Leadership, Communication, Ministry Health, Spiritual Health & YM Systems and Structures
When I ask people what their biggest challenge is, they always reply, not enough help, teens aren’t committing, parents are disengaged, and various...
My heart was hurting. I had just finished an angry email from a parent that made me feel frustrated, helpless and hopeless. I immediately began to...
As I drove to the church my stomach began to churn. It wasn’t nerves, it was something else, something deeper. It had been a rough week, after being...
I’m a fixer and that can cause problems. As a youth minister it can get especially messy. A teen will come to me with a problem and immediately I...
My small group leader seemed overwhelmed. She said, “Chris, I don’t have the time to do all these things you want me to do in addition to showing up...
After small groups one night a volunteer came up to me with a lot of enthusiasm. She said, “Chris, I had a connection with one of the quieter teens...
I sometimes wonder what my sons’ teachers think of me. I wonder, “Am I THAT parent that confuses, frustrates or scares them?” If that’s an odd...
This time was going to be different. I was going to be able to reach my goals and hit results in a more efficient and effective way. There was no…
It feels like it should work. Hire a youth minister, start a regular gathering and teens will just show up, right? Might have been the case 10, 15,...
I had a thousand things on my plate, so I hemmed and hawed about whether or not I should go to the diocesan training for youth ministers. On top of…
Goal setting can be both motivating and deflating. As I write out my goals I think about the end results and the amazing feeling that will come when...
It was just before 5am and my oldest son was wide awake. The anticipation of Christmas was way too much. In fact it was so much that going to sleep…
