In this episode, Ben, John Paul, and Julie talk with Ryan McDermott about calling students up and not out. This may seem like a subtle difference at first but has massive implications on the culture in your student ministry. Show Notes and Quotes: Calling students up equips your leaders with ...
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Student ministry is not for the faint of heart. Being successful at it requires plenty of work and a lot time. There are times that you will feel overwhelmed: looming deadlines, student events to attend, meeting after meeting . . . the list keeps going. And that list doesn’t even cover the stuff ...
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If you were to go to any student ministry in the country and ask the question, “How many of you have divorced parents or know a friend with divorced parents?” … everyone in the room would have a hand raised. Statistically, at half of all marriages resulting in divorce, this is something unavoidable ...
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Seminary certainly doesn't teach you this—what do you do in crisis situations? What's your role when there's injury, illness, devastation, or death? You will often be looked to in these situations and they can be difficult or awkward to navigate. In this episode, Ben shares some very practical ...
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I will never forget the moment at camp when one of my leaders turned our camp into a military style boot camp complete with single file lines, drill sergeant sounding voices, and precision instructions for guards standing their posts. Our camp was up in the mountains and there began to be rumors of ...
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In this episode, Ben, John Paul, and Julie talk about how to challenge a generation to greatness. Gen Z students are longing to get involved with a cause, make a difference, and truly help people. Show Notes and Quotes: Teenagers are wanting student ministries to help them address the ...
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I’ve heard many seasoned pastors tell funny stories of how something completely blew up in their face while leading a student ministry. Funny now, but definitely not humorous at the moment. The funny stories are normally things like vehicle problems on a camp trip, fights on the basketball court, or ...
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I go to counseling.  It’s a phrase that I never thought I would utter, especially in such a public way, but there it is. For a long time, I bought into the lie that as a pastor it was something I just couldn’t do—that if I needed counseling, it must mean that I was unfit to lead where God ...
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In this episode, Ben and John Paul talk with Katie Wylie about how vital counseling can be to ministry and life. Ben Trueblood    Ben serves as the Director of Student Ministry for LifeWay Christian Resources and has served the local church as a student pastor for fourteen years. ...
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Q: Where do you go after midweek youth ministry?  A: 5 years ago, my best friend and fellow youth minister, Chad Higgins, and I started getting calls to help train and equip youth ministers across Oklahoma. I love my home state, and there are many out-of-the-way places where people gather ...
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