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Asking the Right Questions: An Interview with James E. Ryan
MAINA MWAURA sat down for a conversation with James E. Ryan, Dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the bestselling author of “Wait, What? And Life’s Other Essential Questions.” Most of...
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How to Remove a Youth Leader
One of the harsh realities of youth ministry is that every once in a while you will have a youth leader who needs to be removed for one reason or another. They might have an attitude problem, they...
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Leading Through Brokenness
I used to drive home each day from work seeing a billboard advertisement for a dentist office. The advertisement claimed that coming to see them for dental work is not like going to the dentist at all....
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Summertime: A Time for Relationships
Summer is an interesting time in youth ministry. It’s a time when students are out of school, so in theory, they’ve got plenty of time for everything you’ve put on the agenda, right? Well, maybe not so...
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Leveraging The Spiritual Spike from Summer Missions
As our calendars flip toward summer, our planning turns toward our summer missions/convention/camp trips, and in the back of our minds we begin to think about this: The post-missions trip spiritual...
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Pentecost for Middle Schoolers
Growing up, I understood Pentecost as a celebration of the Holy Spirit. This is the day the church received the third Person of the Trinity and began moving with a new level of God-given power. Lately,...
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WHY Short-Term Mission Trips in Student Ministry?
Mission trips, in general, are a very interesting concept within the local church. There has been criticism that mission trips don’t do enough good, as in they are not worth the amount of money spent...
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One Of The Most Dangerous Statements Christians Say
This one phrase is detaching God’s people from God’s mission. Because of this phrase many churches are shutting their doors, families are disengaged, and ministries fail. The danger of this phrase is...
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2 Big Lessons From My First 5 Years in Youth Ministry
This summer will mark my fifth year in full-time vocational youth ministry. Given enough time, I could write thousands of words about all that I’ve learned, mistakes I’ve made, what I would do...
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10 Pool Noodle Games
Pool noodles are awesome! They are super cheap, durable, don’t hurt, and have so many uses that don’t involve a pool at all! You can find pool noodles anywhere from $1.50 – $3 and you can even cut them...
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It’s OK to Be a Youth Leader Who Says “No”
You’re probably thinking 1 of 2 things: 1) This is clickbait, or 2) You’re a lot like me and have a hard time saying “no,” whether to youth, leadership or even the hardest person of all – yourself. One...
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Goliath Must Fall: An Interview with Louie Giglio
MAINA MWAURA sat down for a conversation with celebrated Pastor, Author, and Songwriter Louie Giglio to discuss his latest book,”Goliath Must Fall: Winning the Battle Against Your Giants.” Check out...
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A Video Training Series: Teaching (Part 2)
Teaching is often the times God uses us in the lives of teens to make major impacts. Whether we teach on a weekly basis or once in a blue moon, how we do it matters. From preparing ourselves, to...
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The Spirituality of Suffering
In my role as a professional counselor and ministry worker, I encourage others to live their lives openly and as authentically as possible. I feel compelled to live my life that same way, but I’ve been...
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Idea Swap: The Best Fundraisers Ever
This week, we gathered a handful of YS Blog Authors and Youth Ministry Leaders from around the U.S. to share their most successful fundraising ideas in a Hangout On Air. We get asked about fundraising...
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Puppet Master Charades
Supplies Note Cards Egg Timer or Countdown Clock Object of the Game Players will be using their partner as a puppet to play charades, to get their team to guess the answer in the time allowed. Set Up...
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A Winning Summer Season
All across America, Student Ministries begin to plan for the summer months of ministries. Some ministries will see students head off to vacation, beach homes and spend time away with family. During the...
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Go To Them
Some of the best advice I’ve gotten in my career has come via side comments that people have made on their way to a completely different point. One such example is when a colleague and I were talking...
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Setting Priorities Straight: Program vs Purpose
During an area youth leader’s meeting earlier in the year, I listened to a number of ministry leaders articulate their plans, events, and major ‘thrust’ areas. The subjects discussed were probably not...
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Navigating a Tragedy
It was your average weekend. I had just gotten back from watching one of my students perform in a high school musical. My wife and I had just tucked the kids in bed and were starting to watch a movie...
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