Grace builds on nature. So if you are paralyzed by 347 emails you haven't read, lack vision, creativity, or focus in your youth ministry, or just need some motivation to get back to work, welcome to the club. This series is about working on our nature and becoming a professional youth minister so all that grace has room to build.
I've been a Director of Youth Ministry for the Catholic Church going on three years now, and I know nothing at all.
But I have come across some things that have helped me a great deal, and I think if you are a youth minister you could use these things too. I've also realized that half the battle is having the right attitude and mindset. Its easy to get sucked into the stereotypes and not expect much (or expect too much) from yourself.
Youth Ministry is hard for the same reason working from home or being an artist is hard. Often there isn't much accountability or feedback. Its hard to make things in a world without many rules. Its easy to get sucked into the world of relying on the Holy Spirit to save you from the talk you're preparing last minute or a thing you haven't planned or a semester pissed away on Facebook. Its easy to develop an unhealthy lifestyle as a youth minister. I've been there. I talked about my burn out a lot in my confession type post.
I'm going to be focusing in this series on figuring out how to become a better youth minister. I'll be sharing things that helped me stop wasting so much time in the office while telling the world that I'm soooo busy because youth ministers work soooo much. I'll also be focusing on some simple tech tools, books, and resources that I wish someone would have showed me years ago. Things that helped me organize my thoughts better, organize my work better, do better ministry, and be a healthier person in general.
CAVEAT: I will not be focusing much on the spiritual aspect of being a youth minister, being in ministry, praying, etc. There are lots of other places on the internet that do that way better than I could. I'm assuming you pray everyday. I'm assuming you realize that God doesn't need you in this ministry. I'm assuming that you realize just being more productive will not make you a better minister unless it is coupled with grace and God's will. I'm also assuming that you don't want to be the dodge ball guy or the stereotypical goofball youth minister. I'm not here to hold your hand, I'm here to kick you (and myself) in the pants. When I want to talk exclusively God and other things besides being a professional youth minister, it will be on this website but not part of this series.
You can see all the articles in this series by clicking the "Professional Youth Minister" series category tag on the right --->
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