Suit Up!
“Are you serious!?” “No way!” “I think I own one…” These are all comments I hear when I tell my youth ministry friends that yes, indeed, I wear a suit on Sundays. Morning and night. Yup, it’s true. It’s 2012 and I wear a suit every Sunday.…
Tag: church
The Importance of Intergenerational Church
There’s been a growing trend in youth ministry circles about the need to develop a more intergenerational approach in ministering to teenagers. And while some of the conversation has pointed an unfair finger at youth ministry, and has been a bit extreme in tone, the idea of intergenerational ministry is totally valid.…
A Response: Hitting the Bunny Slopes Before the Double Black Diamond
I’ll never forget the time I was skiing with a friend and his dad, Norm. I loved Norm. At the time, he was over 50 and had never been skiing. After an hour or so, he decided he wanted to ride up the ski-lift with me.…
4 Principles to Planning Dynamic Retreats
Summer is quickly approaching, and many church leaders are busy planning summer trips, camps, and retreats. When I was in young adult ministry we would spend our Spring anticipating the changing season and plan out our Summer and Fall retreat environments.…
Spiritual Maturity: A Note to Parents (Part 3)
Part 3: FAQs [Part 3 of 4] So far we’ve addressed misplaced priorities in families, and overcoming three of the top challenges in developing a spiritual growth plan in families. While I’m certain we’re making progress, the list of questions generated by this topic feels exponential.…
The Future of the Church (Josh)
The future of youth ministry sure is a topic that has been getting some play for a while. And while that is very interesting to me, I thought it might be interesting to think about what we know is going to happen to the whole church in a few years: The students in your ministry will be the parents in your church in 10 years The students you are counseling, nudging and caring for are the parents in your church in a few years.…
In The Moment
While having my spiritual retreat day at a local coffee store I ran into one of my youth group kid’s dad. He actually has twin girls. I was on FB and noticed what one of them said about the other: “I have the greatest sister in the world.”…
Do You Have Volunteers or Leaders in Your Organization?
Every great organization has great leadership… period. It’s going to be nearly impossible to become great if your leadership is sub-par. Believe it or not, this relates to churches as well. Many times, in church work, we find ourselves in a tough spot; desperate for help, so we compromise in the area of leadership and we get ‘Volunteers’ to serve in our ministries instead of ‘Leaders.’…
It Is OK Not to be Good At Things
No matter how good you are … you can’t be good at everything. In fact, we’ll take it one step further – you AREN’T good at everything. OK, last step we promise: You’re actually really bad at quite a few things.…
Frequently Asked Questions – Volume 2
From time to time we’re going to take a pause form the normal posts to answer a few questions from you: The youth ministry nation. Here are a couple we have recently received: I’m just starting out! What are some things you did early on in your ministry career that helped you make it for the long haul?…