In the often-chaotic cloud that is everyday youth ministry, one goal always rises to the surface—growing disciples who follow Jesus with an all-in commitment. You’re after life-changing, inside-out transformation—driven by a passion for Jesus that spills out onto the lives of others.
What You’ll Find
The Discipleship section offers practical ideas and insights about effective discipleship in youth ministry. We explore the method and models and strategies your ministry can use to help “seed” a generation of teenagers who are all-in for Jesus.
Being a teenager is tough these days. You feel so new to life and yet so seasoned. Adults say you aren’t grown up enough to know anything, yet they toss you the keys to a vehicle that can take you anywhere and pay for a phone that can show you anything.…
In this week’s Whiteboard Wednesday experiment, we tap into the realities today’s parents of teenagers are facing and target some powerful ways we can come alongside them in youth ministry… For years I’ve strategized and brainstormed and innovated new ways to support and equip parents of teenagers.…
Season 2, Episode 17: What Is God’s Will? “What is God’s perfect will?” “What if I misunderstand his will?” “If I get on God’s perfect track, does that mean my life will be perfect?” “Does God always want to make the choices, or are there some choices I can make?”…
“Nick” belongs to my church and attends the middle school Christian club where I speak every Tuesday. His younger brother is my son’s best friend. But Nick doesn’t have a best friend; in fact, he doesn’t have any friends. Determined to change that, this honor-roll student recently snuck an over-the-counter medicine onto campus and tried to make the concoction known as Lean.…
Season 2, Episode 16: What Jesus Says About Your Body We’re wrapping up our month-long theme on identity, be sure you go back and listen to all four episodes in the series. We couldn’t finish a series on identity without talking about body image.…
In this week’s Whiteboard Wednesday experiment, we step into one of our most important ministry skills—mirroring back to teenagers the truth about their identity. Becky and I explore the practical ways we can pay ridiculous attention to kids, looking for the details about their identity and depending on the Spirit of Jesus to help us reflect back to them their Kingdom of God purpose.…
In this week’s Whiteboard Wednesday experiment, we recognize the reality of our context in youth ministry: We are key players in a “spiritual war” that’s focused on young people. We can, and must, play a strategic role in fighting for the true identity that Jesus sees in them (and in us).…
What if you think a teenager might be possessed? I had to wrestle with that real-life issue recently. By request, I was teaching about spiritual warfare. My students had a growing interest in exploring who the devil is, how he works, and what he’s capable of doing—and not capable of doing—in our lives.…
Season 2, Episode 15: Partnering With Jesus to Set People Free This month on Paying Ridiculous Attention to Jesus Podcast, we’re focusing on identity and who does Jesus say I am? Last week we talked about what it looks like to be set free from the shackles that are burdening us and tripping us up.…
Our culture values doing over being. Business cards reveal what we do, not who we are. College applications ask what students have accomplished, not who they’ve become. Even churches and youth groups sometimes unwittingly encourage right actions before faithful hearts. It’s an easy trap to fall into, for sure.…
 What Is God’s Will?){kind=link}
 What Jesus Says About Your Body){kind=link}
 Partnering With Jesus to Set People Free){kind=link}
