Fostering Vocational Discernment
Articles and Research (click to view)
Vocation of the Young, Vocation to the Young, Christine Housel
What I Learned from Discerning My Vocation, Caitlin Sica
The Vocation of Youth, Michael Baizerman and Ross Velure Roholt
White, David F. Practicing Discernment with Youth: A Transformative Youth Ministry Approach. (Cleveland: Pilgrim Press, 2005). Chapter 1 “The social construction of adolescence and the vocation of youth: a theological vision for youth ministry,” 13-34.
Discernment (click to view)
How Do I Help My Kids Find Their Calling?, Brad M. Griffin
The 2002 Princeton Lectures on Youth, Church and Culture, Princeton Theological Seminary
Integrating Youth into the Wider Congregation
Articles and Research (click to view)
The Role of Children in Jesus’ Time, Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld
What Do Young People Really Want in a Church?, Jake Mulder
Why Your Youth Group Needs Generational Integration, Dave Wright
5 Reasons Youth Ministry is Important to the Church Today, Karen Schlabach
Advice for Senior Ministers (click to view)
3 Ways a Senior Pastor Can Champion Youth Ministry, Chelsea Kingston Erickson
Why It’s Urgent for the Church to Take Youth Ministry and Teens Seriously, Greg Stier
What To Do If Your Pastor is Not On board With Your Youth Ministry, Greg Stier
Intergenerational Ministry (click to view)
Powell, Kara, Mulder, […]
Cultivating Worshipful Youth
Articles and Research (click to view)
What is Worship?, Fred Bittner
What Does it Mean to ‘Worship’ as a Christian?, Sarah Hartland
6 Essential Reasons Why Worship Matters, Philip Wagner
All Things New: The Role of Worship in Youth Ministry, Brandon Metcalf
Worship Spaces (click to view)
Worship Wars: Traditional vs. Contemporary Worship, www.ngumc.org
Designing Worship Spaces with Millennials in Mind, www.barna.com
Effective Student Spaces: 3 Tried-and-True Design Elements, www.churchexecutive.com
Music (click to view)
The Theology and Place of Music in Worship, www.rca.org
Different Types of Christian Music: A Look at the Genres,
https://www.whatchristianswanttoknow.com
https://www.worshiptogether.com/songs/
https://www.worshipchords.net/
https://www.guitarmann.com/articles/christianguitarchords
Student Leadership
Articles and Research (click to view)
The Importance of Student Leadership, Kevin Nelson
Student Leadership Hit or Miss?, Dave Sippel
How to Develop Student Leaders, Doug Fields
How to Help Your Teen Find Their Purpose in Life, crosswalk.com
Cultivating and Training Leaders (click to view)
DeVries, Mark. Sustainable Youth Ministry. (Downers Grove: IVP, 2008). Chapter 11: The Magnet Effect, p. 165.
Brown, Brene. Dare to Lead. (Random House: New York, NY, 2018)
Jones, Karen; Rahn, Dave and Strommen, Merton. Youth Ministry that Transforms. (Zandervan, 2001) Chapter 11: Gaining Broad Support: Shared Ownership, p. 295.
How to Develop Leadership in Your Youth Ministry, Karen Whiting
Developing Trusted Relationships and Nurturing Communities
Articles and Research (click to view)
What Do Young People Really Want in a Church?, Fuller Youth Institute
A Study of Best Practices in Youth Engagement and Leadership Development, www.endowmentforhealth.org
Trusting and Nurturing Relationships (click to view)
The Role of Trusted Adults in Young People’s Social and Economic Lives, Ariella Meltzer, Kristy Muir, and Lyn Craig
How Can We Nurture Our Teens?, Elana Premak Sandler, Psychology Today, May 6, 2015
Healthy Relationships in Adolescence, HHS.gov
Community (click to view)
Community is Everything: How to Build Your Tribe, Miki Agrawal
Building Relationship with Middle School Students, David Bond
Love, Acceptance and Grace (click to view)
Envisioning, Building and Sustaining Thriving Youth Ministries
Articles and Research (click to view)
Martinson, Roland; Black, Wes, and Roberto, John. The Spirit and Culture of Youth Ministry: Leading Congregations Toward Exemplary Youth Ministry, (EYM Publishing, 2010). Chapter 1, Youth of Vital Christian Faith, 25-48.
The Priorities, Challenges and Trends in Youth Ministry, The Barna Group
Is ‘Youth Ministry’ in the Bible?, Fuller Youth Institute
Study: Faith Practices Have Powerful Benefits for Teens, Stephanie Martin
A Vision on Youth Ministry, Orthodox Church in America
Youth Risk Behavior Survey, Data Summary and Trends Report 2007-2017, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Youth Online, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Thriving Youth […]
Agency: The Joy of Activism
Belonging: Paul’s Notion of Autarkes
Hope: A Pathway to Adolescent Joy and Flourishing
Purpose: Finding Joy in Life Direction
Ideas for Gathering Youth Online
Gathering Youth Online
As a youth group leader, you may be wondering about how to continue to gather your youth group when we must stay physically separated. There are a lot of creative and wonderful ideas that youth leaders are sharing online. Here are just a few ideas from YMI:
Keep your regular weekly meeting time via Google Hangout, Zoom or similar. Sample format follows:
A. Opening Prayer
B. Check-in with everyone
C. Activity (following are some ideas)
Trivia
Pictionary
Show and Tell (have everyone find something that means a lot (or the most unusual thing in their house) and show it off and […]
Recruiting, Training and Supervising Youth Workers
Further Readings and Articles (click to view)
Devries, Mark. Sustainable Youth Ministry: Why Most Youth Ministry Doesn’t Last and What Your Church Can Do About It. (Downers Grove: IVP, 2008). Chapter 3: Hoping, Wishing and Praying, p. 40.
DeVries, Mark. Sustainable Youth Ministry: Why Most Youth Ministry Does Last and What Your Church Can Do About It. (Downers Group: IVP, 2008). Chapter 7: Searching Right, p. 90.
DeVries, Mark. Sustainable Youth Ministry: Why Most Youth Ministry Doesn’t Last and What Your Church Can Do About It. (Downers Grove: IVP, 2008). Chapter 8: Aligning the Heart, p. 107.
Jones, Karen; Rahn, Dave and Strommen, Merton. Youth Ministry That Transforms. (Zondervan, 2001). Chapter 4: Focusing […]