I spend my days writing for and training youth workers JUST LIKE YOU.
Disciples Must Change Their Expectations
“Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip. John 1:46 Nathaniel was the first critic of Christ. He judged him because of where he was from. He didn't think anything good could come from a bad place....
Disciples Share What They Learn
Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). And he brought him...
Disciples Ask The Right Questions
"So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon." John 1:39 John said it, "There goes the Lamb of God." John was Jesus' cousin and he knew Jesus was the Messiah. John wasn't trying to...
Keeping Your Church From Becoming A Museum
"I think you have too many dead things in your museum, Daddy.” - From The Greatest Showman I went and saw the Greatest Showman with my wife for our 27th anniversary. I don't mind a good musical, West Side Story, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, etc. and...
Six Questions To Ask About Your Schedule
I was recently talking with a young man about his schedule and he asked for some feedback on how he spent his time. I told him to send me a copy and I'd take a look. The schedule he sent me was solid. It seemed like he had a handle on his...
When Your Number Is Called, Be Ready
Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images I was watching the College Football National Championship between Georgia and Alabama last night and wow, what a game. It was 20 to 7 at some point and I thought, "Man, is Alabama gonna lose this game?" Not if...
Leader of Systems or Leader of People?
I was eating breakfast this morning at a fast food place this morning and wondered, "does the manager manage the people or the system?" Everyone has a role. Someone has to take orders. Someone has to cook the tater tots. Someone has to cook/heat up...
I Was Not Living In Reality
And that has caused me a ton of frustration. This quote from Gary Vaynerchuk is stuck in my head, "The reason you are so frustrated is because you are living in the way you want the world to be rather than how it really is." All I could think...
7 Elements Every Youth Ministry Curriculum Should Include
I recently purchased a series of lessons and I was less than thrilled with not only how the material was formatted but the content as well. Now, before you think I'm too judgy, I write my own curriculum and sell it youth workers so I have a good...
18 Things I’m Not Stressing About In 2018
The size of our youth ministry. I'll love whosever comes. What others say. Words. Just words. The future. God's already there. New technology. It's continues to evolve and I can jump in any time. Social Media. It will serve me. I will not serve it....
Youth Ministry Leaders or Chaperones?
I can remember going to school dances where chaperones were in attendance. Their job was to make sure there was no kissing, dirty dancing, or smoking in the parking lot. The goal was the make sure something didn't happen. Sadly, this is role...
17 Things I Learned In 2017
I decided to do some reflecting on the past year, on a personal level, and this is a list of a few things I learned. 1. Dreams do come true, as I spoke at the National Youth Workers Conference. 2. My romanticism, about certain things, runs deeper...
Improvisational Youth Ministry
I played a part in a dinner theater where I played a lawyer. I had a script to follow. A script lets the actors know when they are to speak their lines. I say a line, you say a line. But, I am terrible at memorizing scripts. Case in point, for this...
The Christmas Nobody Wants
Every year Kimmel encourages parents to tell their kids that they have eaten their Halloween candy, and film it. He takes it another step further for Christmas by asking parents to give their kids an early Christmas a present, but one they know...
What Will You Do With This When You Get It?
I just read this story about Kellie Marie Tran. It's a feel good story that makes you wish all actors felt like this, but Kellie shares something that we should all be in tune with. She says. "In my 8 years as a struggling actor, I came to the...
The Disciple Project OUTREACH MANUAL
HOW TO TRANSFORM YOUR DECAYING YOUTH MEETING INTO A FLOURISHING CITY-WIDE MOVEMENT