Church Youth

Why do youth ministries crumble? And what is the cost to students, parents, volunteers and church staff? Is a sustainable youth ministry possible, even after a youth pastor leaves? Youth ministry expert Mark DeVries knows the answer is yes, because he helps build sustainable youth ministries through his coaching service called Youth Ministry Architects. So take heart: No matter what state the youth ministry at your church is in—in need of a leader and volunteers, full of battles and stress, large or small in number—it can be built to survive and to last for the long haul.

If you long to reach kids and see their lives changed by God, this updated, comprehensive guide shows you how. Purpose Driven® Youth Ministry will do for youth ministry what Rick Warren's Gold Medallion award - winning The Purpose Driven Church is doing for pastoral ministry. It's an indispensable guide to creating and maintaining youth ministry for the long run. It will help you create a solid spiritual team that builds the foundations of the Christian faith into the hearts and lives of young people.

In the past few decades, the church has experienced rapid and distressing change. Hard-working pastors and leaders often know they need to embrace diversity, creatively engage younger generations, and equip their people to love their neighbors. But since they don't know how to make the changes needed, they feel stuck and wonder, "What do I do now? For these dedicated yet drained church leaders, this research-informed resource from the team at the Fuller Youth Institute offers a clear roadmap to faithfully and effectively navigate change that will revitalize your church.

In Jesus Was A Youth Leader, Matthew Arrowood explores the unconventional path Jesus chose during His ministry. Rather than becoming an earthly king, scholar, or Pharisee, Jesus dedicated three and a half years to teaching and mentoring 12 young men. Arrowood argues that Jesus took on the unexpected role of a rabbi and teacher—a position that, even today, might not be highly regarded within the church.

Many people today, especially among emerging generations, don't resonate with the church and organized Christianity. Some are leaving the church and others were never part of the church in the first place. Yet often they are still spiritually open and fascinated with Jesus. This is a ministry resource book exploring six of the most common objections and misunderstandings emerging generations have about the church and Christianity.

The loss or disaffiliation of young adults is a much-discussed topic in churches today. Many faith-formation programs focus on keeping the young, believing the youthful spirit will save the church. But do these programs have more to do with an obsession with youthfulness than with helping young people encounter the living God?

If you're brave enough to take an honest look at the issues facing the culture-controlled church - and the issues in your own life - read on.

Do you ever look at how the Christian faith is being lived out in the new millennium and wonder if we're not doing what we're supposed to be doing? That we still haven't quite 'gotten it'? That we've missed the point regarding many important issues? It's understandable if we've relied on what we've been told to believe or what's widely accepted by the Christian community. But if we truly turned a constructive, critical eye toward our beliefs and vigorously questioned them....

To disciple the youth in our student ministries today, we have to understand the unique characteristics of Generation Z and apply lessons learned from recent decades of youth ministry. Pastor and Professor Timothy McKnight brings a wealth of new insights, resources, and guidance for reaching today's adolescents.

If you are a Christian who is a member or leader of a dying congregation (one that’s shrinking in numbers while increasing in average age), this book may be a Godsend for you. If your congregation is failing to retain its own children, is uninteresting to visitors, is uninspiring to its members, is not recruiting new members (little or no effective local evangelism), and is disconnected from your community---here are practical, workable solutions! These remedies are drawn from the latest Church Growth and Quality Management literature, as exemplified by Jesus’ own actions. Although the ...

Do you want your children to be actively serving in the local church when they turn 30 and beyond? Why They Stay can help! Much has been written about younger adults and their departure from church involvement. Concerned parents and church leaders want to know what has caused them to depart. Instead of asking why young adults are leaving the church, Parr and Crites conducted a national research project of those who grew up in church and are still serving faithfully.

First-century Christians knew what it meant to live in vital community with one another, relating with a depth and commitment that made "the body of Christ" a perfect metaphor for the church. What would it take to reclaim that kind of love, joy, support, and dynamic spiritual growth? Listen to this book and find out.

You are in the family of God....It can get messy. When you look at your church today, what do you see? A social organization that does good things for the community? A religious corporation with a CEO at the helm? A spiritual and self-help counseling center? Pastor Ross Parsley believes that none of these ideas captures God’s design. Instead, God sees us more like a family - a multigenerational group of real people who love each other and care for one another’s needs, no matter how messy. We are not consumers asking what the church can do for us. We are family members learning how to love deeply, fight fairly, and share selflessly.

A New Generation Church is a church with attendees whose average age is at least as young as the average age of the community in which the church exists. Any church can become a New Generation Church that reaches and continues to reach the next generation. Written for both church leaders and members, For a New Generation presents practical strategies that lay a foundation for a church to thrive for generations to come. It is based on the assumption that accepting the status quo is the greatest threat to your church’s core mission and, perhaps, to the survival of your church.

And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. (Mathew18:5) In this verse, Jesus explains that when you receive a little child in his name, He is the one you are receiving. Every child that walks through your door is your opportunity to prove how you would have pastored young Jesus had he been your sheep. As a pastor, you must inculcate in the children that church is a place where God is worshipped. The earlier we introduce children to God, the easier it is for them to accept Him as real.

Times are changing—our methods must shift with the tide It’s never been so easy—and so difficult—to reach the younger generation. While they’re active online, they’re also less likely to be active in the church. This is a worrisome trend that means their morals, values, and needs regarding faith are being neglected. This book proposes a shift of church culture to reach a new generation. Using unique perspectives and focusing on the way of the future, this book aims to help bring a whole new generation of Millennials and Generation Z into the Apostolic church. We can’t control ...

“Why can’t we just fall in love with men that are simple, stay at home, and don’t try to take on the world?” Raya radiates beauty both inside and out while exuding an unshakable faith. Her life plan includes being a participant in the community she loves, marrying the man she has been with since high school, and building a loving family. Unfortunately, as often happens, life doesn’t exactly work out the way Raya was planning. It seems that no matter how much she tries to grasp the roadmap for her life, it spins in new, and not so desirable directions. Will she eventually find the ...

Today, there is a disconnection between the youth and the leadership of the church. With fewer and fewer young people attending church, a hole has been created in the membership where the young people used to be. With that we are also seeing a growing generation gap in churches that impacts leadership and how youth are and are not transitioning into leadership at the local level. How can we keep a steady group of leaders being developed in the local church? This book is a history, of sorts, of African American youth ministry in the US. We use the brush of the past to be able to re-...

Stupid Covid! Tina is in the middle of her freshman year at Central High when the pandemic hits... School, jobs, volunteering, friendships all come to a screeching halt. Even the connection with her best friend, Julie is fading. Life on Zoom takes center stage. It doesn’t come close to picking up the slack, but what else is there? How do Tina and her friends learn to cope? In a million different ways, that’s how. Tina takes you on a tour of her life on the inside and whatever glimpses of the world outside she’s still able to reach. It's a good thing bicycling is OK. Was your ...

Step into a thrilling, colorful adventure and see hidden history come to life! As a young explorer, you will embark on a captivating journey that uncovers the mystery of what happened in the centuries after our Savior, Jesus, was resurrected and ascended to heaven. Would His church survive? Would His people be able to worship freely? Beginning with the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, this easy-to-read adaptation of The Great Controversy throws you into the world's most important stories of faith and freedom. You'll come across cruel tyrants, like Nero, who imprisoned and killed people ...

The message remains the same, but the methods must change in this post-pandemic world if we want to remain relevant and grow. Our churches have Children’s, and Youth Ministries, but few have actual Adult Ministries. Here’s a new approach to Adult Ministries that will attract more adults, ages 30 and up (and their families), that includes fun and exciting events and ministries for churches of every size, for both volunteer and paid, part-time and full-time staffs.