As my little Kia puttered to the side of the road, I was . . . frustrated, to say the least. I generally get 25 MPG out of this sweet ride, but now it wouldn’t go another mile. The fuel gauge revealed that, yes, even a Kia can run out of gas.…
Anyone who has been in the crosshairs of someone’s negative criticism knows how easy it is to become discouraged and disillusioned. Long ago I had the naïve belief that if I was a believer, worked in the church, followed God’s purpose for my life and cared about students and families, those I served would be thankful, gracious and appreciative.…
When I graduated from college I got a job with a real estate development company selling office and industrial space. I would rise early in the morning, wear a suit and tie, speak in low shah tones, shake hands a lot; I was evaluated on performance and return home late in the evening.…
of•fense –noun; a violation or breaking of a social or moral rule; transgression; sin. How do you respond when someone has offended you? I was hurt deeply once as I was accused falsely and faced harsh insults. To this day I have not shared with anyone other then my wife what took place.…
Are you tired of ineffective leadership development? Do you want to motivate your student leaders to do more than just set up chairs and plug in the sound system? If you want to take your leadership development to the next level, here are three practical ideas: 1.Teach…
What I Wish I Knew About Senior Pastors…..Before I Started Youth Ministry When I began, over 20 years ago, in my current ministry, my senior pastor said, “We don’t care about numbers. All we want is a quality program.” But as I went about building a numbers-ignoring “quality program,” it wasn’t long before my boss started hearing complaints: “The kids just aren’t coming.”…
It is obvious that our being on earth is like acting a drama, of course God is the producer and he is the one that choses his actors, which we are part of. For everyone he created to be part of this drama, he has a script for.…
For the past 5 years, I have had the honor of being on staff at one of the most innovate churches in America. I had nowhere to go but up as far as success. The church was big before I got there, and from an outside glance, I had it made.…
You see, my emotional battery is on negative. Let me give you my recent energy-suckers: I’ve directed three weekend retreats and one board of directors meeting in the last month. Today, besides the normal workload, I’ve dealt with one suicidal teenager, one guy who’s decided to move toward the gay lifestyle, and one really, really ticked mother.…
How do you plan a new year for youth ministry? New challenges, new triumphs, new opportunities to reach students for Jesus? New goals? Where do you sense God’s leading in your ministry to youth… and how will you get there? Take a fresh and prayerful look at your ministry, and consider including these on your list of essential goals: Give students a fresh look at who God really is Teenagers who have never truly discovered God can’t worship him “with deepest awe” (Psalm 5:7).…
