Posts by Young Life Leader
WyldLife Club vs. Young Life Club
WyldLife club can and should look different from its high school counterpart for two primary reasons. First, middle school kids are in different places developmentally so club should be planned to meet the needs of younger kids. Second, these kids might be involved in the ministry for 6-7 years and might get bored if they…
Read MorePromposals: Creative Ways To Invite Her To The Prom
Some of your high school friends are beginning to ask dates to the prom. Pictured here are a few fun promposal ideas you can pass along. One of my high school friends wrote a letter to Roy Williams, coach of the UNC Tarheels basketball team. He asked him to write a letter to the girl…
Read MoreSibling Club
This guest post was shared with us by Sarah Wright, YL leader at Hamilton Southeastern High School in Fishers, IN. The idea behind Sibling club is to get high school kids to bring younger siblings that haven’t been to a YL event before AND to get some of our WyldLife kids to convince their older…
Read MoreClub Game Of The Week: Baby Food Roulette
Depending your club size you could have everyone create circles of 8-10 people and pass a spoon around as music plays. When the music stops, whoever is left holding the spoon must eat a spoonful of baby food. If you eat a bite, you’re still in, if you refuse to eat, you’re out of the…
Read More12 Commitments Of A Young Life Leader
-Adapted from Henrietta Mears I’ll never give up on a kid as ‘unreachable.’ I won’t think my job is done when a kid has made a decision to follow Christ. I’ll help them realize how necessary it is: To pray To read God’s Word daily To read helpful books To regularly unite with God’s people To serve…
Read MoreMusic Tracks For Urban & Multicutural Young Life
Below are a ton of great YouTube tracks for Multicultural/Urban club camping, shared by John Jackson. Let There Be Light – John Jackson Leading Music At Windy Gap -Multi-cultural track with lyrics Let There Be Light – John Jackson Leading YoungLives Lyrics, track, words Keep Our Eyes Open – Track and Instrumental with Words –…
Read MoreSt. Patty’s Day Club: 10 Ideas For A Sham-Rockin’ Club
This year, St. Patrick’s Day falls on a Tuesday, March 17th. 1. Host a “Ms. Shamrock” competition for the ladies similar to the “Mr. Christmas Tree” for the fellas, just tweak things to be “shamrock-y” instead of “Christmas Tree-y.” 2. Let your host for the evening be “Patty O’Furniture” Green tights, red wig, bow tie,…
Read MoreFREE Pancakes At IHOP Tomorrow
If you’re looking for a free & tasty way to hang out with your middle and high school friends this week, here’s the answer. This Tuesday, March 3rd, is FREE PANCAKE DAY at IHOPs nationwide! Last year a few YL leaders in our area took kids for dinner after their practices and games. It’s a…
Read MoreClub Game Of The Week: Real Life Hungry Hippos
Supplies 4 Roller boards 4 baskets (i.e. laundry baskets) Long elastic or rope to tie around waist of kid plastic balls How To Play Similar to the old age game Hungry Hippos, strap 4 kids belly down on the roller board and tie the long elastic or rope around their waist. Their partner will be…
Read MoreThe Top 40: Helpful Posts From Jan/Feb
To help you up catch up on what you may have missed over the last 2 months, below are links to the most popular posts from January and February, organized by categories. Leadership 10 Ways To Welcome New Young Life Leaders I Stay Leadin’ Music Video Worth The Wait Questions For Your Post Club Team Time…
Read More7 Keys For Effective WyldLife Club Talks
What are the keys to giving a great WyldLife club talk? Knowing your audience. Middle school kids hear and process information differently from older adolescents so you need to be prepared. The Gospel is the same, but how you share it will be unique. Shorter attention spans. WyldLife club talks should be 8-10 minutes which…
Read MoreHow To Host A 1000 Wing Eating Contest
A guest post by Jason Talley, volunteer leader in Garland, Texas. As a fun way to launch the new semester we recently put on our 2nd annual ‘1,000 Wing Eating Contest.’ I’ve received several requests as to how we put this event on and what all went into it. So, here we go: PROMOTION Because…
Read MoreClub Game Of The Week: Hashtag Battle
We found this game on DownloadYouthMinistry.com. You can buy pre-made slides from DYM here for only $3 or you can make up your own version of the game. This can either be a mixer or an up front game. If doing a mixer, have folks choose which hashtag they think has been used more times…
Read MoreAlternative Dodgeball For WyldLife or Capernaum
Looking for a fun alternative way to play dodgeball with your WyldLife and Capernaum friends? Instead of using regulation dodgeballs, substitute something smaller like: ping pong balls (you can buy in bulk here) balled up newspapers dinner rolls The simple switch can make it more fun and less painful when you get drilled in the…
Read MoreWorth The Wait?
“The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn.” ~ R.W. Emerson. An anonymous guest post by a college student who is currently wrestling with discouragement as a YL leader. I’ve moved beyond the honeymoon phase of leading where everything is awesome. Don’t get me wrong—I love what I do, but I find that I am…
Read MoreCamp Musician Of The Month: Justin McRoberts
Our featured camp musician of the month is Justin McRoberts. Justin first connected to Young Life in 1988, when he started going to club in junior high. He followed his YL leader into a relationship with Christ and spent 1993-1998 on staff. He met his wife on staff (unheard of, I know), while she was…
Read More10 Ways To Welcome New Leaders
In many Young Life areas around the country it’s the exciting time of year when new leaders are being placed. Our team is fired up because we get new leaders this week! What are some good ways to welcome, ‘initiate,’ and introduce them at club? A few leaders from around the country shared suggestions below…
Read MoreClub Game Of The Week: Sticky Face Wrestling
Here’s a new game we played at club a few weeks ago that went really well! YL leaders Josh Shipman and Ryan Rainey sold the game as Wrestling Recruiter skit characters. They had other leaders in the back getting the contestants ready. Each contestant first put on a painting sock mask. You can get…
Read MoreWyld Life Wednesday: Wyld Questions For Campaigners
Our friend Sean McGever at YLHelp.com just put together this new booklet to help with WyldLife Campaigners. You can download an excerpt and order one here. Here is part of the introduction Sean wrote for Wyld Questions: “I can remember the day when I was assigned to lead my first small group Bible study for my…
Read More3 Questions To Help You Choose Club Songs
By Tim Branch You may have noticed it before… The round table your cabin sat around as you ate a meal at camp. That perfectly hospital-cornered bed you nestled into after the carnival and square dance. The slow song during club that calmed everybody down and got kids thinking…right before you got up there to…
Read MoreClub Game Of The Week: Lip Sync Battle
A brilliant game idea submitted by Dan Vander Woude, YL Area Director in Monroe, LA. Thanks Dan! If you have an idea to share, here’s how you do it. At this point in the school year, we’re all trying to figure out ways to engage seniors that have already mentally graduated. Video clips of Jimmy…
Read MoreWyldLife Wednesday: Electricity Game
Looking for a fun game to use in your WyldLife club? Electricity Game Divide into two teams and have them get in parallel single file lines facing the same direction (away from the main leader). Have them sit down, so effectively they are all sitting away from the leader in two lines, thus looking at…
Read MoreI Stay Leadin’
Enjoy this 3 minute music video made for a YL Leader/Committee Weekend featuring Josh Goodman & Michael McGregor, YL staff in Maryland. I Stay Leadin’
Read MoreQuestions To Ask In Your Post-Club Team Meeting
After club each week it’s important to gather as a team and review the night, we call it ‘post-club team time.’ Our club ends at 9 pm and our team usually meets from 9:15-10:15 pm after everyone has left. Other clubs in our area gather another night of the week because a post-club meeting makes…
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