Ministry with Kids, Students, Young Adults, and Parents
Two and a half years ago we shifted our young adult ministry strategy to one more like church planting, a “church within a church.” After using a more “integrative approach” for 8 years, I realized that we just weren’t reaching our potential. I did a little local research and found that there are over 5000 young adults […]
We’ve put together a handbook for all the leaders and staff in NextGen Ministries at our church. While every church is different in scope, size,Read More
Developing policies is time consuming but super important for purposes of safety and risk management as well as the continuity of healthy practices. We require thatRead More
I was a youth pastor for 20 years before our church adopted a NextGen model and I became the NextGen Pastor. The transition has been challenging but totally worth it! Here, I’d like to dive in a little deeper and get more specific about some do’s and don’ts that I’ve learned in my own journey into NextGen Ministry.
There are many skills that ministry leaders need to develop. Among them are skills like teaching & preaching, leading meetings, planning events, caring for people, responding toRead More
There are many skills that ministry leaders need to develop. Among them are skills like teaching & preaching, leading meetings, planning events, caring for people, responding toRead More
There are many skills that ministry leaders need to develop. Among them are skills like teaching & preaching, leading meetings, planning events, caring for people, responding toRead More
We use Basecamp to manage all our ministry’s major projects, plan events, and manage some key processes. It’s an intuitive, simple online
A NextGen Pastor (or Pastor/Director of Next Generation Ministries) is also sometimes referred to as a Family Pastor (or Pastor/Director of Family Ministries). Most NextGen Pastors oversee multiple staff and multiple age groups, some of which can include college and young adults. A Family Pastor […]
It can be really hard to tell if you’re #winning as a small group leader. Showing up week after week to lead sometimes seemingly meaningless discussions onlyRead More
Last week, I spent three days with 80 of the best NextGen and Family Ministry leaders in the country learning from some of the top church andRead More
NextGen and Family ministry models are a rising trend in the world of ministry to children, youth, and families. We’ve recently made this shift ourselves. Previously,Read More
There’s a big difference between organizing ministry and mobilizing ministry. The more we grow, the more gears there are to grease, the more issues weRead More
The Problem: How I Did Missions Then For years, I took students on annual mission trips. Some were domestic (in the U.S.) and some were internationalRead More
Four Things that DON’T Grow Your Youth Group 4. Fun Games It’s fun to play games at church or youth group. In fact, fun and laughterRead More
It seems to me that there are four pressure points I experience on a weekly basis that seems to be common to all pastors andRead More
It’s your responsibility to gain and retain the attention of the students in your group. I don’t think you can expect students to automatically grant attention toRead More
Here’s what I try to do when it comes to doing staff reviews. Pave the Way First, write the into the “Terms of Hire.” This isRead More
1. Leading Worship – I used to do that, but now someone else is doing that. 2. Giving the Welcome and Announcements – I usedRead More
7. Some people are better at teaching than me. 6. I need a break from the rigor of teaching so often. 5. Kids need aRead More
I’ve decided to develop some new routines in my schedule. Along with these routines, I’ve decided to take a new approach to keeping on track with theseRead More
With all the changes to our staff and ministry teams, we had a lot of work to do clarify our roles, responsibilities, goals and objectives, andRead More
Making Decisions & Getting Things Done How do decisions get made in our church? How do things get done? These are two very important questionsRead More
Okay, so a lot of things have changed at our church and in my job. Over the summer (2014) we 1) made some major changes to our churchRead More
Like I said in my last post, I’m convinced that God designed the Church with the Spirit-driven desire and the innate ability to grow inRead More
I can’t help it…I’m humming the now famous song “Let it Go” performed by Idina Mensel, the voice of Elsa in Disney’s Frozen. We’ve seenRead More
The more recent conversation in our Student Life Leadership Team has been about defining our roles (last post) and focusing our meetings (this post). NowRead More
The more recent conversation in our Student Life Leadership Team has been about defining our roles (this post) and focusing our meetings (next post). NowRead More
As I look back on my life and ministry, I’ve realized that there have been three basic principles that have helped facilitate both growth andRead More
I’ve heard it said that a ministry without infrastructure is like a body without a skeleton…it’s just a 6 inch puddle of skin, fat andRead More
My personality is the type that’s always looking ahead. I have vision documents with goals and objectives from four years ago with projections that areRead More
Plan for my youth sermon. Then trouble shoot the sound system. Then meet with a volunteer to recruit them to be a team leader. ThenRead More
As our youth ministry has grown there have been a few things that we’ve had to let go. Some of them were difficult to letRead More
I think I’d like to share in the next few posts some of the biggest changes that we’ve experienced and that I’ve personally experienced asRead More
There are probably a million little factors that contribute to the growth of any youth ministry ranging from the unilateral work of God to theRead More
I’ve always seen my role as a youth pastor as having four major objectives. Pastor the People. Mobilize the Ministry. Cultivate the Climate. Voice theRead More