Posts by Alexis Howard
The Lost Art of Showing Up
How can we organically build relationships with our college friends? We show up where college students are We invite them to something We hang out one-on-one We listen to their stories We do things together We go on adventures Somewhere along the way in Young Life, it seems that we have subtly blown past “we…
Read MoreHearts, Tables, Community, and Heaven: An Invitation to those on the Margins
One of the really fun and creative roles I have with Young Life Capernaum is getting to teach about the theology of disability. In my training role, I get to nudge the mission of Young Life along to become inclusive for our friends with disabilities and to figure out how to live out the kingdom…
Read MoreIs Camp Still Worth It?
Getting kids excited for camp seems harder this year. I mean, it’s a challenge every year, but normally we have momentum from kids that went last year helping us convince their friends that it’s worth it, but not this year. This year, our recruiting efforts face challenges that are unprecedented. But while they may be…
Read MoreWho Do You Say That I Am: The 2021 Young Life Summer Devotional
Once again this summer, all work crew, summer staff, assigned teams, and camp staff will engage with a missionwide devotional. This year’s study, “Who Do You Say That I Am?”, goes through the book of Mark. Our goals with this Kingdom discipleship experience are to create: 1. An immediate experience in each assignment context as everyone working…
Read More6 ways to Thrive as a Young Life College Small Group Leader
Love Jesus. Abide in Him. Leave the Heavy Lifting to God Remember that God is the one who teaches and interprets his Word in the hearts of others. “After all, who is Apollos? Who is Paul? We are only God’s servants through whom you believed the Good News. Each of us did the work the…
Read MoreThe Do’s and Don’ts of Middle School Contact Work
Like so many things in WyldLife, contact work is full of practices and theories that exist on a spectrum. A good strategy (i.e. remembering what it was like to be in middle school), if taken too far, can lead to dangerous trends (acting like a middle schooler). Laying out these scenarios as “Do… but don’t…” statements…
Read MoreYoung Life College Leadership: Vision and Values
In the establishment of a leadership team, it is imperative that there is cohesiveness within the framework of your ministry. The following principles can help your team get on the same page. They can be summed up in the acronym: V.I.S.O.R. V.I.S.O.R. VISION What are we always moving toward? That every student will have a…
Read MoreCreative Contact Work Ideas with Middle Schoolers
The third level of contact work – doing something with kids – is often done with groups of middle school kids, rather than one-on-one. Whatever you do, communicate with parents first to ask permission and share the details. Brainstorm for ideas with your leadership team. How can you spend time with middle school kids in…
Read More10 Tips for Self-Comparison in a Digital Age
The current explosion of digital technology not only is changing the way we live and communicate, but is rapidly and profoundly altering our brains..[turning us into shallower thinkers]. Gary Small, UCLA professor of psychiatry [59] YouTube is the second-most-visited site after Google. Two BILLION users login to YouTube every month. YouTubers upload 500 hours of…
Read More7 Resources to Help You Better Understand Middle Schoolers
If you’re a WyldLife leader, one of the best ways to understand middle school kids is to observe them in their natural habitats. You’ll see their short attention spans and watch them get their feelings hurt. You’ll see them change friend groups several times in one week, and you’ll have many one-word text conversations with…
Read MoreCatholic Leadership Helps Reflect Your Community
In Young Life, we strive to build leadership teams that reflect the communities we serve. We’ve learned that if our teams lack diversity in ethnicity, gender, and ability, we have a harder time earning the right to be heard. And our president, Newt Crenshaw, often reminds us that if we don’t intentionally include those who…
Read MoreA Capernaum Campaigners Series on Relationships
Our friends in Capernaum long for authentic relationships like every other teenager. They want to be known. They want to belong. They want to engage with their peers. Yet, often relationships can be hard and confusing for our friends. Danielle Dodge and her team in San Antonio, TX put together an incredible resource for Capernaum…
Read MoreGoing the Distance for Club Beyond
At the end of 2020, long-time friend of Young Life, Chris Goffrier, hit the ground running. The race was in the Grand Bara desert in Djibouti, and the reason he ran was to support Club Beyond, the military ministry staffed by Young Life. How Chris arrived in Djibouti involves a long family legacy of serving…
Read More“Deeper in Christ” with Bruce Weaver
In this week’s “Deeper in Christ” video we hear from Bruce Weaver. In the past year, Bruce moved from Arizona to the Bay Area and also got married! He is currently helping to re-start Young Life in Pleasanton, CA during a pandemic. Bruce was deeply impacted by something he heard in Winter Training five years…
Read MoreA Capernaum Bible Study: The Little Girl and the Frail Lady
As we continue to go deeper with our friends in Capernaum, we’re seeing such incredible creativity in staff and leaders around the mission! We’re in awe of what you all are doing to consider the greatest and most effective gospel proclamation both verbally and experientially with your friends. Download a PDF of this great bible study that…
Read MoreAn Introduction to Early Adolescence
Early adolescence is one of the most significant periods of development in a person’s life, second only to the transition from infant to toddler. Middle schoolers experience a flood of emotional, intellectual, and physical changes. When WyldLife leaders understand the development of early adolescents, we can more compassionately and effectively walk through life with them.…
Read MoreCapernaum Campaigners: Jesus Calms the Storm
A few Capernaum leaders recently gathered to map out a 3-week series of Campaigner lessons from the passage of “Jesus calming the storm.” Below is what they came up with! What an awesome resource, complete with activities, questions, and scripture! Jesus Calming the Storm This account is found in three of the gospels: Matthew 8:23-27…
Read MoreConversation Starters
As we head into spring, following a difficult 2020, consider getting outside and taking a walk with your adolescent friends, and engaging in meaningful conversation. Below are some questions you can use to talk about the past year and the one ahead. Questions from the Past Year What has been the hardest part of 2020,…
Read MoreMiddle School: A Feast of Firsts
Middle School is a feast of firsts: first time to switch classes first time to attend a school dance (or skip a school dance) first time to pick elective classes first time to date (or to notice that absolutely everyone else is dating) first time to be part of school sports first time to go through tryouts for…
Read MoreYoung Life College: Skeptics Dinner
Looking for a new way to engage college students? Have you considered hosting a recurring skeptics dinner? If you’re unfamiliar with the Young Life College: Skeptics/Seekers/Saints language, refer to The Big Guide for Relational Work in YLC. The essential intent of a skeptics dinner is to relationally engage college students who would consider themselves skeptics…
Read MoreThree Levels of Contact Work with Middle School Kids
Three Levels of Contact Work with Middle School Kids There is no substitute for contact work in the relational ministry of WyldLife. Contact work allows leaders to build relationships and earn the right to talk with kids about Jesus. What do the three levels of contact work look like with middle school kids? LEVEL ONE:…
Read More“Deeper in Christ” with Momo Brogden
In this week’s “Deeper in Christ” video we hear from Marissa (Momo) Brogden who is on staff in Livermore, CA. Their area has been in lockdown since last March and they are celebrating the 1-year mark of virtual club! This semester, her Young Life team is giving talks on things they love about Jesus and…
Read MoreYoung Life Military is Hiring for 10 open positions!
Did you know that Young Life has been walking alongside and sharing Jesus with military teens around the globe since 1959? Over 500,000 U.S. teenagers have a parent serving in the U.S. Military. Young Life, known to these teens and families as “Club Beyond,” deploys staff around the world to reach these kids, who are…
Read More“Deeper in Christ” with Bailey Griffin
In this week’s Deeper in Christ video we get to hear from Bailey Griffin who recently moved to North Carolina with her husband, Preston, to be on Young Life Staff in Fayettville. During this season of life, Bailey has reflected on John 6, which is from the story of Jesus feeding the five thousand. Verse…
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