In my book, Rural Youth Ministry, I spend some time talking about the future of youth ministry in rural communities. Almost three years out from the publishing of the book, I have seen some things transpire that show where I was right, where I was wrong, and what I didn’t […]
Poll: The Biggest Issue in Rural Youth Ministry is…
We are constantly working on new ideas and resources here at MinistryPlace.Net. One of the upcoming ideas involves a lot of feedback from our readers. We are taking a poll looking into the biggest issues of the Rural youth worker. Here are the rules. Vote for the issue that is […]
The Importance of Families in Youth Ministry…
The longer I serve in Rural Ministry, there are a few things that I have seen that catch my attention and scream their importance. One of these important factors is the role of Family in youth ministry. If you asked 100 youth pastors if they believed that it was vital […]
The Future of Rural Students…
A friend of mine who is a local HS Spanish teacher recently put together a video application for a local teachers award in the Terra Haute, Indiana called the Golden Apple. He was from one of the smaller districts in the area, but was still one of the five […]
4 Lessons from the Bible Found on the Farm…
We live in a world where context is vital to our understanding. One of the reasons our society struggles with parts of the Bible is that it is set in an agrarian context. Jesus and Paul used that backdrop and crafted wonderful illustrations. Let’s look at a few and “recast […]
A Hand for the Mission Field….
The church where I serve has been a long time supporter of a ministry called Seedline International. They are a ministry that prints, produces, and ships Bibles all over the world in many languages. Our church is near enough to one of the production centers that we bring a team […]
Vacation…
Wayne Yeager did an awesome job with a series of vacation-related posts last year, so I will spare you the repeat. I will however, encourage you to read some of his posts this summer. Great stuff. The longer I am in ministry, the more value I see to taking […]
#RuralMinistry Resources You Can Use: Multiply…
In a Rural Ministry, budgets can be tight. You may think you do not have the resources to use small group curriculum in your ministry. Here is a resource that is available for free to your church or ministry from David Platt and Francis Chan called Multiply. Multiply is a […]
Gods Not Dead Movie….
Here are a few of my thoughts, after seeing the movie a second time. I am not going to include any spoilers for the plot, in case you have not yet seen the movie. Willie and Korrie Roberston’s testimony… Awesome. Pointing out the girl in the hijab who puts it […]
Rural Stories from MyHope With Billy Graham…
This fall, I had the opportunity to do several youth worker trainings as part of the MyHope America with Billy Graham Campaign, and I got to connect with a lot of great people that are passionate about sharing Christ with their friends and neighbors. One of the things that resonated […]
Adopt-A-Neighborhood Update (1/14)…
This post is an update to the original here… and here.. and here… and here… (you get the idea.) When I shared this idea with Greg Stier, after Lead the Cause University, I had no idea of the traction the idea would get, and what Greg had in mind to […]
Youth Ministry on the Cheap: Super Bowl Party
I love playoff football. I’ll admit it. I’m a full-on NFL junkie. Here’s the deal: I’m not alone. This past weekend, network television set all time ratings records for the Wildcard Weekend of playoffs. The FOX game of San Francisco and Green Bay scored the highest ratings of any Wildcard […]