Nick Blevins Family Ministry Podcast: Children | Youth | Students | NextGen

In this episode, I interview Carey Nieuwhof. We talk about his new book, Lasting Impact: 7 Powerful Conversations to Help Your Church Grow, and unpack what every pastor wants from their family ministry staff.

Carey Nieuwhof

Connect with Carey on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

CareyNieuwhof.com

Connexus Church

Links Mentioned in This Episode

Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World (book) – Michael Hyatt explains why you need a platform to succeed in delivering a message or product

Leading Change Without Losing It (book) – Carey Nieuwhof unpacks five strategies that help church leaders engineer change

Lasting Impact: 7 Powerful Conversations That Will Help Your Church Grow (book) – Check out Carey's new book and team edition videos that talk about how to have honest conversations that are essential for church growth

High Impact Leader Kit – In a workbook and series of videos, Carey shares practical, proven strategies that help leaders focus on and accomplish their priorities

How to Best Serve Your Pastor

1. Don't assume the senior leader has as much autonomy as you think he does
2. Be competent
3. Think cross-organizationally
4. Lead up
5. Build trust and earn respect

Action Items

1. Get Carey's book, 7 Powerful Conversations That Will Help Your Church Grow
2. Set aside time go through the team edition videos and have some honest conversations
3. Know the average attendance of individuals at your church–track kids' and students' attendance
4. Develop a strategy for driving engagement (see Carey's post here)
5. Establish a clear path for people who want to serve
6. Recruit high capacity leaders
7. Work through the

In this episode, I interview Brian Dollar, Children's Ministry Pastor and author, about his new book Talk Now and Later: How to Lead Kids Through Life's Tough Topics. We talk about Brian's role and explore how to equip parents to have tough conversations with their kids now, not just later.

Brian Dollar

Connect with Brian on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

BrianDollar.com

First Assembly NLR 

Links Mentioned in This Episode

Talk Now and Later: How to Lead Kids Through Life's Tough Topics (book) – Brian gives practical advice on how to be proactive in conversations with your kids about everything from God to divorce, death, tragedy, sex, money, choosing good friends, and much more

Playing for Keeps (book) – Reggie Joiner talks about playing for keeps–knowing how much time you have with your kids so that you can make the most of that time

Legacy Countdown App – Encourage parents to use this to keep track of the time they have left with their kids

Divorce Care – A great para-church resource that sets up divorce groups with trained leaders to help adults, students, and kids walk through divorce

“I Blew It!” (book) – Brian shares the biggest mistakes he made while working in kids' ministry and how you can avoid them

High Voltage Kids Ministry – Check out kids' curriculum and resources created by Brian and his team

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To make sure you never miss a post, hit the subscribe button in iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or Tune In radio. Keep your friends and co-workers up-to-date as well by sharing it with them via email or social media.

Leave a rating and a comment in iTunes to let me know how this podcast is helping you and your ministry. Also, let me know how we can make it better!

Next Episode: Carey Nieuwhof

In the next episode, I interview Carey Nieuwhof. Carey and I talk about his new book Lasting Impact: 7 Powerful Conversations to Help Your Church Grow as well as what every pastor wants from their family ministry staff.

In this episode, I talk with Ryan Frank about how to effectively recruit and equip volunteers. He points to multiple resources that will help you lead volunteers and yourself well.

Ryan Frank

Connect with Ryan on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

RyanFrank.com

Links Mentioned in This Episode

Facebook Groups – I Love Kidmin | Stuff You Can Use | Download Youth Ministry

KidzMatter – Check out articles and downloadable resources on curriculum, activities, events, and more

KidzMatter Magazine – A publication of interviews, ideas, and features on everything from leadership to how to reach kids and make an impact in our world today

KidMin Academy Work through this 12-month program and earn a diploma in Children's Ministry

Sam Chand Leadership Institute – An online environment that helps you grow your network and expand your leadership capacity

The Volunteer Code (book) – Be looking for Ryan's new book that's all about having a breakthrough with volunteer recruitment and retention. Get The Volunteer Code for free is you participate in Uncharted.

Uncharted – Sign up at KidMinNation.com for this free, online conference happening Oct. 13th-14th

Tips for Improving Volunteer Recruitment and Retention

1. Work on your relational skills
2. Don't wait for people to volunteer–start directly recruiting
3. Create a community where volunteers are resourced, appreciated, and cared for
4. Understand basic human needs

Basic Human Needs

1. People need to be needed
2. People need to feel like they are part of something significant
3. People need to feel appreciated
4. People need to be resourced
5. People need to know you're there for them

Subscribe | Share | Rate | Comment

To make sure you never miss a post, hit the subscribe button in iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or Tune In radio. Keep your friends and co-workers up-to-date as well by sharing it with them via email or social media.

In this episode, I talk with Nina Schmidgall, Family Pastor at National Community Church in Washington, D.C. We talk about how to overcome some barriers and issues that exist when it comes to empowering women to lead in our churches.

Nina Schmidgall

Connect with Nina on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Email: [email protected]

National Community Church

Notes From This EpisodeManaging Ministry and Family

1. Embrace the idea of seasons
2. Constantly evaluate your seasons
3. Plan ahead
4. Embrace your own story–don't compare, avoid pride, and give yourself grace

Leading Women in Ministry

1. Be intentional about calling out gift sets
2. Create a collaborative work environment
3. Offer opportunities for flexibility
4. Make room for all kinds of people
5. Develop the next generation of women

Subscribe | Share | Rate | Comment

To make sure you never miss a post, hit the subscribe button in iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or Tune In radio. Keep your friends and co-workers up-to-date as well by sharing it with them via email or social media.

Leave a rating and a comment in iTunes to let me know how this podcast is helping you and your ministry. Also, let me know how we can make it better!

Next Episode: Ryan Frank

In the next episode, I interview Ryan Frank, a children's ministry leader and innovator. Ryan and I talk about recruiting volunteers along with a few of the things Ryan does to help serve the #kidmin community.

In this episode, I interview Josh Griffin, who served as the High School Pastor at Saddleback Church before transitioning to work full time with Download Youth Ministry. We talk about tips for teaching students, DYM, and something new they're doing at DYM to help youth workers.

Josh Griffin

Connect with Josh on Twitter and Instagram

DownloadYouthMinistry.com

Links Mentioned in This Episode

Purpose Driven Youth Ministry (book) – Check out Doug Fields' nine principles on how to grow your youth ministry

Speaking to Teenagers (book) – Doug Fields and Duffy Robbins offer practical advice on how to effectively communicate with teenagers

Made to Stick (book) – Learn how to craft messages that people will retain

Blink (book) – Understand how your brain works as you teach and interact with others

Dugout App – This app helps form prayer groups as students are “drafted” and have “coaches” that invest in and pray for them

Annual Teaching Plan for Students

1. Relationships
2. Parents
3. Sex
4. Cover an entire book of the Bible

Tips for Teaching by Topic

1. Take breaks from series
2. Never do a series that is longer than 4-5 weeks
3. Know your basic teaching plan for the year so that you can collect ideas
4. Invite students and volunteers into the conversation

Creating an Engaging Teaching Experience

1. Know your audience and plan your message length accordingly
2. If you can't say it in thirty minutes, you didn't plan well
3. Every seven minutes, create a moment of pause, laughter, or relief
4. Use students and volunteers as other voices
5. Involve the different senses

Subscribe | Share | Rate | Comment

To make sure you never miss a post, hit the subscribe button in iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or Tune In radio. Keep your friends and co-workers up-to-date as well by sharing it with them via email or social media.

Leave a rating and a comment in iTunes to let me know how this podcast is helping you and your ministry. Also, let me know how we can make it better!

Next Episode: Nina Schmidgall

In the

In this episode, I interview my friend Bill Hegedus. Bill and I talk about how to best serve preteens and kids who are in their last years of elementary school before moving on to middle school. We also talk about some practical ways his church seeks to partner with parents.

Bill Hegedus

Connect with Bill on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Email: [email protected]

Bethlehem Church

Links Mentioned in This Episode

Failing Forward (book) – Change the way you look at failure as you read John C. Maxwell's thoughts on turning mistakes into stepping stones

Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions (book) – George Barna emphasizes the importance of the church coming alongside parents so that the kids of today will lead the church of tomorrow

Slow Fade (book) – Check out Reggie Joiner's book all about how to help high school students transition into their twenties

Just a Phase – The Phase summary handouts are a great resource to give parents. Consider pairing them with a print piece of books and websites parents can go to for help on specific topics.

Curriculum – Orange | Grapple | The Gospel Project | D6Family | Preteen Ministry

NickBlevins.com/MasterMind – Let me know if you're interested in joining a group so that we can learn and grow together

Action Items

1. Gather volunteers and ask what your kids and students need
2. Recruit a team of people to invest in curriculum
3. Consider using a specific curriculum for the preteens in your ministry

Subscribe | Share | Rate | Comment

To make sure you never miss a post, hit the subscribe button in iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or Tune In radio. Keep your friends and co-workers up-to-date as well by sharing it with them via email or social media.

Leave a rating and a comment in iTunes to let me know how this podcast

In this episode, I talk with my friend Matt McKee about his new book Parent Chat. We talk about some of the content in his book and how parents can lead their children best when it comes to technology.

Matt McKee

Connect with Matt on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

MattMcKee.me

ParentChat.tv

Links Mentioned in This Episode

Parent Chat: The Technology Talk for Every Family (book) – Get practical advice on how to keep the conversation about technology open with kids. Listen to the new audio version here.

Circle With Disney – Check out circle to help you manage time and content on all your internet devices

Get a free copy of Parent Chat when you purchase a Circle With Disney device. Click here to email Matt a copy of your receipt, and he will send you a book!

The Four Questions Parents Should Ask:

1. What have you seen recently that was really interesting?
2. What is the craziest thing you've seen your friends doing?
3. What is something that has surprised you?
4. Can you teach me how?

Subscribe | Share | Rate | Comment

To make sure you never miss a post, hit the subscribe button in iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or Tune In radio. Keep your friends and co-workers up-to-date as well by sharing it with them via email or social media.

Leave a rating and a comment in iTunes to let me know how this podcast is helping you and your ministry. Also, let me know how we can make it better!

Next Episode: Bill Hegedus

In the next episode, I interview my friend Bill Hegedus. Bill and I talk about how to best serve preteens and kids who are in their last years of elementary school before moving on to middle school. We also talk about some practical ways his church seeks to partner with parents.

In this episode, I interview Jeremy Lee, founder of Parent Ministry. We talk about the incredibly important topic of partnering with parents and equipping them to lead their children well. Jeremy offers some extremely practical insights and ideas to help us partner with parents better.

Jeremy Lee

Connect with Jeremy on Facebook and Twitter

Email: [email protected]

MinistryToParents.com

Jeremy's CaringBridge page

Links Mentioned in This Episode

Enter to Win a LIFETIME MEMBERSHIP to Parent Ministry (through Sep 9, 2016)

Rites of Passage/Family Experiences – Ministry toolboxes to help you partner with parents

Magic Button Site – Use this generic parent ministry site and adapt and brand it to your ministry

The Blessing (book) – Check out this book by John Trent that teaches parents the power of their blessing

Make a List:

1. What do you do in your ministry? (Ex: Weekly programming, events, small groups, leaders).
2. What do you do for parents?
3. What is one thing you can do or implement to bring parents into your ministry?

Action Items

1. Make the list.
2. Talk with your parents about blessing their kids.
3. Enter to Win a LIFETIME MEMBERSHIP to Parent Ministry
4. Partner with small group leaders to ask students who gets spiritual leadership at home.

Subscribe | Share | Rate | Comment

To make sure you never miss a post, hit the subscribe button in iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or Tune In radio. Keep your friends and co-workers up-to-date as well by sharing it with them via email or social media.

Leave a rating and a comment in iTunes to let me know how this podcast is helping you and your ministry. Also, let me know how we can make it better!

Next Episode: Matt McKee

In the next episode, I talk with my friend Matt McKee about his new book Parent Chat. You do not want to miss that conversation as we talk about how parents can lead their children best when it comes to technology. Be sure to subscribe so you don'

In this episode, I talk with Gina McClain, Pastor of Children's Ministries at Faith Promise Church. Previously, Gina led children's ministry at Life.Church. We talk about how to implement small groups for kids and what it takes to stick it out long-term in your current church.

Gina McClain

Connect with Gina on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Email: [email protected]

Faith Promise Church

GinaMcClain.com

Links Mentioned in This Episode

Life.Church – Gina previously led Children's Ministry at Life.Church

Guts and Glory of Small Groups – Check out Gina's book for practical advice on implementing the small group model in your ministry

Fellowship One – An online check-in system for churches

Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance – Read Angela Duckworth's book all about having the willingness to do whatever it takes

5 Steps to Implementing Small Groups In Your Elementary Environment (blog posts) – Check out a series of blog posts I wrote that outline five steps to help you implement small groups in your ministry

Subscribe | Share | Rate | Comment

To make sure you never miss a post, hit the subscribe button in iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or Tune In radio. Keep your friends and co-workers up-to-date as well by sharing it with them via email or social media.

Leave a rating and a comment in iTunes to let me know how this podcast is helping you and your ministry. Also, let me know how we can make it better!

Next Episode: Jeremy Lee

In the next episode, I interview Jeremy Lee, founder of Parent Ministry (ministrytoparents.com). We talk about the incredibly important topic of partnering with parents and equipping them to lead their children well. Jeremy offers some extremely practical insights and ideas to help us partner with parents better.

In this episode, I talk with EJ Swanson. For many years, EJ primarily taught students and adults in various settings, speaking to over 150,000 each year. A couple years ago, he transitioned back into the local church leading youth ministry, and now all of NextGen at Woodside Bible Church in Metro Detroit. We talk about everything he learned about teaching students and what he's learning now leading NextGen across 12 campuses.

EJ Swanson

Connect with EJ on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

EJSwanson.org

Woodside Bible Church

Links Mentioned in This Episode

Good Reader – Get Apple's app for reading, annotating, and managing your books, PDF's, and other files

Orange – Orange provides curriculum and messages for kids and students, grades K-12

Communicating for a Change (book) – Learn more from Andy Stanley about how to write and deliver statements that stick

Preaching Rocket – Check out resources to help you learn how to write and deliver better messages

PaulEkman.com – Learn how to read the people you are teaching and leading by diving into Paul Ekman's research and books, including Unmasking the Face

Subscribe | Share | Rate | Comment

To make sure you never miss a post, hit the subscribe button in iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or Tune In radio. Keep your friends and co-workers up-to-date as well by sharing it with them via email or social media.

Leave a rating and a comment in iTunes to let me know how this podcast is helping you and your ministry. Also, let me know how we can make it better!

Next Episode: Gina McClain

In the next episode, I talk with Gina McClain, Pastor of Children's Ministries at Faith Promise Church. Previously, Gina led children's ministry at Life.Church. We talk about how to implement small groups for kids and what it takes to stick it out long-term i