Teens in Dead Churches
Step into the sanctuary of an average American Church some Sunday and tell me what you don’t see. More importantly, tell me who you don’t see. In a lot of churches you don’t see 18 to 25 year olds. That was the case at my first ministry job. I was in college, so a part time youth pastor gig was right up my alley. I was going to set the teens on fire for God, plan the best events, and win the whole city for Jesus. The problem was, I was in a dead church, and when our teens turned 18, they were gone.
Remember that passage in the Bible about how God doesn’t like lukewarm people, and how he will spit you out of his mouth if you are neither hot nor cold? Well, turns out that passage in Revelation isn’t written to individuals; it’s written to a church. To a group of people. Is it possible for God to remove his Holy Spirit blessing from a church? And what happens if he does? Is that how we end up with dead churches?
Let me flip this around. Why is it that all the great spiritual awakenings start with young people – often on college campuses? Is it not because the age of these young people, and even their spiritual age, is so ripe for revival and so pumped with spiritual adrenaline that they cannot help but “act out” spiritually. Is it not because the passion of these young people cannot and will not be contained by the four walls of the church?
As a Christian Youth Speaker, I get to speak at churches that harness the energy of teens and shoot them off as missionaries into their own everyday mission fields of life, school, and home. It’s a thing of beauty. And that’s the beauty of death – that it only leads to new life. We shouldn’t morn the exit of teens as they walk out of dead churches. We should celebrate the new life that is about to spring forth.
As a Christian Speaker for Youth Events I am constantly reminded of the potential of teens having a positive, godly impact on the world. The only thing with more potential than a youth on fire for God is a group of youth on fire for God. It’s scary.
What Teens Want In a Career
As a Christian Youth Speaker it’s always important to understand the connection between faith and action. And for, teens one of the most important acts they will make is deciding a future career. But what role do churches and youth ministries play in influencing this process? The Barna Group, a Christian research firm, has a new study out highlighting how the church can help students in the quest to decide their future careers. Read the full article here.
Inside the Secret Youth Culture
I was talking with a Christian Youth Speaker recently who was describing the glory days of his ministry. He led a Christian Youth Event that was basically quirky field games mixed with a big food fight. Back in the 80s, teens would come in droves to play the games, get soaked in nastiness, and then hear the Christian Youth Speaker. The guy lamented to me that modern youth ministry is really missing out because these types of events are on the decline. Read the rest of this entry
How to Hire a Christian Youth Speaker
As a Michigan Christian Youth Speaker, I know first hand how important it is to hire the right Youth Speaker. It is absolutely essential to the success of your special event and to the momentum of your youth ministry. Christian Youth Speakers specialize at connecting with teens, so hiring the right one is worth the investment. Here are some tips for how to hire a Christian Youth Speaker who fits with your budget, your schedule, and your ministry culture. Read the rest of this entry
Youth Speakers for Normal Kids
Some motivational youth speakers have a public persona. They are the “Matt Foley” types who did every drug and beat every addiction by the age of 14. They shock kids with stories of going cold turkey, pulling themselves up by their boot straps, and buying a nice van down by the river. These extreme Youth Speakers identify with some of the extreme kids in the audience, but what about the average kids? Do these types of youth speaker presentations really connect with the normal kids? Read the rest of this entry
The Best Time of My Life
When you’re a parent, you get these surreal moments when it dawns on you how much your life has changed. After you have your first child, you realize you don’t have time to go the movies anymore. And this is ok. You don’t even really miss it. Then your second child comes along, and eventually you realize that you don’t have time to keep your fingernails trimmed anymore. “Oh well,” you say to yourself, “there are worse things in life.” And then you have your third and fourth child, and you realize you don’t have time to go to the bathroom anymore. This can be problematic. Read the rest of this entry
10 Tips for Planning a Christian Youth Speaker Event!
I remember preaching my guts out week-after-week as a youth pastor, and then we would take the students to a Christian Youth Speaker Event, and they would come to Christ in droves. As a Christian Youth Speaker, I have developed these 10 tips as a free resource on How to plan a Christian Youth Event. Every youth pastor faces the temptation to fly by the seat of their pants and to be a lone ranger. So let’s break that stereotype and get planning!
Tip #1 – Involve: We once planned a Christian Youth Speaker Event called Mudfest, but before we did anything we held an overnight campout for teens and adult leaders who wanted to help dream and plan for the event. The result was total buy-in, great participation, and ultimately, excellent attendance. You will not get students to buy-in to a Christian Youth Event if they are not involved from the get go. As leadership guru Steven Covey says, “There is no commitment without involvement.” So get your students and leaders involved early! Read the rest of this entry
Breaking the Ice of the Ice Breaker
So you’re in an awkward group setting with a bunch of new people, and the leader starts out by saying, “Let’s all go around the room and introduce ourselves, telling something interesting about ourselves.” Or maybe the leader wants you to say something you’re good at, or tell about your hobbies. This is called the “ice breaker.” It’s a little game designed to elicit low-risk self disclosure amongst the group members in an effort to relieve the obvious tension in the room. The paradox is that the ice breaker actually starts out by achieving the opposite goal – it makes most people feel more anxiety and more awkwardness, as they wait for their turn to speak. Read the rest of this entry
5 Misconceptions about Youth Speakers
Misconception 1 – Youth Speakers Have to be Loud and Proud.
Twenty years ago common wisdom said that youth speakers had to be wild and crazy to grab teens’ attention. But in the year 2011, things have changed. Students are overexposed to advertising, media, and celebrities. They’re tired of larger-than-life performances and personalities. They long for real life experiences from the heart. In a postmodern world, authenticity and vulnerability trump celebrity every time. Read the rest of this entry
Welcome to the New Site!
Hey guys, welcome to our new website, THECHRISTIANSPEAKER.COM! We’ve streamlined it to bring you the most relevant content and videos. Take a minute to read my some of the recent blogs and testimonials. The site is optimized for your feedback, so feel free to post your thoughts, comments, and random musings.
Please pray for our ministry, as we’re gearing up to bring the message of hope to a new generation of youth and young adults. Let’s make it happen!
- Thom
