My Best Day in Ministry: Darin Miller

Darin and my lovely wife in the Kissimmee days!

Today's guest post comes from my old friend Darin Miller, a member of my own Youth Group Hall of Fame.  Darin serves as the Adult Ministries Pastor at The Cove Church near Huntsville, AL, after serving as a youth pastor for many years.  And once upon a time he was a volunteer in a student ministry I led in Kissimmee, FL.  To read more about those days, click here.  Darin is a blessing and an inspiration to me, and I know he will be to you as well.  I am so glad he wanted to share in this series!


It is truly difficult to single out “my best day in youth ministry.”  After being involved with youth ministry for 15 years plus, my involvement with youth has been filled with many up’s and down’s. But this particular moment was probably the first time that I felt like the Holy Spirit truly made himself visible to everyone in our youth group.  And without doubt, the presence of God undeniable.

 I’m not sure of the exact year…maybe 1998.  (it’s funny how they all run together) But I do remember that it was Fall Retreat for Asbury United Methodist Church in Birmingham, Alabama.  We were in the second night of our retreat, which included singing and a speaker. Somewhere in the middle of the signing part of our night, I was called away to take care of an injury or logistical issue.  But as I returned to the main room, I noticed that there were students on the stage with the microphone.  I was a little surprised because our “plan” for the night didn’t involve student presentations at this point.  So as I entered I started examining what was happening.

The whole group of roughly 100 people was sitting quietly and with anticipation as one of our high school girls spoke about her experience during the weekend.  Our theme was “Shine” and our group had really come together on the whole idea of being a city on a hill and letting our light shine.  This teenage girl was finishing her story of coming this weekend and the impact that it would forever have on her life.

I had begun my youth ministry “career” as a volunteer in Kissimmee, Florida.  I admit that my initial reasons for becoming involved were a mystery to me.  I knew that I wanted to be involved with the church.  I knew that was where I “should” be.  But as far as my path to that youth ministry, I’m unsure of exactly why I started. But in those early years, I began to understand the importance of “impact” in youth ministry and the eternal legacy that can be left if Jesus is the focus.

I had yet to experience that in my first church in Birmingham.  I was still “green” and the fruit of labor and faith hadn’t yet become evident.  But as that teenage girl spoke, I began to realize that after a year of toil, legacy was being formed.  And though that testimony from her was enough to have filled my heart, God had an even greater surprise in store for us.  At about the time she finished, I noticed a stir among our high school boys.  Without prompting, a group of three of our senior boys began to make their way to the stage.  My pulse began to quicken for two reasons: one, an open mic in the hands of a high school student is always cause for apprehension; two, a spur-of-the-moment testimony from three of our high school seniors is a blessing from above.  This is especially true in a situation where the depth of faith has seemed as shallow as a desert stream.

Those three young men went to the stage and took turns sharing about where they were with Jesus.  They spoke about how they represented God in their high school.  They even spoke directly to the middle school students and told them that they would be there for them if they ever had any problems at school or at home.  They had learned the lesson that if our faith doesn’t impact the lives of others it is selfish at best if not entirely useless.  They wanted to make sure that their faith had an impact.

I had been observing from the very back of the room this whole time.  I was standing near the door of the room and was suddenly overcome with emotion.  Being a part of something that God had orchestrated was too much for me to handle stoically.  I stepped out of the room and fell to my knees and prayed, thanking God for his Spirit and for calling me to ministry.

 It was on that night that I found the answer to the mystery of why I showed up to volunteer in Kissimmee, Florida. I had a heart for expanding God’s Kingdom.  It showed me that the toil and sweat of ministry should always be directed towards God’s glory.  If so, being even a small part of his plan guarantees impact and an everlasting legacy for His Kingdom.

~Darin Miller

www.covechurch.com