Once a month there is a city-wide youth leaders meeting downtown in a bookstore. Youth workers from all over the city come to be trained and encouraged.
I had the opportunity to speak to the group Saturday morning, and the topic I chose to talk about was “The Key to Leadership Success.” We talked about being a servant, using Mark 10:35-45. I am convinced that leadership doesn’t depend much on abilities, training, connections, or even your position. It depends on your attitude of service. If you are willing to be a servant, you will be a great leader.
I hope to have challenged the youth workers who were at the event. I know it’s something that has been hitting me lately.
I had a great time meeting new friends and seeing some older friends, too.
I received an email the other day from a church who was asking some questions about a friend who they were considering to be their pastor.
The email included something that caught my eye. Here is part of the email that I found interesting:
We have a strong and very gifted youth pastor who we all love dearly. We know, some day, he will move on to probably, a pastor position. In your opinion, is (my friend’s name) gifted in the area of mentoring?
This was probably one of the worst things you can write in an email to me. I understand that their question has nothing to do with youth ministry, but the wording of the sentence tells me a lot about their thoughts about youth ministry and youth pastors.
It reads like they think that one day their youth pastor will “grow up” and “move on” to a “real pastor position.” This, in my opinion, reflects the attitude of many when it comes to youth ministry. For many, youth ministry is a stepping stone to “real ministry” or a “real job.” It’s something you do as you wait to mature into a “pastor.”
But youth pastors ARE pastors. We are called by God. We do have responsibilities that require pastoral leadership. We are equal in calling and only subordinate in role. God has called us to pastoral ministry.
I strongly believe that I will be working in youth ministry my whole life. Maybe God will change my understanding of what He has called me to, but please don’t make it sound like I’m just waiting around for a real calling.
(Photo by: Aslan on flickr)
This past Saturday, the Seminary had a big publicity event. My participation in the event was to help the youth ministry students with our information booth, teach a youth ministry seminar, and organize a skit for one of the worship times. The event was a huge success.
There were more than 300 people at the event (which was our attendance goal), and during the two seminar times, my youth ministry workshop was packed. I spoke about the goal of youth ministry to more than 100 prospective students. We handed out fliers and collected names at our booth. I even ran out of business cards.
There is a great thirst for youth ministry training in Latin America. I believe that we are living in a time where youth ministry training is about to explode both in Mexico and other places in the world. It is humbling and exciting to be a part of what God is doing.
If you would like to support the work of our family in Mexico, click here to find out how to join our team.
A few months ago, I signed up for MTV Sticky, a newsletter about youth focused culture, trends and insight.
If you’re involved in youth ministry, it’s a great resource to understand global youth culture and trends. I like it because it isn’t just about U.S. culture. It has insights from all over the world and helps you understand global youth culture.
You have to sign up to get access, but I haven’t received any emails from them that haven’t been beneficial. So head over there and sign up today.
Yesterday was free cone day at Ben and Jerry’s ice cream. All over the world they gave away a free ice cream cone with absolutely no requirements. Of course we went to the local Ben and Jerry’s to get our cones.
I got to thinking about Ben and Jerry’s, free stuff, and of course, ministry.
It’s amazing how people will line up to get free ice cream. Who wouldn’t want to eat ice cream (besides some super healthy people I know)? I don’t think Ben and Jerry’s made money today, but it wasn’t about that. It was about the community. It was about getting their message out to the public.
There are lots of things in the world that should be free. I’m a big fan of sharing resources in ministry and offering things for free. We even have a site that has free youth ministry resources in Spanish. Ministries ought to share resources to further the Kingdom.
I use lots of different sites to get free resources for youth ministry.
Five Places for Free Youth Ministry Resources
When I tell my students that I want to offer some resources on the website for free, they look at me like I am crazy. But, why not? Free is good. Free resources for ministry have helped me a lot. We can all benefit from each other.
If Ben and Jerry’s can offer free ice cream, why can’t we offer free stuff in the church? I loved free cone day.
