flow of youth ministry constantly changes the makeup of your students. Honestly, as hard as we strive, on occasion we still find ourselves more as a youth ministry and less of a youth family.
I once had a particular class of students that truly understood the concept of a youth family. They attended school together, played sports together, came to church and youth together and literally grew up together. For their senior prom, the boys from this amazing class decided to ask their sisters from church to be their dates. When asked about this decision, the boys shared that they wanted to make sure that their sisters all had the opportunity to attend prom, and that they wanted to make sure that they would be safe and have fun. This photo of my teenagers attending prom together is one of my most favorite photos in my nineteen years of ministry.
Youth Ministry Name
By naming your youth ministry you create a brand to promote and something for your students to associate with. Along with your name you can create a logo to help with the branding of your ministry.
Warning: Be creative. Do not regurgitate an already over used youth ministry name such as: U-Turn or 180 or Fusion (I apologize if this is the name of your ministry).
To create some ownership in the ministry host a contest and have the students contribute ministry names and logos. Offer a prize for the winner such as a gift certificate to the next youth outing, or steak dinner with their favorite adult volunteer.
Remember, students who name the ministry will own it; as will the students who are currently active when the name is given; so it is a good thing to think about renaming the ministry every seven or so years, because incoming seventh graders will have no connection to the name and brand.
At my current church I kept the old name but created a new logo shortly after arriving. Looking back I should have renamed the ministry within the first year, thus creating some distance between myself and the former youth pastor. Several years later we did rename the ministry from F.L.O.C. (Faithful Loving Outrageous Christians) to 501 Youth (based on Ephesians 5:1 – Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children) (1).
T-Shirts
Everybody loves wearing a cool shirt, and what better way is there to promote your ministry then with t-shirts?
We print an annual t-shirt for our students and adult chaperones that attend our state youth convention in the fall. I budget for this shirt so that it is a free gift to them. We also print a shirt for our bi-annual trip to our international youth convention; again this is a gift for the students and adults who attend. Shirts do not have to be gifts, though; instead they can be designed, printed and sold.
I confess I am not an artist or a designer; I can barely draw stick figures. This is where I rely on the artists in my ministry. Sometimes I call on our resident artist, Maggie; other times I ask students to help; and still other times I simply host a design contest. I also confess that during my nineteen years I have had my share of bad t-shirts and designs; like the lime green soccer jerseys I had printed when my youth group was loaded with high school football players (we all know how much football players love soccer players, and then to ask them to wear a soccer jersey . . . What was I thinking?).
We take an annual snow skiing trip in January, however a shirt would be pointless on this trip, as it would be covered by our snow clothes. So one winter we partnered with a charity that knit us hats and sewed a label on them that read “My Hat Fed 50 Kids”. We purchased fifty hats for $10 each and wore them while on the slopes. Several of my kids continue to wear these hats every ski trip.
Borrow, Tweak and Steal
One of the skills all youth leaders must acquire is the ability to borrow, tweak and steal from other youth leaders and ministries. As good as you are, and as good as your youth ministry is, there are always other leaders and ministries doing really good, cool and awesome stuff that you need to borrow, tweak and steal from in order to improve your own ministry.
I have personally borrowed, tweaked and stolen games, promotional methods, curriculum ideas, small group set ups, graphics, events, and names & themes.
I learned the game Diaper Dodge Ball from my long-time friend Doug. After attending a church while on sabbatical I decided to change the name of my summer Wednesday night Bible study from Back Yard Bible Study to Summer Nights. While on a college visit I was inspired by a girls dorm late night meeting that they called Sex & Chocolate; which I turned into a Sunday night, girls only, discussion on health, puberty, boys, dating and sex hosted by my female adult leaders, a health care professional, and a local school counselor. The chocolate came into play by building a chocolate buffet complete with a chocolate fountain. To counter balance that evening with my boys I hosted the same set up, only we served chicken on the grill and called it The Breast Sex Ever. (Not, really; we called it Man Up). And, every year, while at summer camp, I learn team building games that I use with both my students and my ministry team.
That is what this book is really about, me giving you permission to borrow, tweak and steal from me and my ministry.
Go To Events
Figure out your group’s favorite go to events, and make sure that these appear on your calendar. For us those events are snow skiing, summer camp, amusement park, canoe trip, state youth convention, New Year’s event, concerts, ten foot banana split . . .
Just remember, as your ministry ebb and flows every year and completely changes every six to seven years, the go to favorites of your group may, and will, change.
Regardless of the ebb and flow my ministry experiences, skiing, camp and convention remain go to events for us. However, there were years that we were taking van loads of kids to concerts four to six times a year, and the last concert I attended there were only three students with me.
When the ebb and flow takes the group in new directions, be flexible and go with it. This may mean tweaking old events to update them, or creating whole new events.
For several years our New Year’s event was a mobile lock-in that started at the local YMCA and eventually ended back at the church. We then tweaked it from playing sports at the YMCA to watching a professional hockey game followed by a lock-in. When the local hockey team folded, it forced us to change the format again; however, we still do a New Year’s event.
Meeting Places
This is where you can truly be creative. Just because you may have a youth room does not mean you always have to meet there. If you are leading a Bible study with a dvd curriculum, meet in the home of the church member with the largest flat screen and family room. Flag football should be played at the home of the church member with the largest backyard. Girl’s only meetings should be hosted in a home that is warm, safe, comfortable and inviting. Bon fires need to be held down on the farm (and include a hay ride). Guy’s only meetings should be held in the corner booth of the best wings place in town. Summer Bible studies have to be at the home of the person who has a swimming pool. Hot tubs are great during winter. Coffee shops are awesome for senior high and college age students. City parks with awesome play grounds and lots of green space are ideal for junior high students.
Even if you opt to use your youth room more times than not, change the way it looks. Re-arrange or change out the furniture, re-paint every two years, add lighting, get rid of old stuff, trade the ping pong table for air hockey, and always decorate to match the current holiday or the current theme of your study.
Stay For A Generation
Regardless if you are a full time, part time or volunteer youth leader, commit to stay at least one generation of students; which is six to seven years, depending on if sixth graders are a part of your ministry or not.
When I was in college I was taught that the average stay of a youth pastor, across denominational lines, was eighteen months; and I believed it. So when I hit eighteen months at my first ministry I was very proud. At the three year mark I thought I had accomplished something because I had stayed twice as long as the national