Youth Ministry

“Does once saved always saved apply even though he became an atheist?”

April 10, 2012 By Kurt Willems 77 Comments

I stand at the graveside of a young student. Fifteen years old. Dead in an instant. Skateboarding on a foggy night and a car that never even saw a faint shadow, until it was too late.

I don’t know what I’m supposed to feel. I’ve met this kid only one time and he attended youth group functions only a couple other times. So my brain and my heart try to meet in the awkward unknowing of my emotions.

It’s sunny today, not a cloud in sight. The temperature is rising every minute it seems. Pockets of people merge into a large crowd.

Now the first song begins. Amazing Grace finally comes into focus as the mass of people pick up on the song choice. This, in spite of the poor sound quality of the amplification system. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Church Ministry, Fundamentalism, Salvation, Youth Ministry Tagged With: death, once saved always saved, student, youth ministry 77 Comments

It’s all about the numbers: changing how we measure success in the church

March 21, 2012 By Kurt Willems 14 Comments

Via Wylio: "numbers" | Matthew Harrigan | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/

It’s all about the numbers…

I remember it well. It was the second month at my first full-time youth ministry job. I had inherited a ministry of about 20 students that had gone through turmoil and transition. These students had seen a youth pastor come and go within one year’s time. They then found themselves under the leadership of inexperienced college students. When I took the job I realize that renovating and re-creating a vibrant youth ministry program would take years.

What I didn’t realize was that my superiors didn’t see it that way. From them, there were times when it felt like it was all about the numbers…

I don’t want to come across as harsh or bitter, but I want to tell my story as authentically as possible.

At the age of 22 I took a youth minister job that seemed full of potential. I was entering a situation at a mega church and was given permission to be creative. I had a passion for youth ministry, and a philosophy that holds that relationships with students are more important than “big parties” and fancy programs. I had been reared under the guidance of the experts at events like the National Youth Workers Convention (Youth Specialties), most who were saying that relational youth ministry matters more than programmatic approaches.

My goal, in any ministry environment, is to facilitate relationships so that people grow in authentic community. The program, in as far as it serves to accomplish this end, is helpful but not the point. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Church Ministry, Church Planting, Youth Ministry Tagged With: church growth, numbers, willow creek 14 Comments