If I Were Starting Over Again...

Me at work, NYC- 1978

I first became a youth pastor when I walked into the fellowship hall of Centre Friends Meeting outside of Greensboro, NC in September, 1978.  I was 18 years old.  I knew absolutely nothing abut youth ministry except the things I had learned by being part of a youth group and a Young Life group that together had changed my life.  In the 28 years that followed I did manage to learn a few things.  I served churches in 3 denominations and one para-church organization.  I served as a trainer of youth and religious education workers in a 6 state area.  I made as little as $50 per month and as much as $70,000 (plus a house) per year.  I taught many seminars on youth ministry.  I spoke at (and led music for) national conferences for youth and their youth pastors.  Youth ministry and I have a history.


The other day when I posted 5 Things I'd Change About Youth Ministry I got a lot of positive feedback from a lot of folks who thought I had some good ideas.  I also got one real pain-in-the-butt question from a regular reader, Chris.  He wanted to know this- "What would you do right now if you were starting a student ministry from scratch?"  Wow.  I hate it when people ask for concrete answers instead of philosophical pontifications.  Other questions immediately flooded my brain.  What did I learn that is still important to me about helping teenagers find a relationship with Jesus?  When, where and how often would my group meet, and what format would those meetings take?  How would I use today's social media to help my cause?  Is there anything I would change dramatically about the way I did ministry?  These questions just came flooding into my mind, and I was intrigued by the thought of answering them.  So much so that I feel a blog series coming on!  

The 4-Way Grinder in action!

For the next several Fridays I will be attempting to format a new student ministry, just like I had been hired at a new church with no history and no traditions.  For the purposes of this experiment, the church will be located in the same neighborhood of Tampa in which my family currently resides.  It is obviously a fictional scenario - I will most likely never be in student ministry again- but it will be my way of trying to give Chris (and anyone else who cares!) some real answers to his most excellent question.  And BTW, the first thing I would do- before ever having a meeting or recruiting a volunteer- would be to break out the 4-Way Grinder that is in my garage, set it up in my front yard and let the neighborhood teenagers play.  Almost none of their families go to church, so if (with my son Will's help) I can get the 12 or so of them interested I'd be off to a flying start.  So get ready, my friends.  The old Youthguy is going back to work!  But only on Fridays...   :)


Because of Jesus,