Let’s face it. Most of us look at the clean cut Mormon missionaries that peddle the streets of our city and knock on the doors of our houses as somewhat out of date. Although they are kind and well spoken young men, when they knock on our doors we either don’t answer or tell them we are already Christians who reject Mormonism and bid them good day.…
I hate to assume that there is a problem but… Here’s the problem: Youth groups sometimes look like well oiled machines that use up a lot of time and energy, create some flashy bangs and then each year have to quickly flush out the old and bring in the new.…
The Basics of Inductive Bible Study Remember Jesus calls us first to make disciples! There is perhaps nothing more important in Real Effective and Effectual Youth Ministry than teaching Youth how to study the Bible. If you want your youth to grow in the faith and remain committed Christians past college and beyond, this is a must!…
I’m writing this column during Colorado’s 2006 Holiday Blizzard: Part 2. And like most sequels it’s not something we asked for, it’s overstayed its welcome, it’s even less fun than the original, and it’s full of way too much fluff. One benefit of being stuck at home is that I’ve had lots of time to think about the past year.…
Should the “youth” in our youth ministry be our primary focus? Wherever we go these days, we’re introduced as guys who really have a heart for today’s generation of young people. And of course we do. We love teenagers, are quick to defend them, and are passionate about understanding them.…
This might be your greatest conundrum in the area of church drama and skits. Your faithful actors don’t have much time on their hands and when they do- it’s going to be hard for them to memorize a script. Even if they do get the script down- it sounds robotic,with no inflection, no emotion and with their backs toward the wall instead of the audience.…
It’s Tuesday night at our youth center—about 25 kids are milling around, shooting pool, watching a movie, and playing video games before our youth service. That’s just the veneer. When I peel back the crust, I find a lot of pain hiding in the darkness—four cutters, two rape victims, 16 from divorced homes, five molested kids, two who are struggling with their sexual identity, a few attempted suicides, a miscarriage, one with an eating disorder, and several who have alcoholic parents.…
Crisis intervention is a critical part of youth work — in fact, crises offer an open door to ministry like nothing else can. It’s 11 p.m. when your home phone jangles you out of a late-night TV stupor. “I’m at the hospital” — it’s the urgent, unnamed voice of a mother.…
I know…I’ve got it bad. So bad, in fact, that I check the Broncos Web site almost daily. I like to keep up with the running pre-season stories and see which underdogs are going to make the team. Given that this is the last week of the pre-season, all of those “on the bubble” players are going to be cut.…
I can still remember the surprising question a senior pastor asked me during my first youth ministry job interview: “What will you do if one of the girls from the youth group tells you that she’s pregnant?” I didn’t see this one coming and had no idea how to respond.…
