Special guest and longtime friend of Dave's, Kevin Anderson. Kevin is currently in seminary preparing for pastoral ministry. 

We discuss the purpose of this podcast for volunteers, and begin to get into the idea of helping volunteers understand the process of youth ministry.

More episodes coming soon.

Special guest Holden Ghaffary. He shares about his love for sports.

We discuss ministry value 5: "Youth will connect to the Church for life when they come to know it as more than a weekly program. The Church is a place where children, youth and adults share life experiences, which will allow them to grow into a deeper understanding of true community."

We live in a "meh" culture. Holden shares his perspective on what motivates us. Why are we lazy?

Side conversation #1 - What would happen to our relationships with our parents if we weren't lazy?

The main concern: This "meh" culture exists in the church too. Why? Are we just bored?

Side conversation #2 - By going to church, are kids searching for deeper answers to life, even if they don't realize it?

Side conversation #3 - Death is scary.

So why has church become a low pirority? Why is it boring instead of exciting? How do we help people see the church has value?

Ephesians 2:22, 1 Corinthians 3:9 - We are God's building. This is a big deal.

If church is boring then, does this mean we're missing something?

Acts 2:42-47 The early church.

In our "meh" culture, how do we get back to that?

Dave gives a message at Renew about ministry value 5:

"Youth will connect to the Church for life when they come to know it as more than a weekly program. The Church is a place where children, youth and adults share life experiences, which will allow them to grow into a deeper understanding of true community."

Where does God live and what is the "church?"

Eph 2:19-22; 1 Cor 3:9; Acts 2

We discuss ministry value 4. Special guest Hayden Last. Some stories about Santa on a chopper, Kansas & Barcelona.

How do you experience God? How do we help others experience God?

A story about serving at Thanksgiving. Why do we serve? Is it out of the kindness of our hearts or to prove our faith?

Maybe it's more than that. People see God through it?

As our ministry value says, we believe youth begin to know God by serving alongside friends.

How does service lead to a desire for "church?"

We look at 1 Peter 2:9-12. "...good deeds glorify God." What does that mean? What leads people to glorify God? Serving others is key. How do we do that?

We discuss ministry value 3. Special guests Jill & Hunter Maier.

Jill & Hunter talk about an issue with Hunter being on his phone too much.

We discuss some things to do to fix problems in our family relationships?

These are good conversations to practice at home. The reason why we're talking about it here is because this is one of our values. We believe we experience God when we do life together.

Romans 12: We understand our significance when we're connected to the body as a whole; the church.

We think about this from the perspective of a family system.

How have we experienced this concept in our relationships at the church? 

Where does the rubber meet the road with the God answer?

Email [email protected] to join the conversation.

We discuss ministry value 2. Special guests CLU interns Jeffrey & Carina.

How do we develop significant relationships in a tough society?

Youth ministry adds another level of value to friendships. Do kids get this?

How do different friend groups affect developing significant friendships?

In the church, we have the opportunity to be vulnerable about real stuff. How do we help kids get there?

What is the thing that prevents these types of relationships? How can we practice developing them?

How do we balance the chaos of youth ministry with more intentional ways to build friendships?

Email [email protected] to join the conversation.

We discuss ministry value 2. Special guests Mark & Jenna.

- Do significant friendships (like the ministry value describes) exist in the school and/or church?- How do we develop these types of friendships?- What attitudes in our environment either prevent or allow for this development? We discuss things like judgement and insecurity due to unhealthy comparison to others- How do we really create a culture where significant friendships exist?