youth pastor life | More Than Dodgeball

Josh GriffinMore Posts GUEST POST: What Consumes Me?

So, I’m putting together my sermon for church and I just needed to share. We live in a society that’s all about consumption. We are so concerned with what we eat, what we buy, who sees us (or who we see) and what our overall status is. Facebook has taken over to the point that people believe status updates as ultimate truth. It’s hilarious and sad at the same time.

I’m wondering at this point “what consumes me?” My Bible says it should be Jesus — my life should be about Him; His plans and dreams and hopes. This has nothing to do with being a pastor; it has everything to do with being a follower of Christ. God isn’t looking for Sunday Christians…I actually believe those are the devil’s favorite people. They are content and satisfied. They aren’t growing in their faith, they are serving and ministering; they are merely punching a religious clock called attendance. Satan is worried about the people who are consumed by God.

I have so many options as an American for what I will allow to consume me. It could be sports or Hollywood. Money or clothing. Eating at fancy restaurants, attending the proper parties or just being a perfect dad. However, as the Bible says in Proverbs 14:12, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.” My feelings and emotions can betray me all too easily. I must decide to be consumed by the truth of God’s Word.

Hebrews 13:8 tells me that Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. There is nothing that the world or society can offer me that matches that claim. Jesus is eternal, God’s Word is eternal, His truth is eternal and He invites me into a life of eternity. When I decide to be consumed by God then I find myself trusting Him when there is more month than money. I lean on Him when disciplining my children or counseling a church member or leading worship. See, when I am consumed by God I no longer have to worry about other things. It’s not that they aren’t important, and this isn’t a license to be irresponsible, but when my heart, my thoughts, my life are consumed by God then I KNOW that He is taking care of the rest. Worry and stress are gone, strife and anger are gone; peace and abundant life become the rule and not the exception.

So, this all sounds wonderful and happy, but really? Consumed by God — you mean like every part of my being — my soul, my body, my mind and my spirit?? Yep, that’s what my Bible says. Unfortunately, I must confess that I have a long way to go in this area…I find myself consumed with sports, I look forward to football games more than church at times. I fret over my kids and worry about finances and stress about my role as a husband, dad, pastor, friend, etc. But I know where I want to be — consumed by God. I want to be able to stand strong on His foundation even if the world around me is crumbling.

It’s interesting but it was easier to do this 18 months ago when my world was crumbling. It’s amazing how betrayal and despair can drive us to the throne of God — but the key is am I consumed by Him when my skies are blue? That’s a bit more trickier because I can start to grow in a confidence and assurance that isn’t based on God, simply because life is smooth. So, what consumes me? Well, I know the answer that I am aiming for (God) and I know the reality I am facing (everything else). There is a tension between faith and reality, between right and wrong, between surrendering to God and indulging my selfishness. Thankfully, it’s a journey and although the path is rocky at times, I can tell that I’m heading in the right direction!

What consumes you?

Mike Dobes is the high school and college age pastor at Crossroads Community Church in Camarillo, CA. He is happily married with 5 amazing kids, loves sports and the beach and is blessed to be in ministry. Check out his blog for more!

Add Comment February 8, 2011

Josh GriffinMore Posts GUEST POST: Learn

After five plus years of being in the youth worker game, I have come to the conclusion that the key to youth ministry is the desire to learn. When you break it down, learning is what it is all about:

You have to be willing to learn about the teenage brain and how they think. To know who GaGa, Gandolf, Gryffindor, and Garret Gilbert are because they matter to your students.
You have to learn how to listen and when to talk, how to not act shocked when you hear of the details of some kid’s lives, and how to convey emotion over Facebook chat.
You have to learn how to be (or at least seem) interested in stories that really don’t make sense.
You have to learn how to let kids beat you in basketball, teach you things you already know, and the Heimlich in case of a game of Chubby Bunny gone bad.
You have to know all the “Q” words that don’t require a “u” in Scrabble, and who has texting on their phones and who doesn’t.
You have to know what it means when Master Chief is in his cryo-tube and when the ACOG scope for the FAMAS gets unlocked in your third prestige.
You have to be able to cheer for 6 different high school mascots and know where 6 different auditoriums are located within a school.
You have to know who is gone every other weekend because they’re at their dad’s house, and who you haven’t seen in church for a couple of weeks.
You have to learn the names of all your students, and never ever call them by their sister’s name, even though they are identical twins. You have to learn how to remember the joys amid the deep disappointments, remind yourself that everyone makes mistakes, and always expect the unexpected.
You have to learn how to balance church life and “real life”. You have to learn how to leave your work at work. You have to know when the play performance is, the time of the choir concert, and who plays on JV and who made varsity. You also have to know who got cut, and be sure to let him know that it’ll be OK.
You have to know who is struggling and who is excelling; who needs help, and who needs space to sort things out on their own. You have to learn to not compare one kid to another, but rather appreciate each for who they are. You have to learn to not get down about who is not there, but rejoice for those who are.
You have to know how to Tweet, update, upload, post, poke, promote, and share, sometimes all at the same time. You have to know to avoid what’s so fifteen minutes ago and be aware of what’s cool today. You have to know that you are NOT 16 years old anymore and dress, speak, and style your hair accordingly.
You have to know how to say no, and when you have to say yes even though you really don’t want to. You have to know how to clean up messes (both literally and figuratively), and how to say sorry. You have to learn how to appreciate those who may never appreciate you. You have to learn how to sound smart even though you have no idea what you’re saying. You have to learn how to keep your promises and not make one unless you can.
You have to be willing to learn from other youth workers and realize you’re not on an island. You have to learn how to meet students where they’re at and not expect immediate change. You have to learn how to be the adult even if you feel like one of the kids. You have to learn that confusion doesn’t mean indifference and busyness doesn’t mean progress. You have to learn how to schedule the unscheduled time, and how to be flexible. You have to learn how to delegate, lest your passion fizzles and dies.
You have to learn how to read between the lines and how to say the same thing five different ways. You have to learn how to fill your own cup. You have to know where the Bible says an ass talked to Baalam, and what anthropomorphism means. You have to know how to answer the phone at 3am and how to react to the sobbing brokenhearted. You have to learn that you don’t know everything and you learn twice as much from your students than they do from you. You have to know who your Savior is so that you might be able to share Him when a kid needs it.
You have to know what grace is and be willing to show it even when it’s difficult.

But the thing about all these things, and I could go on for another couple of pages, but the thing about these things is we youth people love it! We get to rock out to pop music and listen to kids talk about their days. We get to play Call of Duty and get our butts kicked by kids 1/3 our age. We get to cheer for every sport we never played and paint our faces just to make our one student feel loved. We get to help kids figure stuff out and be with them when they tell their parents about the trouble they got into.

We get to answer the calls at 3am and spend way too much time on Facebook. We get to have inside jokes with teenagers and buy silly gag gifts just because it’ll make them smile. We get to learn from other people who do the same thing we do, and we get to share ideas. We get to grow deeper in our faith so that we might be able to help kids who struggle in theirs. We get to learn about Jesus and see Him work in the lives of the next generation. None of those things are a “have to”, they are all “get to”‘s and that is what makes youth ministry so great!
Learning is what it is all about- and the willingness to learn is what keeps us going day after day. Today I can learn something about someone that I never knew before.

And maybe, just maybe I can tell them something about their Lord and Savior they never knew before. That’s what this is all about.

I am blessed.

Kory Henkel is the Director of Youth Ministries at Bloomington Living Hope Lutheran Church in MN. Check out his blog for more right over here.

4 View Comments February 7, 2011

Josh GriffinMore Posts Why I’m Going Back to Kenya

I’m honored and excited to be going back to Kenya for the 2nd time – I figured going halfway around the world was a once in a lifetime opportunity last year, so going for a second time in 11 months is incredible. Why am I going? As I’ve prepared for our high school mission trip, I came up with two thoughts:

I’m going for our students to grow and be stretched in their faith
There’s nothing like a 20,000 mile trip to push anyone to the brink. Taking students from Orange County to Kenya is going to be culture-shocking for them. When jet lag is at is fiercest and comforts are all but gone, it seems like we respond to God’s Spirit the best. Our walls are down, we are raw. And getting to challenge students in this atmosphere in that environment excites me. I want to be their pastor, their body guard and their friend. I want them to experience the Kenyan church’s vibrant faith. I want them to wrestle with the faithfulness of God to these poor African children. This will be the time and the place.

I’m going to be a dad for a week to the fatherless street kids
I throw the football around with the boys 4 nights a week. We never miss church. We’re still an old fashioned family and eat family dinners in a culture that demands drive-thru. We go door-to-door selling Girl Scout cookies and my kids play soccer in the city league. We read the Bible and pray every night. One of my central life goals is to be a great dad to my 4 kids. And there are hundreds of fatherless little children in Kenya. My kids get me 51 weeks a year. The street kids, who lost their parents to HIV/AIDS, get me for 1 week a year. I’m going over there to be a dad.

I know you’ll enjoy the 25 amazing guest posts over the next 10 days. I’m going to the other side of the world with some students and leaders I love, knowing God will do something big in all of our hearts. See you in a couple weeks!

JG

1 View Comments February 2, 2011

Josh GriffinMore Posts GUEST POST: The Speech

Last night I watched a re-run from the TV show “The Practice” that had this scene that included a powerful speech that inspired this post to you today. Every so often one of the attorneys would need “the speech” to remind them that they should persevere. No matter if they are a prosecutor and are staring injustice in the face, or on the defensive side of the judicial system and troubled by an ethical dilemma, they eventually ask to hear “the speech.”

It reminded me of youth ministry – sometimes we need “the speech” too. So, for those who are nearing the end of the year and require “the speech” to keep going… here you go.

Dear servant of the Lord Jesus,

I don’t know you, and really, I don’t have to. You may be tired and ready to chuck it in… But you are making a difference. In your church or school, to the kids that God has called you to shepherd over, you are making a difference.
You may not think so. Or feel like it right now.

But you are.

You may be in a place of discouragement by your own design or by the actions of someone else… Keep going. You may feel overwhelmed or dangerously alone in your struggles… Don’t give up. You may be entrenched in an unsupportive congregation or under a problematic Senior Pastor… Hold on. Please.

You have a magnificent privilege in serving God.

Remember what He has done in your life. Remember when He has shown Himself to be faithful. Remember when He has come through. Remember the times in your life and ministry when God has shown you that He is worthy of your awe, praise and entire life. And remember what He has called you to do. To love Him with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. To love others like yourself. To go and make disciples in His name. So don’t give up.

Following Jesus works and telling this truth to teenagers is an amazing privilege (even if working for His people can be trying!). When a teen understands the Gospel for the first time or makes a breakthrough in their faith journey, you make a difference for the Kingdom of God. When you persevere with the kid who requires a lot of attention, you make a difference for the Kingdom of God. When you pour your life into your leaders, you make a difference for the Kingdom of God. If “the speeches” aim is to tell “why we do what we do,” then the bottom line is this… God has called you to speak of the great things He has done for the salvation of the world.

Do so fearlessly. Despite the obstacles and difficulties. Because you are making a difference.

GB

PS. When I need it, can you give me “the speech?” I’d really appreciate it. And so will your fellow workers.

Graham Baldock is a Youth Pastor from Sydney, Australia and has a youth ministry blog work checking out at grahambaldock.blogspot.com.

1 View Comments January 22, 2011

Josh GriffinMore Posts Parent Night “Thank You” Video

Another video from our recent Parent Night. A simple “thank you” from our junior high and high school students to our parents.

JG

Add Comment January 20, 2011

Josh GriffinMore Posts GUEST POST: Spiritual Seasons – Winter

Spiritual Winter: Everything is with God appears dead, cold, alone, and distant. Your faith is challenged.

Spiritual Winter is a lot like the wilderness that the Israelites wandered through. It’s described as a time in your life when yours prayers seem unheard. For some reason you begin to think that God isn’t listening to you or paying attention to what your begging him for. If you’re like me, verses like John 14:13,”And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son” play on repeat in your mind. You say to yourself that God tells me to go to him and ask in his name and yet I feel like he isn’t listening, he doesn’t care, and I’m alone.

As we approach this spiritual wilderness, Satan begins to tell us that we don’t matter to God anymore. The reason, Satan says, is because we aren’t worthy of God’s time. He’s to busy for us and our sinfulness. We’re told that the winter storm approaching is God’s way of punishing us. The warmth of God’s light described in Revelation fades and God pulls out. The sunny days of running with God and enjoying the afternoon talks are gone. What Satan is really trying to get us to understand is that because God is pulling out (and therefore throwing us into winter), God is giving up on us. We are no longer the object of his affection, his prized “it is good” creation has lost its’ place in the royal family. Pictures are taken off the mantel, the Trinity stops speaking our name, and our place at the table is given to someone else.

The attack of Satan is so strong that our worship of God begins to lose its’ power and songs we once screamed with joy from our heart become mere words. Sermons don’t apply to us any longer. Our private devotional time is perceived as pointless. When we reach this stage of winter, most Christians will gather all of their strength and give it another go. We’re determined to read more, prayer more, worship more while the entire time feeling like we’re knocking on Jesus’ door and he’s pretending not to be home. In my mind, it’s like Jesus pretends we’re Jehovah’s Witnesses and he doesn’t want us to see him hiding behind the door’s peep hole. He knows we exists, but he’s trying to avoid us.

Spiritual winter has lasted years for me and at other times only months. Regardless of the length, it’s something that we should understand and work to combat. I say fight, not to give anyone the illusion that we will succeed, but that God himself is victorious. I refuse to say that God CAUSES spiritual winter, but he certainly allows it to happen. Because of that, we have two choices.

First, do we listen to Satan and believe that we no longer matter to God? I mentioned above that Satan often tells us during these times that God has given up on us because of our sin. He’s clearly lying here, but as always, the most dangerous lie contains some truth. We are sinful. Our sin has separated us from God. Without Jesus, we live in perpetual spiritual winter. However, God never gives up on us. He never stops chasing us. He sent Jesus to be our Immanuel “God with us,” so that he may be with us eternally. God’s relationship changed with Adam and Eve after their sin, but he never left. The same in true for us, except that now Jesus offers us a way back into the garden.

The second option is that we call Satan out. We admit that he’s telling partial truths, but we claim the victory of Jesus in our lives. The blood of Jesus covers us and nothing will separate us from the love of God. Romans 8:38-40 is key to this strategy.

^“38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Realize that you will never be good enough, you’ll never be able to save yourself. Claim out loud until Satan flees that God loves you. Say aloud that he is the one that came to be with you–he is your Immanuel. Remind yourself and Satan that God is the one who saves and redeems. In order to get out of winter, we must understand that we are helpless. Jesus must become our everything. As a consequence (or divine providence) of winter, your faith is being tested. God might be using winter to strip unnecessary things from your life. Whatever the reasons, God isn’t leaving you alone. He hasn’t forgotten you. His love for you is beyond the emotions you feel when you try to approach him. Seek forgiveness from your sins, claim victory in Jesus, and above all, never stop pursing Jesus. The snow always melts and spring always comes. The glory of the Lord is around you. Don’t allow the lies of Satan to be your darkness. Luke 1:37, “For no word from God will ever fail.”

Nick Farr is a student minister in Greenwood, IN. He’s happily married, father of one, former missionary, a closet Star Trek fan and blogs right over here.

Add Comment January 15, 2011

Josh GriffinMore Posts No Parents at Parent Night

This was one of the amazing tables set up to welcome parents to the first parent night we’ve had in a long time. You might notice that there is one thing missing … any parents. I’ll blog more about it later, but after everyone’s reaction on Twitter (“I know you must be bummed, but to know even the great SB misses is encouraging like finding out superman uses the bathroom…”) and Facebook (“Not that I’m celebrating, but this makes me feel normal…”) I thought you would enjoy the pic. More after Winter Camp. Wow.

JG

12 View Comments January 14, 2011

Josh GriffinMore Posts 14 Days Until the HSM Bowl

Our annual HSM Bowl is coming up in just two weeks. Going to be a blast! I’ll post the rules and details soon – here’s a promo video from this weekend’s service.

JG

1 View Comments January 9, 2011

Josh GriffinMore Posts Baptizing My Firstborn Son

I realize this picture might not mean as much to you as it does to me … but I can only describe it as one of the highlights of my life. Tonight I had the privilege of baptizing my firstborn son. Seen pictured here as it happened with our fantastic children’s pastor Steve Adams. Cheering, pizza and frozen yogurt immediately followed. What a night!

JG

12 View Comments January 5, 2011

Josh GriffinMore Posts 4 Things That Aren’t Going to Change Soon in Youth Ministry

There’s been quite a bit of talk this past year about youth ministry changing drastically in the future. And while I think youth ministry must always be in a state of evolution and change, my mind wandered to what isn’t going to change anytime soon. If you spend your time on these 4 things, you’ll be ready for wherever God takes you next:

Caring adult leaders
Great volunteers have been a part of youth ministry for a long time – and they will continue to be in the future. These are the inner circle of leadership for your youth ministry. They are your partners, friends, and co-laborers in the faith. Youth ministry will change, but the need for people who love God and love students won’t.

1-on-1 time with students
At the heart of youth ministry must always be the individual student. Even large crowd program and events must continually pursue the one. The church growth movement can be mistakenly representing the desire for the crowd – but good youth ministry does both. Speak to the crowds, care for the individual.

Bible-based curriculum and teaching
Styles will come and go, sizes of groups and formats will fade, but one thing is going to be at the center no matter what philosophy you’re implementing. The Bible has been and must be at the center of youth ministry.

A devoted follower of Jesus leading the group
This is the must – and the New Year is the perfect time to start reversing the trend revealed in this startling poll a few weeks ago. You can talk about leadership, experiment with the latest and greatest gadgets, tools, core values and even have a great youth ministry blog – but if you’re not in love with Jesus and devoted to Him regularly it will eventually implode.

What else isn’t going to be changing soon in youth ministry?

JG