When I checked my inbox this morning, the subject line for the top email was “Car Wreck.” It was from my friend Andy who is a YL leader at the school where I led last year. My stomach tightened. I clicked on the message and began reading about a wreck two of my high school friends were in…
If you have not yet held your final club for the year, the end is in sight.It’s an oldYoung Life tradition to end each year with “Senior Club,” giving the graduating seniors a chance to lead club and share about their experiences.Here’s a few tips I’velearned along the way. Crowd This could be your highest attendance club of…
Here are some opening dates for movies your high school friends are going to see this summer. Plan ahead and schedule what movies you want to take them to see on opening night. I’m not personally recommending any of these movies, just letting you know when they come out. Be sure to check ahead on www.kids-in-mind.com to see…
SITUATION 1A few of us YL leaders have had that gut-wrenching feeling of sitting in a movie theater with our high school friends when THAT image comes across the big screen. Why didn’t I check and see why this movie is rated R? I thought it was probably just a few swear words and some violence? WHOOPS! It’s…
Sincere apologies on the lack of blogging over the past few weeks. As I’m sure many of you are experiencing, the “end of year” activities have made life a little busier of late. I’ll finally be getting back in the rhythm this weekend and posting some hopefully helpful stuff on: 1. Summer Movies 2. Senior Club 3. Fundraising…
It’s spring time and your high school friends would probably love a change in scenery. You might have already considered doing cluboutsidenext week, but don’t forget to think through a few details.LocationIf you are changing the typical club location, make sure kids know where to go. In addition to handing out flyers with maps at the school, its…
If you are anything like me, at this point in the school year you’re just tired of prepping for club and trying to hang on to finish the semester strong. Maybe your team made a “matrix” at the beginning of the semester with some games and skits for these last clubs, but at this point, they just don’t…
It’s a good practice to switch up the “normal” club periodically. In the Spring, a fun, easy replacement is the traditional Young Life “Mall Hunt.” This “Find Your Leader” game works well if you consider a few important details: 1. Location, Location, Location Find a mall kids like. I prefer outdoor malls. Kids are less likely to get…
1. Over the next few weeks you may notice a few small changes to the blog. I am going to be playing with the layout, etc. to hopefully make it easier to use. 2. I hope you find this as a valuable resource. The goal here is to share ideas and resources to lighten the load of being…
Are you looking for some fun and new music to play while kids are hanging out before or after club? DJ Earworm hooks it up for us with a Mashup of all the hits from 2010. You can download it for FREE from a link on his page. Its not great to play during games or as an…
Rebecca Black’s new viral YouTube hit “Friday” is already up to 86 MILLION views. Kids love it, but publicly say they hate it. I asked one of my YL guys to help me rewrite the lyrics to use at club and below is what we came up with. Feel free to edit the lyrics to make them fit…
We have tried some new “themed clubs” this semester, one of them being “Fake Injury Club.” I was honestly a lil disappointed that more kids did not dress up, but I think it was a good reminder to me if we want theme clubs to be successful, we have to prep kids with easy and doable ideas. With…
Before you know it, the seniors in your YL club will be graduating. How do we honor and celebrate them? A few male leaders in our area have a tradition of holding a “Blessing Service” for the graduating senior guys. They send the letter below to the dad’s of the senior YL guys and hold a ceremony (described…
“Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people; religious, non-religious, meticulous moralists, loose living immoralists, the defeated, the demoralized…however, I didn’t take on their way of life, I kept my bearings in Christ… but I…
We’ve got family camp coming up in a few weeks. Does anyone have any good suggestions for songs to do in club? So far here are some ideas we already have: Party in the USA Baby by Bieber Twist and Shout Sweet Caroline Smile by Uncle Kracker Go Bananas song Blindman Sing Alleluia Prince of Peace Light the…
Just a quick reminder that this weekend (March 13) is Daylight Savings Time. We SPRING forward and get an extra hour of sunlight each day. If it has been dark when kids arrive to your club over the past few months, this upcoming week’s club will have a different feel. There’s something life-giving about the sunshine being out…
Yesterday I was jumping in my ’95 Camry in a hurry when my neighbor, Tommy, yelled my name. I had my handy iPhone earbuds already in, ready to multi-task with a phone call while driving, but hadn’t dialed yet. I considered pretending my “music” was too loud and ignoring my neighbor with whom I hadn’t made eye contact,…
This upcoming Friday, March 4th, is nation-wide free Fry day at Chick-fil-a between 2-4pm to promote the new ketchup dippers. Great and easy contact work idea with kids for after school or before a friday afternoon LAX game.
Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent, for the sake of your…
