in. Students are going to figure it out. Parents will finally realize what you’re there for. And we’ll shake hell at it’s core like never before. Hang in there. Keep loving God, keep loving students, keep loving parents, keep praying hard, and keep pushing for more than what the much of the “Church” says is acceptable.

You’re not alone. God is bigger!

Danny Eiler is the youth pastor at The Springs Church in Ringgold, GA. You can read more about what’s on his mind at his blog www.dannyeiler.com.

Got to take in a Casper Ghosts Pioneer League baseball game last night with grandpa and the boys. Nolan Arenado, a former El Toro High School student (which is just down the road from Saddleback) was drafted by the Rockies this year and blasted a go-ahead homer that led to the win. Great game!

JG

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. – John 1:14

The Gospel is built around the core theological idea of incarnation. The fact that God became a man and made our home his own is full of mystery and wonder. The very idea that Jesus traded all the glories of Heaven for the mundane has provided inspiration for artists, musicians, and ministers for over two thousand years now. Somehow, knowing that we were worth this incredible sacrifice, this confounding trading of places, captures our hearts in ways that nothing else can.

God became a man. The Word became flesh. For a moment God was physically present here on the earth, and now He has sent the Holy Spirit to be a constant presence in the lives of those who believe in Him.

In youth ministry, we can never underestimate the power of presence in young people’s lives. Our relationship with God is centered on the incarnation – the presence of God in a place He didn’t have to be. You also can choose to be present in a place you don’t have to be. No one is forced into youth ministry. No one is pressured into getting to know and care for a teenager. But when we choose to practice presence in the lives of students, we are embodying the very heart of Jesus for His children. We become incarnate – the love of God made manifest in their lives through acts and words of encouragement, consistent reaffirming love, or simple smiles and unprovoked kindness.

The Word became flesh. May our love for Jesus, our love for students, and our passion for youth ministry take on tangibility in the lives of the teenagers we are so blessed to know.

Tim Blake is the Youth Ministry at FBC Cold Spring, KY. Check out his blog at http://timblake.blogspot.com.

Fantastic small group promo video (made by a student) for our junior high ministry weekend service … so fun.

JG

My friend Gabe and I were talking over email about conducting exit interviews for seniors leaving your ministry. We talked about what we could learn from them in order to better prepare them for college and life post-HS. Is this a good idea? Anyone out there already doing it?

Here’s a few of the questions we came up with, take a second to add a few of your own in the comments, too:

• On a scale of 1-10, how involved were you in youth group?
• Did you participate or lead a ministry?
• What is something that the as adult leaders could have done to help or support you more?
• How would you describe the “culture” of the youth group?
• What did you like best about our youth group?
• Were there any opportunities we missed?
• Did you feel supported/loved in a critical time or crisis during High School?
• What program/event did you benefit from the most? (Retreat, Overnighter, etc)
• How can our church continue to encourage and support you?
• If there was one thing you could teach the younger students, what would it be?
• What/when was a defining moment in your spiritual walk?

JG

Listened to episode 108 of the Simply Youth Ministry podcast while driving on vacation. I missed recording the show last week due to a little something called Summer Camp. Enjoyed listening to it and thought you might, too!

JG