Summer Slowdown... No Way!

With Memorial Day in our rearview mirror, the A/C kicked on, the school year coming to an end, and the sound of the ice cream man driving down your street after dinner, one thing is certain…SUMMER IS HERE! I absolutely love summer and everything that comes with it: warm weather, smell of fresh cut grass, vacations, tons of daylight, laying in the sun, etc.  Our personal lives and schedules seem to ramp up during the summer because there is just so much to do.  I don’t know about you, but almost every weekend on my calendar this summer has something going on. 

On the ministry side of things, however, many people seem to think that summer is the time to slow down and scale back on your efforts of reaching people.  I often get asked the question: “So now that the school year is over are things going to slow down a bit this summer?”  I almost always get a big grin and nearly laugh out loud when I let them know that the exact opposite happens! 

In Student Ministries at VFC, and really church wide for that matter, things don’t slow down, but instead, ramp up!  This isn’t a bad thing; this is a good thing!  With students out of school and the weather nice, there is so much opportunity to connect and reach the youth in the summer.  For VOX Student Ministries, summer is by far our busiest season with a weeklong discipleship program called Next Level, a week long summer camp, and usually double the monthly events…all on top of programming a weekly service too! 

Some people may think that summer is the time to slow down and relax, and don’t get me wrong, I’m all about rest and refreshing, but if you are a youth pastor, youth volunteer, or a church trying to reach the youth, one of the biggest temptations you will face in the summer is that of laziness.  I like the words of wisdom in Proverbs 20:4 (NLT) “Those too lazy to plow in the right season will have no food at the harvest.”

If we are not strategic about reaching students over the summer and building spiritual momentum, then we can’t expect to have “food” at the harvest when the new school year starts in the fall.  Why not ramp things up in the summer when students’ schedules are freed up, there’s no homework to compete with, and students are looking for things to do.  Why not give your students positive alternatives that will cultivate healthy relationships and help grow their faith? 

So go for it…ask for God’s grace and creativity, ramp up the intentional events and have the best ministry summer yet!

Eric

The Box

Today’s challenge – get rid of the box.  What do I mean?  I am referring to the box that says to have a successful, thriving youth ministry you must do it this way or that way.  The box that produces the same ideas year after year because back in the 90’s it worked for some youth group.  The box that keeps us from stepping out and trying something completely radical because it’s never been done before. 

You might be clutching to the box because of a couple different reasons.  One, it could be fear of failure that could be keeping you in the box.  There may be an idea that continues to stir in your heart.  You keep telling yourself that idea was meant for your younger, more energetic, and daring self ten years ago, but really the Lord is giving you a revolutionary idea to do youth ministry for your specific church.  Second, maybe you are the person that feels completely overwhelmed with the current tasks at hand, and when you begin to think about giving a makeover to your “Year at a Glance” with new events, sermon series ideas, and conferences - that overwhelming sensation comes on.  Instead, you look at the events you did last year and give it a slightly different name or offer a minor variation so your students don’t have complete déjà vu.

I have good news for you!  God’s best it not for you to live in the box of youth ministry.  Those ideas that continue to stir in your heart, though they may seem completely unattainable to achieve, are from the Him!  And if He gives you an idea, He also gives you the grace to do it!  Lean on His wisdom as you step out into the unknown with your radical idea.  It is ultimately His idea – and He’s got your back.  And if exhaustion is keeping you in the box, I’ve got good news for you too!  His Word clearly states His grace is sufficient for you and the joy of the Lord is your strength!  Take hold of His grace during this season and ask the Holy Spirit for fresh, witty ideas.  The Creator is the ultimate creative One.


Ruth

What's That Smell?!

It is said that the human nose can smell over 100 million different smells…WOW that is a lot of smells!  These can be both pleasant smells or horrific smells, ranging from your favorite dish at a restaurant to someone getting a little too comfortable on a road trip after eating Taco Bell. Regardless of the smell, the truth of the matter is that they all send a message to the brain. 

While ministering to students and young adults, I have observed that they have amazing “sniffers.”  What I mean by that is this: students and young adults can smell a phony and a fake from a mile away.  This next generation is very good at picking up whether you are authentic or if you are just faking it. They are craving authentic friendships and relationships, authentic conversations, and authentic environments where people are just “real.”

If we desire to be effective in reaching the youth then we as pastors, volunteers, parents must be authentic.  If you struggle at all with being authentic, then listed below are 3 easy ways of how to give off the right “stench”:

1. Be Yourself – There is only one you. Please be you, otherwise the world will be void of something that belongs.  Don’t try to be someone you are not or put on a mask.  This next generation needs you, not some clone or copy of someone else.

2. Be Transparent – There is nothing more powerful than a leader who is not afraid to live their life wide open for others to see and observe. When we are transparent with the youth, it shows them we are just like them, and allows a connection and respect to form in which true discipleship can thrive.

3. Be Real – If you don’t know all the answers, it’s ok.  If you made a mistake, confess it and own up to it. If you don’t care for Dubstep or Skrillex music, then don’t try to fake like you like it. Just be real.

When we are ourselves, are transparent with others, and are just plain real, that is when the smell of authenticity resonates in the nostrils of this next generation.  From that foundation is where true relationships can be formed and real life change can happen!

Eric

A Revelant Message in a Change Culture

Doesn’t it seem that we live in a culture that changes quickly?  Take fashion for instance – look back at pictures of yourself from five years ago.  Are you wearing the same type of outfits now as you were in those pictures?  Are you looking at your hairdo wondering what you were thinking?  Or take music – bands that were popular a few years back – more than likely they’re not the same ones playing on the top 100 countdown today.

Change in our culture happens quickly.  And if we stay completely focused in our same track of doing ministry, never looking up to see if change is happening around us, we could easily find ourselves a few years outdated and not effectively communicating or reaching the youth of today in a relevant way.  Webster defines “change” as the following:  to make different in some particular; to make radically different; to give a different position, course, or direction to. 

In your own youth ministry, I would encourage you to embrace change.  Change can sometimes be the key to truly connecting with your students in a relevant way.  Now, please hear my heart – there can be a ditch on either side of this topic – refusing to change and still using CDs from your high school years as the opening song, or changing so much a student wouldn’t know the difference between a show on MTV and your youth service last weekend.  There needs to be a balance. 

The best way to see how to connect with your church’s youth today is to observe your very own students.  Are your students communicating through Facebook, Twitter, or texting?  Are your students into playing sports, writing music, creating their own videos, longboarding?  Tune into your students to see how you can bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to them in a relevant way.  And don’t be discouraged if change seems to happen more quickly than you’d expect.  Remember – only a few short years ago, you were sporting that ever-fashionable hairdo.

Ruth