Youth Ministry Maverick: Hosted by Jeff Harding
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108 episodes
For Episode 100 and our Season 3 Finale, Jeff welcomes the innovative and solid youth ministry guru - Mark Matlock! Mark starts with describing the beginning of his ministry journey, and how both creativity and wisdom help us pave the way for relevant methods and maximum impact when it comes to investing in the next generations of the church. He also teases the intriguing book project he's working on in collaboration with Barna and the biggest study they have ever done.
Summer Camp is a thrilling and effective staple of youth ministry...but for many of us, our format for content delivery might be older than some of those cabin bunks. Promoting life change through Scripture and the Spirit, AND introducing habits and perspectives that help students maximize their daily walk with Jesus means we need to have two-pronged approach to what we present at camp. Listen in as Jeff discusses what it looks like to deliver both the spiritual and practical content elements without sacrificing clarity or purpose.
As we approach the end of Season 3 and the milestone of Episode 100, Jeff shares some exciting news about a special guest, a big giveaway, and the new format for the podcast starting with Season 4 this fall. Listen for details, and be sure to check our website and social media profiles to make sure you're ready for the future!
For this special Juneteenth episode, Jeff reflects back on Episode 6 when he was able to talk with Mikiala Tennie and Karli Loving about the then-recent killing of George Floyd and conversations of racial tension that were enveloping the national headlines. He shares some brief thoughts about what he has learned and observed in the last three years before revisiting that conversation.
How can we set up a healthy and consistent annual rhythm for our youth volunteers? You might prefer more frequent and shorter meetings, longer monthly meetings, a blend of the two, or something totally different. But there is a good structure that allows your volunteers to feel prepared, recognized, and cared for...and it's still one that affords flexibility depending on your ministry context and number of volunteers. Listen in as we discuss components and formats for establishing a solid rhythm for your youth volunteers!
How can you make this summer effective and beneficial for you and your students? Listen in as we discuss 3 ways to capitalize on this unique and wild season of youth ministry.
With hyper middle school students, and technology and social media affecting attention span and ability to impress all students, we need solid methods for connecting with our students during programming. These 5 methods should give you a good starting rotation that you can tweak and add to over time.
Youth ministry roles are always the most plentiful on church job boards, and ever since COVID, it seems more difficult to land a role and/or find the right person to fill a role. Once that massive hurdle is cleared, you have several smaller hurdles that combine into another massive one...the first year on the job. How long should you wait to implement change? What about the upperclassmen who probably aren't thrilled to have you hijack their last year or two? What happens when you fail at something? Take 14 minutes and listen in on these three ways to maximize your first year in a new spot.
Caesar Kalinowski joins Jeff for a "part two" discussion going off their conversation from Episode 91 about introducing a new perspective and model for youth ministry. No matter what your youth ministry structure is, these 6 rhythms are a fantastic method to improve how you cultivate relationships in a community of any size and shape for your betterment and the spreading of the gospel. Check out Caesar's website and podcast, Everyday Disciple, here https://everydaydisciple.com.
What if the way local churches did youth ministry was to pour most of their efforts into discipling parents so they can establish missional communities that youth workers can attend and support? Caesar Kalinowski joins Jeff to talk about an interesting approach that he has taught, trained, and replicated in cities across the country. Check out Caesar's website, Everyday Disciple, here https://everydaydisciple.com.
When it comes to our online world, we're usually just concerned about content. But what about habits, and how our students are mentally, emotionally, and physiologically affected or "trained" while just trying to grow up AND learn what it means to follow Jesus well? Dr. John Dyer joins Jeff to discuss a perspective of discernment and awareness we might not be actively pursuing when it comes to digital discipleship.
While this could easily be about Jeff's mistakes (of which there are plenty), Dan Istvanik from Youth Ministry Hub joined Jeff to graciously and honestly list his top 5 mistakes from almost 30 years of youth ministry. Listen in as they talk through each mistake, what was learned, and the importance of adapting that knowledge before repeating those mistakes in your own ministry.
Whether it's basic tenants of our faith like the divinity and resurrection of Jesus, creedal confessions like the Apostle's Creed, or more in-depth issues like pneumatology or ecclesiology...thinking about how you incorporate good theology into your youth ministry discipleship is important for students to flesh out their beliefs. Mike McGarry joins Jeff to discuss different approaches for implementing a theological rhythm, and why it should be a factor in anything we're teaching students. Check out Mike's website, Youth Pastor Theologian, here https://www.youthpastortheologian.com.
We certainly want to have results and benchmarks that can be measured in our ministries, but we can't let those overshadow a healthy long-term approach to investing in our students. Mike Haynes joins Jeff to discuss how focusing too hard on results (especially in the short-term) can distort the necessary process-orientation youth ministries need for the long haul.
Talking with our students about finding their identity and purpose is good, but you can't talk about those things without talking about the practical approach to living out their faith. Kate Boyd returns to YMM to talk with Jeff about how to help students think about the process of who they're becoming, instead of only thinking about right belief and right practice. They also talk about Kate's new book, which you can preorder here https://www.amazon.com/Untidy-Faith-Journeying-Following-Jesus/dp/1513811797.
We want our students to find their identity in Christ, and a critical step in determining what that means for their life is to help them discover their purpose as new creations in Christ. Brad Griffin, Senior Director of Content & Resources for the Fuller Youth Institute, joins Jeff to discuss how youth workers can help teenagers in this process using the Holy Spirit, Scripture, and community. Click here https://fulleryouthinstitute.org/our-team/brad-m-griffin to learn more about Brad and his work at Fuller Youth Institute.
Recruiting volunteers for your ministry? Important. Keeping their involvement and investment fresh, and retaining them long-term? Crucial! Charlie Conder joins Jeff to talk about how to make sure we have healthy and solid volunteers for front line ministry. Check out Charlie's website here: https://www.charlieconder.com
We've heard about networking before, along with the general benefits. But where do you begin? What about different size groups/ministries? Is it realistic? Is it worth it? Jeff goes over 3 ways that networking can refresh your ministry, and explains how they're best taken in consecutive steps. Also, check out Episode 25 with Kevin Miles https://youthministrymaverick.com/episode-25-as-iron-sharpens-iron/ from NNYM, and Episode 66 with Olivia Williamson https://youthministrymaverick.com/episode-66-claim-your-campus/ from Claim Your Campus for further insight and resources!
Whether it's attendance numbers or other short-term markers of success, too many things take priority over the long-term healthy elements of the ministry that matter. However, it's certainly easier said than done when you have pressure from supervisors or others about those short-term markers. How do you flip the script on healthy expectations? Veteran youth pastor Kyle Wassom talks with Jeff about the reasons and methods that go into that perspective.
Mission trips have been a staple in youth ministry programming for decades. But are they just well-intentioned placeholders? Is there strategy involved with why they're scheduled and where they're scheduled? Jeff talks with Tim Brokopp from the Amoveo Group about the importance of having strategic intentionality for both.
For this installment of MRR, Jeff was joined by the Director of High School Content for Orange Students - Shane Sanchez. They discuss Shane's new devotional book, How To See God: A Four Week Guide for Teenagers. The discussion covers the theme and approach of the book, what led to Shane and his team at Orange developing the book, and how to help students gain awareness on practical approaches to their everyday faith. Buy the book now through this link https://store.thinkorange.com/products/how-to-see-god/!
Coming out of COVID, bringing in a new screen-saturated generation, and dealing with polarization at an all-time high has made the already tumultuous season of adolescence even more unstable for many. Also for many, a major element within that rocky season is trauma. Several of our students are walking through our church doors with it each week...do we notice and adapt our ministry approaches accordingly? Jane Lewis joins Jeff to talk about some signs we can look for, things to keep in mind, and methods to utilize as we minister to students living in the aftermath of trauma and/or tragedy.
Telling stories is a powerful way to teach and disciple students. Jesus told stories, after all! But whether it's getting caught up in stories or good points we want to make, youth workers can unintentionally remove Christ from the center of stories about Him. Matt Behr joins Jeff to talk about why it's crucial for youth workers to maintain discernment and self-awareness when it comes to presenting stories of Jesus.
Whether the source is a teacher, pastor, counselor, social researcher, story plot, or just plain personal experience...most of us realize that chronic difficulty and dysfunction growing up goes on to negatively affect us later in life. But can we leverage that dysfunction to actually (perhaps ironically) thrive? Moreover, can we teach our students how to do that? Dr. Ike Miller joins Jeff to discuss what that perspective looks like, and how to employ it from a general pastoral sense AND a youth ministry sense in the local church.
Talking about strengths and weaknesses in leadership is fairly common. However, what about the strengths and weaknesses of your youth ministry? They aren't always connected to your personal strengths and weaknesses, and there are many elements to consider. In this episode, Jeff provides 3 things to keep in mind before developing specific strategies to maintain your strengths and improve your weaknesses.
We want our students to grow and be discipled, but where does leadership come in? How foundational is student leadership development in your ministry vision and strategy? Brent Aiken from Student Ministry Conversations joins Jeff to discuss the importance of developing student leaders along with some methods to make it a part of your ministry.
A constant struggle in youth ministry is how to handle students who are unengaged, apathetic, and for whatever reason...not interested. In addition, there are some uncommon cultural and generational factors that compound the complexity of approaching apathetic students well. Zac Workun from LifeWay Students joins Jeff to talk about some evergreen methods along with methods that help us compensate for modern variables. Follow Zac on Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/zacworkun/, and check out the link in his bio to access the latest content from LifeWay Students:
We have to be careful when we think about success, because success and good health don't always coincide. There are a number of factors to weigh when evaluating the health of your ministry. Which ones do you pick? How do you feel about the state of your ministry? Jeff chooses three factors to talk about in this first official episode of Season 3.
After a 10 month hiatus, Youth Ministry Maverick is back! Jeff gives an update on his life since the last episode dropped, and talks about the new format coming to the podcast. We're excited for more topics, more guests, more conversations, and more investment in the next generation of the church. Let's get it!
In this final episode of the semester, Ashley Bohinc from Orange joins Jeff to discuss what middle school ministry is about to look like with Gen Alpha - primarily with their decentralized connection and diverse family orientation. Don't miss this fascinating conversation about a new landscape of youth ministry! Check out the latest from Orange Students here https://orangestudents.com/. Connect with Ashley on Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/ashleymariebohinc/.
