Once, I had the awesome opportunity to offer some training and speaking in a dear friend’s small town in Kansas. After five days away, I sat on the plane ready for home. Plugging into music, a favorite worship song came on just as the plane engines started to roar.…
Big news! Rick is re-launching his podcast Paying Ridiculous Attention to Jesus after a year-long sabbatical. Even bigger and better news—the Becky-nator will be joining him again to co-host. So check out the Episode 2 of Season 8 “Sitting at the Wrong End of the Table”—a continuation of the series “THE WAYS OF JESUS.”…
The proverbial “good kid” can come in many shapes and forms. They might be the ones that always show up early to actually help set up, or sit in the front row so they can pay attention and take better notes, or we ask to be on the student leadership team, or are the first to sign up for the missions trip, show up to every fundraiser and actually pay on time.…
Money doesn’t have to be difficult, so why do we make it that way? When you really boil good money management down to the basics, it’s all about four things: working, giving, saving and spending. That’s it. So when you teach young kids about money, all you really need to do is show them a simple version of what you are (hopefully) doing already. …
Easter will be here before you know it! One of the most difficult things about ministry is the very few number of days between Sundays. Wouldn’t life be easier if we had a 10-day workweek? I think I would teach better lessons, lead better worship, and play more fun games.…
The death and resurrection of Jesus was and is for every student and every parent. During Holy Week, we remind our students that Jesus was a living sacrifice with a vision and a plan for each of us. To be loved and to love.…
I had the privilege of taking a few of my student leaders to a workshop where they were a part of a Q & A panel. There were youth workers there asking questions about their experience in youth ministry. Now, they had a few of the questions beforehand, but I didn’t prep them nor did I shape their answers.…
Confession time… I once auditioned for a national commercial. The tagline of the product? “Never let them see you sweat.” These commercials were famous. The spokesperson would offer an additional summary at the end of the ad, such as “Everyone feels pressure.…
For as long as I can remember I have been the poster child for relationally driven ministry. Perhaps it’s because I came out of the roller skating party era of youth group where it was more about programs than going deep.…
Every Tuesday I eat lunch with our Children’s Ministry Pastor. I do it for three reasons…He’s a good friend, an extremely strategic thinker and every youth pastor needs to be in cahoots with the Children’s Pastor. Last week, while I chewed on a bun-less chili burger (Yes, chili burgers are totally healthy if you exclude the bun), Steve shared three key questions he asks about his ministry on a regular basis.…
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