Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.1 Peter 5:8 (ESV) Growing up on the farm, I never had any experiences with prowling lions. However, we always had to be watchful of the cattle around coyotes. A coyote would never attack a group of cattle. […]
Christian Leadership , Ministry , Resources , Rural Ministry , Student Ministry
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Honoring YOUR Graduates
Ah, graduation recognition Sunday. That’s the day I honor a bunch of students I have never met. What? Yes, if your church is like most of the ones I’ve served in the past, graduate recognition Sunday brings students out of the woodwork. So often I’m handing a Bible and/or a […]
Christian Leadership , Ministry , Rural Ministry , Student Ministry
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The One-Year Rule
A few years ago, I faced a dilemma. Debbie, one of my graduating seniors, wanted to stick around in the fall and help out with our youth program. She had no plans to attend college and desired to stay involved in a program that meant so much to her teenage […]
Christian Leadership , Rural Ministry , Student Ministry
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Flat tires and flexible schedules
It’s 6:30 in the morning and my cell phone is ringing. As a youth pastor, that’s usually not a good sign. “Hello,” I answer. “You’re never going to believe this, but I’m on the side of the interstate,” my wife replies. “I blew a tire.” I told you it usually […]
Christian Leadership , Ministry , Rural Ministry , Student Ministry
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Lesson from a Racing Homing Pigeon…
The bird on the right came to visit my family last weekend. It is a Racing Homing Pigeon (yes, people do this) that had lost its way. It was tame enough that we could capture it, and then read the identification on its leg band to try and locate its owner. […]
Christian Leadership , Ministry , Rural Ministry , Student Ministry
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Dress for Success: Response
The original article this post addresses is found here… In 13 years of Rural Youth Ministry, there are a few things I’ve learned. One of these important lessons is that the daily schedule of a youth pastor in a small/rural church can be even less predictable than that of the […]
Christian Leadership , Ministry , Rural Ministry , Student Ministry
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Dress for success
I am not your typical youth pastor. For one, I detest coffee. I don’t touch the stuff. I also don’t dress like the “typical” youth minister does. I hate flip flops. I’ve never worn them, and I don’t plan on it. My jeans have no holes. I’ve also never worn […]
Ministry , Rural Ministry , Student Ministry
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Lessons about the Bible, found on the farm: #1 – Animals are Dumb and So are we…
Growing up on a farm can bring some insight to the lessons that Jesus teaches us in the Bible. This lesson comes from John 10: 1-16 (ESV) 1″Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man […]
Ministry , Rural Ministry , Student Ministry
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You need time boundaries in ministry
I had just sat down to a dinner out with my family. We had only been in the community a couple of months as I started my new ministry at the church. Between hosting families for dinners, youth events and ball games, a night out was rare for my family. […]
Ministry , Rural Ministry , Student Ministry
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Ministry at a moment’s notice
It was 4 a.m. when my cell phone rang one morning. Sheepishly, I picked up the phone and answered it. “Hello,” I groggily replied. “Wayne, they’ve taken my dad away. He wasn’t breathing. I’m so scared.” I immediately shot out of bed. I found out he was on his way […]
Rural Ministry , Student Ministry
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#RuralYouthMinistry is out there….
Rural Youth Ministry is out there. It is on the “fringe” of what many are planning for and talking about in youth ministry today. It’s not glamourous. You are more likely to feed livestock than homeless people. The only time you get a lightshow during worship is when Fred plugs […]
Rural Ministry , Student Ministry
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Contextualizing Tragedy
This post may just be cathartic. I’m a writer. When I’m upset, aggravated, frustrated or out of answers, I write. It’s what I do. It’s how I best communicate with the world and with Jesus. So these words may just be a therapeutic discussion among rural youth ministers. If so, […]