We believe that every youth minister needs to have a clear picture of what the world looks like when your ministry is headed towards success. Week to-week-wins are good, but moving a youth ministry down the roadmap to success (and ultimately, succession) is the big picture.  To make your ...
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In this episode, Ben, John Paul, and Julie Plunk talk about creating a family mission statement and how it can impact families. 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 ...
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Want to be an effective student pastor? Bring a team around you! In this week's episode of Student Ministry That Matters, Ben talks about the key element that contributes to burnout: doing all the ministry yourself. Leaders help multiply your ability to take advantage of "posture moments" by moving ...
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Choosing the right curriculum can be a daunting task. It’s one of the topics I’m frequently asked to talk about and my approach to choosing the right curriculum is a surprise to people at times. Most assume that I am going to immediately begin selling Lifeway curriculum and talk about the features ...
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The topic of parent ministry in any room of youth pastors can bring up a wide range of responses. Whether you love it or hate it—it’s important. We want to give you 8 easy ways to win with the parents of your students. Parenting is hard. The truth of parenting is that it’s just plain ...
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Watching students make unwise or ungodly decisions is difficult. But if we just expect their behavior to change apart from actually being transformed by God’s Word, the change will not be long-term. Or—on the flip side—do you have students who just appear to be doing the right thing out of ...
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In this episode, Ben and John Paul talk about Black Friday and how it relates to student ministry. Black Friday is all about big items at huge discounts, but what happens when student ministry becomes all about the same thing? Ben Trueblood    Ben serves as the Director of ...
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There’s one way to know if your students really understand what it means to share their faith—do you know what it is? One specific measurable can help you gauge whether or not you’re building a kingdom-expanding culture in your student ministry. In this video, Ben will give you three ways to check ...
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In this episode, Ben and John Paul talk about their favorite leftover Thanksgiving foods and what student ministry games could be played with all of the leftovers. Ben Trueblood    Ben serves as the Director of Student Ministry for Lifeway Christian Resources and has served the ...
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Every day is a gift, although sometimes I wish more had more recipients.  As a youth pastor, you understand the importance of imparting lasting spiritual practices for student ministry. It’s the thing that we actually want most for our students, but one of the hardest works of youth ministry ...
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