Saying, “no,” can be a really hard thing to do. I experienced this firsthand while serving on my church’s missions team for many years. The requests that came to our committee seemed never-ending. Members of the church brought us information ...
I stumbled upon a prayer this week called, “For when you’re tired of broken systems,” and this excerpt remains lodged in my mind: Oh God, how blessed are we who cry out to you: Empower us to see and name ...
I was recently coaching a group of ministry leaders to help them unpack their faith community’s experience with the Innovation Lab’s Community Discovery Package. Guided by the resource, they’d completed community research, conducted in-depth interviews with people in their context, ...
Take 60 seconds to try this thought experiment: Close your eyes and imagine a successful and effective ministry program in your context. What do you imagine? How many people are present? What are they doing? What’s your role as a ...
At the Innovation Lab, when we give a presentation, lead a workshop, or engage in conversation with a ministry leader, we always start by defining what we mean by “innovation.” We start here because the word “innovation” comes with a ...
Kris Konsowitz Kris has over 35+ years of experience in youth ministry. Her ministry experience includes serving as the Youth Minister at Collierville UMC in Tennessee. Kris has experience serving in youth ministry at the local, conference, jurisdictional and national ...
For Jeremiah Law, youth ministry was always in the plan. After receiving his undergraduate degree in youth ministry, he joined CYMT to pursue a master’s and get the support he needed to start his first job as a youth pastor. ...
Ryan (he/they) never planned on being a youth pastor. They had volunteered at summer camps and youth-serving organizations, but also had a full-time job that provided a life they were comfortable with. He and his wife weren’t even really active ...
Dr. Andrew Zirschky Andrew has more than 20 years of congregational youth ministry experience and holds an M.Div. and Ph.D. from Princeton Theological Seminary. He is the author of Beyond the Screen: Youth Ministry for the Connected but Alone Generation ...
Sarah Carlson was a high-achieving, high-anxiety teenager. She constantly pushed herself at school and extracurriculars. Her schedule was packed with activities that would make her look good to colleges, to her parents, and to her peers. She was constantly striving, ...
by Meghan Hatcher Last month, a blog post titled “Departure: Why I Left the Church” went viral throughout a wide swath of the ministry landscape. In the post, former pastor Alexander Lang articulates why he recently chose to leave not ...
Stephen Ingram Stephen is a 25+ year youth ministry veteran. His books include Hollow Faith: How Andy Griffith, Facebook, and the American Dream Neutered the Gospel, ExtraOrdinary Time: 365 Ordinary Moments with an Anything But Ordinary God; and Organic Student ...
Dr. David White Rev. Dr. White has just retired as the C. Ellis and Nancy Gribble Nelson Professor of Christian Education, Professor in Methodist Studies at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Austin, TX. He now serves on the board of ...
by Meghan Hatcher At the United Methodist church where I grew up, the season of Advent can’t happen without the annual live nativity. Every year the same wooden frame, with last year’s hay still clinging to it, is set up ...
Dear CYMT Family, I am honored and humbled to join the Center for Youth Ministry Training (CYMT) and lead the organization in community-based ministries. As the new Community Ministry Director, I believe that we are all responsible for creating beloved ...
This week we have asked 3 on the ground youth ministry practitioners for their advice and wisdom on how they engage parents in their student ministries and churches. "This can be tricky because I have parents who are active in ...
Dr. Andrew Zirschky Andrew has more than 20 years of congregational youth ministry experience and holds an M.Div. and Ph.D. from Princeton Theological Seminary. He is the author of Beyond the Screen: Youth Ministry for the Connected but Alone Generation ...
Jeremy Demarest nearly enrolled in the MAYM program four years ago when beginning his work as the director of children, youth, and family ministries at Round Rock (Texas) Presbyterian Church. Flash forward three years when he and his wife found ...
Kristia Oney has felt called to serve with young people for as long as she can remember. She got her first church job as a part-time youth pastor at age 21 and started working at her church full-time as soon ...
What is it that defines a youth ministry? Does it need to be on Wednesday nights? Sunday mornings? Does it need to meet in a church building? Does it have to include a game, a bible study, or a small ...
