Kurt Johnston Quote

At the end of the day, youth ministry at it’s best has been about adults who love Jesus spending time with teenagers in hopes that teenagers will in turn share the good news of Jesus with their friends. Call it any trendy word you want: Relational, incarnational, missional; it’s always been the backbone of healthy youth ministry, and it always will be.

–Kurt Johnston, “The Future of Youth Ministry,” Simply Youth Ministry Today (email newsletter)

There are a myriad of ways to approach it, but when it is all said and done the basic pillar of teach youth is to have caring adults spending time with teenagers and modeling a life of worship and service.

About the Author

nailscars

I don't have all of the answers and some weeks it feels like I don't have any of the answers. I often find a good word picture or object lesson and build the lesson off of that instead of the other way around. I don't always pray as much as I should and I never study as much as I should. But I love students ministry. I love watching teenagers as they serve God. I love to see them worship and forget about themselves for a while. I love seeing someone wake up to the love of God if only for a little while. I love to see them out serving their community and sharing the love of Christ with others. I love to be a part of their lives and I love seeing the world through their eyes. I am an average youth minister.

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About Me

I don’t have all of the answers and some weeks it feels like I don’t have any of the answers. I forget students names sometimes and say stupid things that hurt their feelings. I often find a good word picture or object lesson and build the lesson off of that instead of the other way around. I have put the finishing touches on a Wednesday night Bible study on Wednesday more times than I can count. I don’t always pray as much as I should and I never study as much as I should. I try every new youth ministry model that comes from the “experts” and I have had at least 3 mission statements over the past 5 years.

But I love students ministry. I love watching teenagers as they serve God. I love to see them worship and forget about themselves for a while. I love seeing someone wake up to the love of God if only for a little while. I love to see them out serving their community and sharing the love of Christ with others. I love to be a part of their lives and I love seeing the world through their eyes. Like I said, I’m an average youth pastor.

About Nailscars.com

For over 10 years now I have been trying to add creative ideas for use in the local church. In the early days Nailscars.com was just a place to publish some scripts, but it has become a collection of creative ministry resources for youth ministry and worship.

I began writing a blog more to process my own thoughts more than anything else. As I started writing the comments that I got back from people amazed me. As I was honest with my struggles most of them would write and say “Thank you.” “It is just nice to know someone else struggles with these same things,” was a common response.

So this has become a place where I share the struggles and successes of being in youth ministry. I hope that you find something that God can use in your life and ministry.

Youth Ideas