Reviews

99 Thoughts for Youth Workers ($5, Group Publishing).

Over the past couple of years I have been journaling my youth ministry learnings in my Moleskine and on my blog. The good, the bad and the ugly – this is a collection of those thoughts. Here are some early reviews of the book:

“Here’s why I love it: it’s bite sized, practical tips on lots of different aspects of student ministry. It’s got everything from how to manage a team to how to keep ministry from taking over your life. It’s got great ideas as well as lessons Josh has learned the hard way. And all of it comes in the form of small proverb-like entries. Which is great if you have ADD XL like I do.” Part of the Process

“Griff, I’m super proud of you and excited for your future {side}career as an author! I’d even buy a book about Star Wars, if you wrote it.” Un-blog-evable

“They’re short, insightful, and each thought is followed by a brief explanation of why it’s important. Honestly, I as I was reading it I was seeing ideas for the program I lead, ways I can grow as a leader, and a solid resource that I’d love to get in the hands of all my volunteers.” Matthew McNutt

“If you’ve ever wanted to pick Josh’s brain, this is the book to do it. It’s a quick read and it’s written in a way that allows you to go back to particular sections as a reference guide. Josh has continued his style of writing from his blog and integrated it into this book. His voice definitely comes through in this book.” Kevin Cooper

“The book is easily digestible bites of wisdom. It’s all meat. Nothing more than a few paragraphs on one point. He doesn’t tell long, drawn out stories to beef up his page count, just tells it like it is.” Ministry Allies

“My friend, George Murray, said one time that his “best thoughts were written on white napkins.” That is what this book reminded me of as I read it from cover to cover. Josh has captured his best thoughts and ideas from napkins, moleskins and blog posts and compiled them in this book. It’s practical, its bite-sized and it’s available now for only $4.99!” Terrance Crawford

“My end point has to be, I love it, it is certainly a book I’ll be dipping in and out of, and one we’ll be giving all our Ministry Apprentices in September.” Applied Youth Ministry

“Josh provides concise and clear recommendations as to how to make this whole youth ministry thing work youth ministry wise. There is a lot of “make sure to see the bigger picture” sensibility amidst the details of the daily ministry here.” Catholic Youth Ministry Blog

“I would recommend anyone working in student ministry — full-time, part-time, volunteer, parent, professional, spouse, and even Sr. Pastor to buy and read this book.” Pastor2Youth

“The way it’s broken down you don’t have to work at the church 9-5 or even be the lead youth pastor or leader to understand and appreciate it. There are principles about events, staff, leaders, interns and personal development and care.” Jeremy Isaacs

“…you can read this book while eating lunch it is not intimidating to a youth worker who already feels overwhelmed with responsibilities. Veteran youth workers can also glean from these pages, as each thought will serve as a reminder or encouragement.” Reflections

“Josh has pulled the best from his blog and put them into a pocket-size book of essential nuggets of wisdom for youth ministry. I highly recommend grabbing this book. At $4.99 per copy, it’s even a great gift book for youth ministry leaders. It would be a great way to say “Thank you”, “I believe in you”, “Happy birthday” or “Merry Christmas”. Of course, don’t forget to include a $5.00 Starbucks giftcard so they can enjoy a tasty beverage as they read it.” Volunteer Youth Ministry