Posts by Young Life Leader
Young Life College: Club Talks
This week we’re sharing ‘best practices’ for YL College Club. Today the focus is on club talks. Find more resources for Young Life College here. Speakers Different areas use different approaches when it comes to speakers. Some areas only use volunteer leaders on the YL College team while other areas invite outside speakers. Either way,…
Read MoreYoung Life College: Club Music
This week we’re sharing ‘best practices’ for YL College Club. Today the focus is on music. Having music can make or break the mood you want to set for club and is a great way to engage your audience. What is the best way to engage a college student? We suggest three potential directions. Coffee…
Read MoreYoung Life College: Mixers
Thanks to a host of Young Life College folks who have shared best practices for doing Young Life with college students. We’re excited to share with you some club specific ones over this week and more ‘best practices’ on Thursdays in the fall. We’ve also started a ‘YL College’ page, so feel free to submit ideas! When…
Read MoreYoung Life College: Club Games
Thanks to Stephanie Farmer and a host of other Young Life College folks, we’re excited to share with you some ‘YL College best practices’ over this next week and on Thursdays in the fall. Club Games All of this week we’ll focus on different aspects of doing club for college students. Let’s get the ball rolling…
Read MoreYoung Life Gives Back
Give Back Bracelets – Only at the Young Life Store in July! Purchase these unique ‘Give Back bracelets’ designed exclusively for Young Life by Doxahology. $10 from each purchase gives back to the newly formed Expeditions Every Kid Scholarship Fund, helping under-resourced kids become world changers. Get the Conversation Started! Each Give Back bracelet is stamped…
Read MoreHappy Birthday Jim Rayburn
Today is the birthday of the founder of Young Life, Jim Rayburn Jr. Jim was born in Iowa on July 21, 1909 and lived a short 61 years. The lives he touched and still continues to impact are countless. One of the most life changing books I’ve ever read is Jim Rayburn’s biography, “Dance, Children, Dance.”…
Read MoreTomorow Is Cow Appreciation Day At Chick-fil-A
Grab your high school friends and head to Chick-fil-A this Tuesday, July 14th, for Cow Appreciation Day. If you partially dress like a cow, you get a free entree. If you dress in full cow gear, you get a free combo. Some ideas for dressing up from CowAppreciationDay.com Start With What You Already Have Cow-printed accessories stashed in…
Read MoreFree Slurpees Tomorrow At 7-Eleven Gas Stations
Not only can you get free Chick-fil-A next Tuesday, July 14th, but you can also get FREE SLURPEES tomorrow, on Saturday, July 11th! Every July 11th (7/11) 7-Eleven gas stations offer free Slurpees nationwide on the unofficial birthday of the Slurpee. They used to be tiny, but this year they’re giving away 12-ounce Slurpees. 11am-7pm. It’s…
Read MoreCamp Musician Of The Month: PW Gopal
Our featured Camp Musician for July is PW Gopal. (View other YL camp musicians here.) If there is one thing that can be said about PW, it’s that his life is defined by his passions. The ancient fathers of the faith called the deepest of the deep, the soul’s soul- “the very.” It is from…
Read MoreResources For Recruiting, Training and Sustaining New Leaders
If you’re looking for helpful resources on recruiting, training, equipping, and sustaining leaders, check out The Western Great Lakes Young Life Region website. Sample leader development plans from: Birmingham, Michgan St. Louis Kane County, Illinois Southwest Twin Cities Cheyenne, Wyoming Visit the Great Lakes Region staff resources page for other leader development plans and additional…
Read MoreHow ‘One Relationship’ Changed A Country
A guest post by Suzanne Williams and Moges Beressa Young Life has often been known to say “Every Kid, Everywhere for Eternity.” Though our slogan may have changed, our vision for every kid hasn’t at all. When staff member, Moges Beressa asked the question, “What kinds of kids are you not reaching in Ethiopia?” his…
Read More#YLChacoTan Contest Winner: Casey Richardson
During the month of June we’ve been holding a #YLChacoTan contest to win a brand new pair of chacos. Congratulations to the winner: Casey Richardson! (@caseface356) We had tons of entries and used a random number generator to select the winner. Since she entered almost daily, Casey had a pretty good shot to win and her number…
Read MoreWin A New Pair of Chacos: Share Your #YLChacoTan
WE’RE GIVING AWAY A BRAND NEW PAIR OF CHACOS! The winner will get to pick any style sandals on Chacos.com. How To Enter Throughout the entire month of June share a picture of your Chaco-tanned feet. Make sure the YL logo is visible somewhere in the picture. It can be on a water bottle, shirt, your…
Read MoreBus Trivia Questions
If you have a LONG bus ride to summer camp, here are tons of ideas to help fill the time. Another fun bus activity is to simply play BUS TRIVIA. Below are 10 things I usually do when we play on trips: Give prizes! They go a long way to giving kids buy-in when playing…
Read MoreCamp Musician Of The Month: Annie Lawrence
Our featured YL Camp Musician this month is Annie Lawrence. Annie is no stranger to the ministry of Young Life. She first visited Windy Gap at only five months old! Annie was involved with Club & Campaigners and a senior leader for her high school. She went to Frontier Ranch as a camper in 2008,…
Read MoreWyldLife Wednesday: Leading Cabin Time For Middle School
Club is over and you’re headed back to the cabin with a group of middle school friends. What does cabin time look like at WyldLife camp and how can you make the most effective use of that time? After each leader meeting at camp, review the cabin time questions provided by the speaker. Make sure…
Read More50 Questions
A friend recently asked me to send him some questions to help him go deeper with a group of guys he meets with. Below is the list I sent him. I thought it might be helpful to use with your Campaigners group, College Bible Study or maybe to just toss around on a Saturday night…
Read MoreBorder Fellows
Are you a recent college graduate who is wanting to start well? If so, we invite you to become a Border Fellow. The Border Fellows Program is an intensely practical ten month spiritual and vocational leadership program on the U.S.-Mexico border, preparing you to live a seamless life of faith. The program challenges recent college…
Read MoreA Letter To YL Leaders Who Helped Your Friends Raise $ For Camp
Dear YL leader who helped me fundraise for camp, Thank you! More than you’ll ever know. I know you have better things to do than to sell popcorn door to door with me. I know you’re tired of washing cars and waking up at 4am for yard sales. I know you’re probably tired of my…
Read MoreMy Favorite Summer Camp Idea: Random Bus Passenger
A few years ago we found out we were getting a new leader in our area. He was moving to our town just a few weeks before camp. Instead of letting him jump in right away, we came up with a fun way to introduce him to the kids. Another leader in our area had…
Read MoreHow Much Water Should You Drink While Reading ‘My First 30 Quiet Times?’
As many of us head to camp we look forward to long days in the sun. Last summer I constantly reminded our Crooked Creek campers to drink enough water. I wish I would’ve taken my own advice and that might have prevented a miserable spell of altitude sickness. Thankfully our friends Davis & Jac Saltzgiver…
Read MoreTable Topics For Meals At Camp
During a week at Young Life camp we get the privilege of eating close to 20 meals with our middle and high school friends. For most of those meals we’re seated at a round table for the very purpose of promoting ‘family style’ conversation. We live in a busy world. Most families are spending less…
Read MoreWhat Should YL Leaders Pack For Summer Camp?
Bible Psalm 119:105- “The Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Mini Notepad/Pen Take notes in the leader mtgs, write down the schedule, cabin time questions, etc… it’s nice to have a lil notepad that fits in your pocket. It’s also handy during club if you want to write…
Read MoreThe Complete Guide To A YL’d Bus Ride
Many of us have LONG bus rides to camp this summer. Instead of just enduring the ride, let’s make it a highlight of the trip. Below are a ton of ideas stolen from many different YL leaders over the years. Bus Program Have you ever done program…ON A BUS?! This link has a full script,…
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