For many youth workers, a big part of their job description seems to include “Think outside the box on a regular basis”… constantly coming up with new ideas and innovative programs that are bigger and better than last year, last week, and last night.

And while there is certainly a place for risk-taking and improvement in each new season, sometimes what you really need is tried-and-true, solid stuff. Stuff that is actually totally inside the box!”

Ask yourself these questions as you look at planning the season ahead:

9:00AM EST 2/19/2013

Discovering God’s purpose for their lives should be your No. 1 youth-ministry task

What on earth am I here for?” That’s the question every teenager on the planet asks at one time or another. And while your youth ministry plays a variety of roles, helping students wrestle through this question is, in my experience, its most important task. (Helping your youth successfully toilet-paper the senior pastor’s house is a close second!)

At Saddleback Church, we’ve landed on the following simple phrase to help our teenagers recognize God’s purpose for their lives:

“I am here to express Christ, His kingdom, and the purposes of His church to the world around me.”

12:00PM EST 1/29/2013

Parents can do a great job of being the primary spiritual nurturers of their children, but they can be much more effective if the church is supporting them in the endeavor. Here are 12 suggestions for how you can help families with kids in middle school, ages 11 to 14.

4:00PM EDT 10/24/2012

Are you helping teens move beyond content into active obedience?

Blah. Blah. Blah.

Youth ministry has morphed into a never-ending conversation. Let’s face it. Those of us in youth ministry run from one meeting to the next planning, sharing, envisioning, describing—talking. If we got paid by the word, we would all be rich.

And now we have all sorts of seminars, workshops and conferences where we pay to hear others talk.

Too much talk and not enough action. I don’t think the early church was immune to this problem. First John 3:18 says, “Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth” (NIV).

9:00AM EDT 10/19/2012

Four proven ways to establish vibrant ministries to teenagers

The church of Jesus Christ has been renowned for being an agent of rescue—rescuing cultures, people in the midst of horrific situations and generations from satanic oppression. The young generation in America today is in desperate need of rescue. As the church, we can rise up and become a source of hope instead. We have a historic opportunity to see a massive turnaround in the direction of this generation. Unfortunately, most data shows that young people are walking away from God and the church. Add to that internal struggle, as many people in church look so much like the world it's difficult to tell the difference.
For those frustrated pastors and leaders who may think there's nothing they can do to help, I'm here to tell you that you have many real teens in your community who can be forever changed by the impact of your church. I've seen this transformation. Consider these four proven initiatives that have helped churches establish vibrant ministry to teenagers. 10:01AM EDT 7/1/2012

Successful youth ministry is about the life-altering reality of the  gospel, not gimmicks

 

Youth ministry. The words alone are enough to strike fear in the hearts of even the most seasoned, accomplished ministry professional. They bring to mind laborious, draining efforts that don’t always have the results we want. How did it get this way? Why do church’s youth pastors tend to have such a high turnover rate? 

Out of a genuine desire to impact the next generation, many respond by trying to make church so entertaining or cool that young people will be too impressed or comfortable to walk away. So, expensive stage lights are installed and a café is set up. Nothing wrong with those things, but the problem is: When we give young people what we think they want—or even what they tell us they want—and deny them the life-altering reality of the gospel, we fail to give them the one thing they truly do want: something real. 

The few short years I’ve been blessed to serve as the director of Eagles’ Wings 9-month Internship and three-week Summer Discipleship have been a real crash course. Nothing like learning as you go! But as I have prayed, improvised and stumbled my way through, I’ve encountered some good news—actually, the Good News.

12:35PM EST 3/1/2012

Why young adults need to hear a ‘better song’— biblical truths about love and marriage

I sing a lot in my sermons. I sing because students know and resonate with the songs that they have heard since they were children. In fact, young adults’ ideas about love and marriage are usually formed more by Disney movies and other media than biblical narratives. So I grab their attention by singing a familiar Disney song and then explain a better story—God’s story. Here are three lies that Disney movies tell young people.

Teens are worthy of worship by someone of the opposite sex. You know the story—it’s the all-too-familiar young romance movie. A young man becomes infatuated with the striking beauty of a young woman, going to great lengths to woo her. He will kill any dragon, trek any foreign land and embrace any hardship to be with the young lady. Once he rescues her, he sings, praises and whisks her away to a life of bliss. It’s a great story. It’s fun, exciting and pulls at our heartstrings. However, there is a problem. God is left out of the story.

Here is a better story: a God-honoring man goes to great lengths to woo the heart of a woman who fears God. Together, they honor God by serving and loving each other for the rest of their lives. These two stories have similar plots, but the difference lies in who is worthy of being worshipped.

8:55AM EDT 10/26/2011

How to deposit the right kind of motivation into these vital ministers

Growing up, I’d often see my mom the scout leader wearing a crazy hat. It had two bills pointing in different directions, and the caption above them read: “I’m their leader. Which way did they go?” While this was a funny message as a kid, for an adult leader this poses an important question. The key to leading scouts—and volunteer youth workers—is the same: Give them motivating reasons to want to follow.

Begin with the end in mind. Developing adolescent disciples is a worthy endeavor and a wild ride. Helping youth workers remember that the goal is always to build into teens and their families the tools to be lifelong followers of Jesus is critical. Tip: Keep the goal of what the youth ministry is about short and memorable. Talk about it often. Put it in easy view 
everywhere—on shirts, banners, even pop quizzes on the ceiling. Whatever it takes.

Appreciate their contribution and investment. Caring for teens and their families has a way of sneaking into every area of a youth worker’s life. This is not just a-couple-of-hours-a-week gig for them. Honor this investment. Tip: Handwritten notes of encouragement and thanks are not only timely but also special. Anybody can write an e-mail or Facebook post, but hardly anyone gets snail mail these days; so go “old school” and use the post office.

12:00AM EDT 9/1/2011

Four keys to empowering your youth to move in the supernatural 11:37AM EDT 4/20/2009

Great youth pastors won't settle for passionless leadership 10:42AM EDT 4/20/2009

Eight principles to leading students in prayer

8:59AM EST 2/13/2009

Why you may need to quit your job as a youth minister

2:25PM EST 12/18/2008

12 principles of safety every youth minister needs to know
8:00PM EDT 10/31/2008

Are we dreaming dreams for our young people?
8:00PM EDT 8/31/2008

Twenty or 30 years ago, the average church youth ministry consisted of monthly pizza-and-movie nights, sadly, many churches are still using the same approach to minister to young people and (not surprisingly) seeing minimal results. 8:00PM EDT 6/30/2008

Tomorrow's media executives, politicians, school teachers and business titans are today's teens. Have you reached them?
7:00PM EST 12/31/2005

Jeanne Mayo is 55, married, a mother of two ... and America's most successful youth pastor.
12:00AM EST 3/1/2005

Jeanne shares 35 secrets for a youth pastor's longevity, success and spiritual health.
7:00PM EST 2/28/2005

Beyond hype and mere excitement, youth ministry must take its cues from the master Discipler.
1:00AM EDT 5/1/2004

The world screams a message that makes sex seem common, casual and cheap, but for the most part, ministers aren't talking.

12:00AM EST 11/1/2003