Note: I wrote this piece a while ago, in connection with my new book, Called. In the days since when it live, however, I have accepted a new job with Fuller Youth Institute and so am now (ironically) in the process of transitioning out of my role...
I’m an introverted youth pastor who has, for years, considered myself to be a pretty good listener. Sadly, I fear that I sometimes listen BETTER to other people’s kids than I do my own. Having recognized this in myself, I was excited to read Becky...
As a youth pastor, as much as you might like to be the one who’s in charge of your church, you’re not. Whether it’s another person in the youth ministry or an associate or senior / lead pastor, you’ve got a boss who directly supervises you.
One of...
I've just returned from one mission trip and now my focus turns to the next one. This week is littered with several meetings related to our upcoming mission trip, one of which is our adult leader's meeting.
At this meeting, we'll cover logistics...
My work as a youth pastor requires me to lead. Together with my colleagues, we provide leadership for our entire congregation. More specifically, I lead teams of adult and student leaders. Together, we lead our congregation's youth ministry.
...
As part of my student leadership team application process, I interview every teen who applies to be part of our team. This part of the application process is not only valuable, but necessary. To that end, here are 8 reasons why you should include...
During last summer's international mission trip, I didn't allow participants to have cell phones. Throughout our time away, we did, however, blog.
Teens often joked at the irony of being totally disengaged from their cell phones and technology...
I've been in ministry at my church for seven years.
One thing I love about having been in the same context for a while is that alumni from my ministry are starting to serve with me as adult leaders.
One of those leaders was a senior my first year...
Recently, I had a window replaced. Consistently poor service left me disgruntled. After expressing my frustration to the installer, I received a call from the company’s district manager.
Still frustrated, I quickly rattled off a list of the...
In Mark Oestreicher's recent post, he wrestles with why so many youth workers are abused by their churches. After suggesting several reasons for this, he then turns the question on it's head and asks, “What if the reason so many youth workers are...