Media Archives - Ministry Architects

Indispensable Youth Pastor

Noah Morse — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 19:52:47 +0000

Youth ministry is one of the most rewarding professions in the world. But it also can be exhausting, overwhelming, captivating, tedious, energizing, demanding, draining, and stressful. Can you handle the pressure?

Veteran youth workers and consultants Mark DeVries and Jeff Dunn-Rankin want you to succeed-whether you’re trying to land your first youth ministry role, wishing you had more love for the job you already hold, or seeking strategies to lock in your dream job.

That’s why they’ve written The Indispensable Youth Pastor – to peel back the curtain and reveal the truths about youth ministry. They want you to understand and prepare for the unique challenges that accompany this calling. Otherwise, you’re likely to be blindsided and overwhelmed by situations that a well-prepared youth worker will handle with ease.

This book provides tools that will help you stay in the game of youth ministry for as long as God has called you and insights that can literally transform the way you approach your next (or current) role.

Chapter topics include:

Developing a search timeline that works
Where to hunt for youth ministry openings
Why acquaintances aid your search more than friends
Why the Jones Memorial Carpet matters
Initiating change without killing your ministry
Helping people embrace the ministry’s vision
Living a life that has balance and priorities
Learning to love the parts of your job you dislike

Don’t become a statistic-another person who leaves youth ministry prematurely, burned out from ministry and the church altogether. Make yourself indispensable by following the path toward landing, loving, and locking in your dream youth ministry job.

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Sustainable Young Adult Ministry

Sean Williams — Thu, 08 Sep 2022 21:33:16 +0000

Young adult ministry scares us. Young adults seem like the elusive Holy Grail demographic in Christian ministry. We often treat them like another species, with an inscrutable culture all their own. To have a thriving ministry to young adults, we’re told, we’ll need to be up-to-date on all the latest trends. We’ll need to change up our worship style. We’ll need to make programs. But what if young adult ministry isn’t actually as enigmatic as we’ve been led to believe? What if it actually looks an awful lot like . . . faithful Christian ministry? Scott Pontier and Mark DeVries know firsthand the challenges of young adult ministry. In Sustainable Young Adult Ministry, they explore six common mistakes churches make in their efforts to reach this demographic―mistakes they themselves have made―and offer six paradoxes that upend our presuppositions and return us to a simpler, more biblical ministry model. Full of practical advice and complete with a wealth of additional resources, this book offers a fresh perspective on young adult ministry that is grounded in long ministry experience and in the timeless gospel of Jesus.

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First-Century Youth Ministry: Exploring Our Jewish Roots to Reclaim Discipleship

Ministry Architects — Tue, 04 Feb 2020 18:17:24 +0000

We all want thriving youth ministries, vibrant communities of teenagers, and adult leaders who are all growing as disciples of Jesus. Too often, though, it feels like things just aren’t…quite…working. While there are lots of potential solutions to the “problems” of youth ministry, Heather Quiroz suggests looking back—way back—for answers: at first-century Jewish faith, life, and culture.

With vulnerability and humor, Quiroz combines stories from her years as an in-the-trenches youth worker with extensive study to help readers understand how building upon the wisdom and practices of the past can help shape our ministries today. Peppered throughout are simple, practical tips on everything from starting an intergenerational mentorship ministry, to helping teenagers meaningfully engage with Scripture, to encouraging teens and families to build restful Sabbath rhythms into their lives.

Written for youth workers, parents, pastors, and anyone who cares about guiding young people as they grow into disciples of Jesus Christ, First-Century Youth Ministry will encourage and challenge readers, making it clear how nourishing the roots of our faith will bring our youth ministries to life.

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Sustainable Children’s Ministry

Ministry Architects — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 20:55:19 +0000

Are you a children’s ministry leader on the edge of burnout? Do you find yourself working harder and harder to tame the chaos? Mark DeVries and Annette Safstrom know how you feel. Flash and fizz can be effective at attracting young families, but without sustainable systems beneath the unforgettable moments, the impact is almost always short-lived. In this practical resource, you’ll learn how to recruit volunteers, partner with parents, navigate politics, and care for your own soul instead of frantically scrambling to do it all yourself. Sustainable Children’s Ministry will help you build a ministry foundation that will still be standing long after you are gone.

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The Godbearing Life

Ministry Architects — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 20:55:18 +0000

The authors offer a lively spiritual primer and practical guide for those who pastor young people. Dean and Foster rechart a course for youth ministry through the classical spiritual disciplines of the church. The book identifies families, congregations, and mentor relationships as the “holy ground” where young people are most likely to say “Yes!” to God.

Author: Kenda Creasy Dean and Ron Foster

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Letters to a Youth Worker

Ministry Architects — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 20:55:18 +0000

Letters to a Youth Worker allows you to have some of the best youth ministers in the country ride shotgun on your journey. This collection includes letters from Walt Mueller, Kara Powell, Andy Root, and many others who provide wisdom and insight into effective youth ministry. Contributors based their letters on one or more of the 44 assets identified in the Exemplary Youth Ministry Study. Youth Ministry Wisdom for YOU “You need to be clear on the purpose of youth ministry; you need to be able to finish this sentence: Youth ministry is for …” – Andy Root What we want you to know is that Jesus has been there for us, every step of the way. You need to know that, but even more than that, you need to practice that, and a lot of us don’t.” – Duffy Robbins “I am having an affair. My mistress was my youth ministry.” – Jim Burns “Wouldn’t it be great to find the youth ministry ‘silver bullet’?” – Kara Powell “Your talent and personality will only connect with so many in your group. The sooner we realize this limitation, the sooner we’ll get passionate about finding a diverse group of leaders who can share in the ministry.” – Mark Matlock “Exemplary youth ministry is not about what you do. It’s about who you are.” – Walt Muller

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The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

Ministry Architects — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 20:55:16 +0000

In The Five Dysfunctions of a Team Patrick Lencioni once again offers a leadership fable that is as enthralling and instructive as his first two best-selling books, The Five Temptations of a CEO and The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive.

This time, he turns his keen intellect and storytelling power to the fascinating, complex world of teams. Kathryn Petersen, Decision Tech’s CEO, faces the ultimate leadership crisis: Uniting a team in such disarray that it threatens to bring down the entire company. Will she succeed? Will she be fired? Will the company fail? Lencioni’s utterly gripping tale serves as a timeless reminder that leadership requires as much courage as it does insight. Throughout the story, Lencioni reveals the five dysfunctions which go to the very heart of why teams even the best ones-often struggle. He outlines a powerful model and actionable steps that can be used to overcome these common hurdles and build a cohesive, effective team. Just as with his other books, Lencioni has written a compelling fable with a powerful yet deceptively simple message for all those who strive to be exceptional team leaders.

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Silos, Politics and Turf Wars

Ministry Architects — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 20:55:16 +0000

In yet another page-turner, New York Times best-selling author and acclaimed management expert Patrick Lencioni addresses the costly and maddening issue of silos, the barriers that create organizational politics. Silos devastate organizations, kill productivity, push good people out the door, and jeopardize the achievement of corporate goals. As with his other books, Lencioni writes Silos, Politics, and Turf Wars as a fictional-but eerily realistic-story. The story is about Jude Cousins, an eager young management consultant struggling to launch his practice by solving one of the more universal and frustrating problems faced by his clients. Through trial and error, he develops a simple yet ground-breaking approach for helping them transform confusion and infighting into clarity and alignment.

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Your First Two Years in Youth Ministry

Ministry Architects — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 20:55:16 +0000

This book addresses 12 valuable steps that will help readers take the first steps as they begin their ministry. An invaluable resource for anyone in youth ministry and ideal for first-timers, veterans, or college students in youth ministry. Since forever altering the course of the youth ministry world with his best-selling, groundbreaking book, Purpose-Driven Youth Ministry, Doug Fields’ mind-but especially his heart-has been focused on the many unique needs of new youth workers. Doug covers all-important issues such as: Dealing with discouragement Establishing a solid spiritual foundation Building effective relationships with students Resolving conflict Ministering to parents and families Trailblazing change Working with volunteers Defining a realistic job description And many others! In addition, a chorus of insightful sidebar voices joins your conversation with Doug, among them ministry veterans Jim Burns, Steve Gerali, Mike Yaconelli, Helen Musick, Chap Clark, Marv Penner, Rick Warren, Jana L. Sundene, Bo Boshers, Duffy Robbins, Tony Campolo, and Richard Ross, all who’ve composed extensive, topical essays for each of the dozen chapters.

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Raising Teens in an Almost Christian World

Ministry Architects — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 20:55:15 +0000

Developed as a companion to Kenda Creasy Dean’s Almost Christian—Christianity Today’s 2011 Book of the Year—this resource summarizes Dean’s response to the National Study on Youth and Religion and offers readers a chance to reflect on how the church and parents can address the findings of the study with their own children.

Raising Teenagers in an Almost Christian World is perfect for small group studies, classes, or parents at home.

Lesson topics include:

Becoming Christian-ish
Faith that Bears Fruit
Passing on the Faith
Testify by Word and Action
Transformation through Disorientation
Hope for Tomorrow

Each lesson is followed with four practical resources to help parents address each week’s topic in their own family in a variety of ways:

Conversation Starters
Tradition Builders
Disorienting Dilemmas
Experiencing Together

In a world where the church and parents are having a difficult time passing on the Christian faith to young people, we pray this study will encourage families to embark on journeys to know and love God.

Author

Dietrich “Deech” Kirk is the Executive Director of the Center for Youth Ministry Training (cymt.org). Deech has served in youth ministry since 1993 and continues to serve as one of Brentwood United Methodist Church’s associate ministers. He is a co-author of Now What? Next Steps in Your New Life with Christ.

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