Posts by Young Life Leader
Amazing New Club Song: “Parked Out By The Lake”
Have you heard the song Parked out By the Lake? It sure is something special. While it’s not brand new, it’s new to us. Thank you to Austin Drake, YL Staff in Charlotte, NC, for sharing this gem! What started out as a joke between friends, and shared under the alias “Dean Summerwind,” ended up…
Read MoreMusician Spotlight: We The Kingdom
Our featured Camp Musician this month is We The Kingdom! From the Band “Gosh, we can’t possibly overemphasize what a role Young Life has played in our lives and music. You could say that Young Life was the frame through which our picture of Jesus was painted. The ministry has been a spiritual foundation for all…
Read MoreTeam Dynamics: Dating Among Teammates
This semester on Tuesdays we’re taking a deep dive into Young Life team dynamics. If you missed the first couple posts, check them out here: Intro To Team Dynamics How To Handle Team Conflict More Than Ministry Partners Setting Clear Expectations This third post in the series was written by Brad Bucklad. — Full disclosure – I met…
Read MoreThe First Ever Young Life Club: The Burr Nichols Story
Whenever classes and clubs start back each fall I love to read back over the story of the first Young Life club. It’s a beautiful reminder of why we do what we do. It’s a true story from 75+ years ago. It’s a story of a ministry founded on prayer. It’s a story about contact…
Read MoreTeam Dynamics: Setting Clear Expectations
This semester on Tuesdays we’re taking a deep dive into Young Life team dynamics. If you missed the first couple posts, check them out here: Intro to Team Dynamics How to Handle Team Conflict More Than Ministry Partners This third post in the series was written by Micah Renck. — “Nothing I have to offer…
Read MoreInstead of a Parent Meeting…
I’m guessing you have the same problem we do. Parents are busy and it’s difficult to get them to show up to a “parent meeting” at the beginning of a new school year. We have important information we want to communicate with them about Young Life. We want to explain club and camp and introduce…
Read MoreFirst Club Talk Of The Semester: Jesus Is God
Typically for the first club talk of the year, we give a basic introduction to who God is. We always say something like: “We can tell what God is like by looking at Jesus, and that’s what we’re going to do this year at Young Life.” Then we invite our high school friends to ‘come…
Read MoreMaking Club a Competition
Teenagers love competition. Competition already drives many of our mixers and games. What if we took it up a notch and created a semester-long contest? It could help build momentum in the spring. Here’s how it could work: Create two teams: Use your school colors! Team 1: Last names A-J Team 2: Last names K-Z…
Read MoreWhat Being A Young Life Leader Ought To Do For You
It ought to be so unreachably big that you can only see it through the eyes of Christ by faith. It ought to be harder than you can handle on your own so as to make you more dependent on God. It ought to give you enough disappointments to make you humble and break your…
Read MoreA New Book From Ty Saltzgiver: Lifting Up Jesus As We Proclaim His Gospel
If you are speaking at a Young Life club anytime soon, I highly recommend dropping the $1.99 to grab the newest book from a friend to many of us and YL Sr. VP, Ty Saltzgiver. ‘Lifting Up Jesus In Every Talk As We Proclaim His Gospel’ was written specifically for Young Life leaders. In it,…
Read MoreTeam Dynamics: More Than Ministry Partners
This semester on Tuesdays we’re taking a deep dive into Young Life team dynamics. If you missed the first couple posts, check them out here: Intro To Team Dynamics How To Handle Team Conflict This third post in the series was written by Nick Allen. — The Gospel accounts give us a helpful glimpse into how Jesus dealt with…
Read MoreThe Dreaded Enemy of a Good Young Life Club
Dead spots. They are just one of the many enemies of Young Life club. Obviously, there are spiritually deeper answers to the question as to what is actually the enemy of club…but dead spots are certainly an enemy to the flow of a fun club. I refer to dead spots as “Mrs. Margard Moments.” Imagine…
Read MoreTeam Dynamics Series: How to Handle Team Conflict by Courtney Lancaster
Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE This semester, on Tuesdays, we’re taking a deep dive into Young Life team dynamics. If you missed the first post, check it out here. This second post in the series was written by Courtney Lancaster. — It’s inevitable. There will be conflict on your Young Life team.…
Read More8 Ways To Give Students Ownership at Club
One night after club our newest YL leader asked me how it compared with a typical club. “Was it better than normal, average, or not quite as good?” I turned to one of my high school friends and asked, “What do you think, Chris?” His response surprised me. “I think it was my favorite club…
Read MoreTeam Dynamics
The person who loves their dream of community will destroy community, but the person who loves those around them will create community. —Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Christian Community Our hope as we make disciples is to bring people face-to-face with Jesus. But it’s also to invite people into a missional community—a…
Read MoreSpiritual Disciplines of a Leader: Celebration and a Heaven-Facing Posture
Today’s post is part 11 of our Spiritual Disciplines of a Leader series. Previous posts in the series include Spiritual Disciplines of a Leader, Sabbath, Solitude, Prayer, Community, Simplicity, Worship, Study, and Daily Examen. “Celebration” A word we use when we want to recognize a specific joyous occasion. The most overplayed song by Kool and the Gang, used at weddings, graduations, and bat mitzvahs.…
Read MoreThis Is Me: 2019 Carolina Point Assigned Team, Summer Staff and Work Crew
Check out this amazing video of the 2019 Carolina Point Assigned Team, Summer Staff and Work Crew!
Read MoreSpiritual Disciplines of a Leader: Daily Examen
My wife, Kellie, and I were sitting across the dining table from each other last night, each working on our laptops and trying to finish up end-of-the-day stuff. “Hey, we can come back to this later, honey. Why don’t we do a little Examen?” As we settled into our comfy chairs, the reflections just started…
Read MoreStick Figure It Out
If you’re looking for a fun game to play with your middle, high school, or college friends- Stick Figure it Out might just be what you’re looking for! Spin the spinner, pick your card, and start drawing the person you’ve selected. You start with the pre drawn stick figure and add whatever you like to…
Read MoreSpiritual Discipline of a Leader: Studying Scripture
Today’s post is part 9 of our Spiritual Disciplines of a Leader series. Previous posts in the series include Spiritual Disciplines of a Leader, Eliminating Hurry, Sabbath, Solitude, Prayer, Community, Simplicity, and Worship. “As it is written…“ We find Jesus and Paul use this language A LOT (i.e. Mark 7:6, Romans 8:36, 1 Corinthians 1:31). Here’s what’s interesting though… Did you know…
Read MoreSpiritual Disciplines of a Leader: Worship
Normal 0 false false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE Today’s post is part 8 of our Spiritual Disciplines of a Leader series. Previous posts in the series include Spiritual Disciplines of a Leader, Eliminating Hurry, Sabbath, Solitude, Prayer, Community, and Simplicity. Last December, my wife and I hosted a Young Life Carol Night fundraiser to benefit her work in the Capernaum ministry. We provided…
Read MoreSpiritual Disciplines of a Leader: Simplicity
Today’s post is part 7 of our Spiritual Disciplines of a Leader series. Previous posts in the series include Spiritual Disciplines of a Leader, Eliminating Hurry, Sabbath, Solitude, Prayer, and Community. As grapes approach maturity, the amount of time they remain on the vine is crucial to their sweetness. The more time they spend connected to their life source, the…
Read MoreWyldLife Wednesday: Maximizing Free Time at Camp
There are two main types of campers at WyldLife camp. The first group includes the golden retriever (or perhaps rabid wolf) type kids who take every opportunity to run wild and free and are just dying to be let off the leash at camp. We’ll call these independent campers. The second group is made up…
Read MoreSpiritual Disciplines of a Leader: Community
Today’s post is part 6 of our Spiritual Disciplines of a Leader series. Previous posts in the series include Spiritual Disciplines of a Leader, Eliminating Hurry, Sabbath, Solitude, and Prayer. COMMUNITY I have found that I can’t be a very good disciple on my own. The life Jesus is leading me to live is one that needs to be lived…
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