No one wakes up in the morning, puts their feet on floor, and says, “You know what? I think today is the day I’ll make a ministry-killing mistake!” I mean, I don’t THINK anyone says that. I’ve been in and around youth ministry for over 20 years. I believe that the overwhelming majority of youth workers are passionate, committed people who want to do their best to see their ministries thrive.

And yet, there are mistakes we make, inadvertent mistakes, that if we’re not careful, can kill our ministries. I’ve seen it so many times over the years. And so, what I want to do is to share the five mistakes I have seen youth workers make over the years that can be sure-fire ministry killers.

Parent Meetings are stressful enough as is. You have to be short, clear, concise, and informative. Plus, you have to be ready to field any questions your parents may ask.

Instead of going in unprepared and risking a rough meeting, watch this video to get a few helpful tips to ensure that you are clearly communicating with the parents of your students at your next Parent Meeting! Watch/Read/Listen here: https://youthministry360.com/blogs/news/parent-meeting

What is youth ministry? You could answer this question in many ways. Youth ministry is a place for games, it is a place to feel like you belong, or it's a place to invest in the next generation. Perhaps the best way to define what youth ministry is would be to look at our ministries.

Take a moment and picture you were presented with these two options. The first is to sit and listen to an hour-long monotone documentary describing how pyramid schemes work. The second option is to have a game night and laugh with your closest friends and family. This doesn't seem like a fair choice because one of the options outweighs the other.

Andy and Robbie break down this and more in this week's podcast!

Watch/Read/Listen here: https://youthministry360.com/blogs/news/should-you-play-games-in-youth-ministry

The main question we want to talk about today is, how do I become a youth pastor? It's an interesting question because, unlike most careers, there seems to be a stigma surrounding it. People don't often discuss calling into the corporate world, lawn care, or even medical fields. Yet when ministry is discussed, we often refer to a "called to ministry" moment. 

The overwhelming majority of us wake up with a deep desire to see our ministries thrive. And yet, there are times when we find our ministries NOT thriving. We look around and don’t see the spiritual growth in students we want to see.

We don’t experience the buy-in from parents or volunteers we envisioned. Simply put, we see a ministry that isn’t growing. If this describes you, or if this causes you to pause because you DON’T want this to describe you, the question we have to ask is why? Why is our youth ministry not growing? 

It's a super exciting time in youth ministry. There's the excitement of new fifth grade students coming into sixth grade or your six graders coming in the seventh if that's how your youth ministry rolls. And if you have a Junior High and Senior High Ministry, this is a great season for your eighth graders now entering ninth grade to be involved in the Senior High ministry. Not only is this an exciting time for students, but also parents and adult volunteers. Read more here: https://youthministry360.com/blogs/all/promotion-sunday

Picking a curriculum in the summer is a crucial decision to ensuring a successful school year for you and your students. Andy Blanks and Jake Rasmussen give you some insight into how you can pick the RIGHT Sunday School Curriculum for Youth Ministry!

Read more here: https://youthministry360.com/blogs/all/pick_curriculum

Does this game work over zoom? Could I play this game in person without people having to interact? How do I play a game in this current setting? If you have been questioning your games lately, let me begin by saying you are not alone. The entire youth ministry world is trying to figure out how to still have games while remaining safe for students.

With in-person gatherings happening more and more, we want to take a quick moment to solve your games problem for you. Here are three games that stand the test of time as well as give your students an incredible experience for your next gathering. These games work over zoom, in-person, or even via smoke-signal. Well maybe not the last one, but you get the picture. Let’s play some games!