Quick Tips

When should I consider going to therapy?

Jaime grew up in a church world that messaged, “You need to be resilient.” All of the church leaders around him seemed to be able to pick themselves up when they fell, and some of them never even seemed to falter.

How can I grow spiritually when I am exhausted?

The first time I met Sam, he was a brand new youth leader trying to figure out how to lead a youth ministry - in the middle of the pandemic. He had been asked to create three different ways pandemic-isolated young people could connect without being in-person.

How can I set healthy boundaries in my ministry?

Carla answered the phone, knowing who was on the other end. “Hello,” she said, exhaustedly. “Are you busy?” came the question of the same youth who had called at 11:30 p.m. the night before. Carla always answered their phone calls and texts because she knew how much trauma her young people endured, and felt like they really needed her.

How do I navigate burnout?

Some time ago, I found myself in tears during what should have been a routine meeting. Over the previous six months, I had felt increasingly underwater. Increased work responsibilities, parenting transitions, ministry upheaval, and vocational disappointment had worn me thin.

How do I know if I need to leave ministry for my wellbeing?

There are many stories of people who loved God and who stick with their communities through difficult situations. But there are also stories of those who left.

What should I prioritize in my limited time?

Youth ministry has the strangest, most diverse to-do list out of almost any profession. You can be buying 30 pool noodles, submitting expense reports, and comforting a teen as they cry—sometimes all in the same 24-hour period.

How can I practice a balanced ministry to prevent burning out?

Navigating burnout can be tricky: we are often tempted to isolate ourselves, stop performing, and may even become resentful.

How do I navigate volunteer disagreements?

Every team seems to have one—a dissident, contrarian, somebody who never agrees. Our team had Rob. Rob, a youth volunteer, and parent, loved Jesus, but I was never quite sure if he liked me.

How can I find new volunteer leaders?

My entire time at that ministry, I was hurting for volunteers. I feared that being an introvert would make it even harder for me to recruit qualified adults.

How can I better engage with parents?

As youth ministers, we are excited to involve parents and caregivers in programming, but often end up disheartened when turnout is poor and interest is low, no matter how great the offering. Well, there is some good news: this is not a new problem.

How can I support parents as they disciple their children?

It’s hard to describe the sheer panic I felt the first time a parent asked me how to talk to their teen about faith. I was single, in my early twenties, and had significant imposter syndrome in my first youth ministry job.

How can parents serve in ministry with me?

I know how hard it is to get volunteers to commit to the bigger tasks. And many parents don’t feel qualified or comfortable leading at church. What if we flipped our perspective on parent involvement?

How can I help young people feel they belong in the church?

As a part of our current sermon series on the Psalms, church members are sharing songs that are meaningful to them. As a way to invite teenagers into this, I focused on the Psalms at youth group and invited them to create their own playlist of meaningful songs.

How do I help youth use their gifts in the larger church community?

As a teen, my youth minister might have described me as “passionate” and “driven.” In hindsight, I would say I was “pushy” and “stubborn”! Regardless of descriptors, she saw in me a love for Jesus Christ and a desire to be involved in the church.

How do we set the right rules for our youth ministry?

Every time I make a list of rules, no matter the audience, #1 stays the same: “Don’t die.” Half joking and half genuinely concerned for safety, I have repeated it so often that former students still mention it to me.

How can I grow my small youth group?

I stood in the hallway, waiting for anyone else to show up. It was policy to have at least three people present in any gathering involving young people, but only one girl had arrived so far.

How do I talk to youth about their identity in Christ?

When John started as a teen in our youth group, he knew about Jesus, but he truly encountered Christ on a retreat. Over the next few years, he began to read the Bible and seek out what it meant to be a committed disciple.

How should I respond to my students doubts and questions?

Two of the teenage girls attended the same Christian school I did as a teen. While I love our shared alma mater, it has a way of presenting information in a one-size-fits-all manner, not leaving much space for nuance or disagreement.

How can I prioritize justice and serving others?

Justice can be difficult because there are times we are slow to act because the problem feels distant from us. One reason why teens shy away from service is that the needs in our world can feel overwhelming when viewed through the foggy lens of our own challenges and limitations.

How do I help my youth understand their purpose?

My son wants to be a professional soccer player. When he’s done with that, he wants to be an engineer. Or maybe an architect. Some days, it’s both. Like many pre-teens, his career dreams are still emerging.

How can church leadership understand and embrace our diverse youth?

When the teens in our youth ministry started using slang like “rizz” and “no cap,” I knew that I, an elder millennial, had officially moved into full adulthood.

How do I work with a small budget?

When I was starting out as a youth minister, I was always aware of how much it cost to have teens participate in the “fun” events. I generally assumed that in order to be successful in my role, I needed a bigger budget.

How do I help other leaders prioritize youth discipleship?

As crucial as youth leaders are in a church or faith community’s discipleship, it’s so much better when the entire church is committed to young people. That happens best when senior leaders are actively encouraging and prioritizing youth discipleship both publicly and privately.