I spend my days writing for and training youth workers JUST LIKE YOU.
Anatomy of a Blown Event: Where Did I Go Wrong?
If I had a $1 for every failed event....well, lets just say, I would have a lot of dollars. Events are cool when we pull them off, but is that all there is to an event? Not the good ones. When the pre, actual, and post event pieces come together,...
Failure Is An Option
I was told numerous times in staff meetings over the years that failure is not an option. But it is and it should be. Usually this slogan is centered around: a big church eventkeeping your jobgrowing the church or youth ministry (see #2) This is...
7 Tips From Genesis For Launching Student Leaders
"Out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought [them] to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that [was] its name.So Adam gave names to all...
10 iPhone Apps Youth Workers Might Find Useful
Here are a few of my apps that get me by when I am in a pinch. Productivity Creative Whack Pack- This is a fun way to take old ideas and see them through a new lens. Nice for the price, considering I paid $20 for the actual card pack. Receipts...
What Youth Workers Love To Do vs What They’re Paid To Do
youth ministry, job, paid, church, teenagers, organization, marketing
Seven Questions I’d Like My Pastor To Ask Me
I was just thinking about this and there are questions I would like my Pastor's to ask me and maybe you'd like your Pastor to ask you too. If I am missing some please feel free to add yours. These are in no particular order 1. What have you been...
Are We Chasing Unicorns?
Unicorns are elusive mythological horses with one horn in the middle of their head. Posters of them adorn many a young girls room. We are fascinated by myths: Big Foot, The Loch Ness Monster, UFO's, etc. People and organizations have spent millions...
Are You Wasting Time?
We waste a lot of time youth ministry with tasks and projects that do not advance the kingdom. Seth Godin offers this bit of wisdom from a recent blog post called Cheating The Clock
Is Your Youth Ministry Leaking?
Day 52 and the news (like like the oil) just keeps coming. The BP oil disaster in the gulf is a business/life/youth ministry in the making. Let me offer some advice about handling leaks: You may be leaking students, vision, or enthusiasm , and...
In Defense of Over Analyzing
I was sitting with my daughter the other day having lunch. I mentioned that the triple caramel shake i ordered was not "caramelly" enough. Somehow the conversation evolved into my ability to over analyze things. I debated her of course but in the...
How A Mindless Activity Gave Me The Inspiration To Create
As a full time youth worker, I sometimes spent too much time in the office. Too much time in the office lead to more paper work and less inspiration. As I started to get our more, my creativity increased. Manual labor takes me away from the...
The Base vs Swing Voters: Three Things I Learned About Outreach In Small Churches
I used to be a political junkie, so when I hear pundits talking about the upcoming elections I listen through my special youth ministry headset. That is what sparked this latest post. The question posed was "Should the politician go after the base...
Recruiting An All Star Youth Ministry Team
Americans care alot about rankings and who gets chosen and in what order. Did you get excited or groan at the NFL or NBA draft? Did your team make a good choice? You can hear the cheers and jeers from fans in the gallery. They voice...
Helping Teens Turn Their Pain Into Purpose
I've seen a series of stories lately about teenagers making a difference and there was a story about a girl with a painful knee condition. The only time she had relief was when she was laying down and reading. She said, "When I read, it's a real...
Top Ten Tuesday Now Exclusive To “Get It First!” Crowd
Flashback 2010! I am leaving these old posts up because, well, nostalgia. Today, I offer you The Youth Ministry Round Up, a bi-monthly newsletter for youth workers filled with quotes, articles, videos and my version of the Top 10 best in a Spotify...
The Disciple Project OUTREACH MANUAL
HOW TO TRANSFORM YOUR DECAYING YOUTH MEETING INTO A FLOURISHING CITY-WIDE MOVEMENT