Looking for a few good reads in 2016? Here is a list of books I'm planning to read over the next couple of months! Some are new reads, while others are some old favorites that I want to reread. 1. Thriving Youth Ministry in Smaller Churches, Rick Chromey & Stephanie Caro 2. 99 Thoughts for Smaller Church Youth Workers, Stephanie Caro 3. 99 Thoughts for Small Group Leaders, Josh Griffin (Re-Read) 4. The Lost World of Genesis One, John H. Walton 5. The Historical Adam, Lamouruex, Walton, Collins, Barrick, Boyd, Ryken 6. The Next Evangelicalism, Soong-Chan Rah 7. Divided by Faith, Michael O. Emerson & Christian Smith 8. Homosexuality and the Christian, Mark A Yarhouse, PsyD 9. 99 Thoughts for Parents of Teenagers, Walt Mueller 10. Simply Leading, Ken and Bob Shull 11. Getting Fired for the Glory of God, Collected Words of Mike Yaconelli 12. Family-Base Youth Ministry, Mark DeVries (Re-Read) 13. UnChristian, David Kinnaman & Gabe Lyons 14. Girls' ministry 101, Whitney Prosperi (Re-Read) 15. The Deliberate Church, Mark Dever & Paul Alexander 16. Junior High Ministry, Wayne Rice (Re-Read) 17. The 9 Best Practices fro Youth Ministry, Kurt Johnston & Tim Levert (Re-Read) 18. Creating an Intimate Marriage, Jim Burns (Re-Read) 19. Angels, David Jeremiah 20. To Live is Christ To Die is Gain, Matt Chandler If you have read any of them, I'd love to hear your thoughts on them. Comment below! And thanks for reading! - jay Jay Higham is a 24 year veteran of student ministry; having worked with students in the local church and Christian camping settings. Jay is currently the Youth Director at Hickory Church, located in Western PA. Jay has been married to Amy for 19 years. Together, they are raising 5 kids, 4 boys and 1 little girl. Jay is passionate about student ministry, family ministry, and caring for the hearts of husbands. You can learn more about their ministry to the family and husband by visiting their family blog at, www.TheHighamFamily.com and www.TheGoodHusbandBlog.com!
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For many of us, the new year is an opportunity to set a few new goals for our ministries. So as I step into the new year, and the office for the first time this new year, I have three ministry goals for 2016.
Be a place where students can worship God. I think it is so important that student learn how to worship God. Worship is a way of life for the believer. We worship God with every aspect of our lives. When I think about my students, I think about how I want them to discover and know God is such a way that it changes how they think and live. I want to create a place for students where the can discover the awesomeness of God and be awed by the fact that He loves us! Be a place where students can fall in love with Jesus. Halfway through 2015, I started thinking more about what it might look like to chase after Jesus. Then I read Rick Lawrence’s book, Jesus Centered Youth Ministry, and was even more challenged to not just think about a Jesus-Center life for me, but leading students to knowing Jesus more and live a Jesus-Center life of their own. So, not only will I be looking to seek Jesus, but I will be applying some of Rick’s thoughts to how I minister to students and lead our student ministry. Be a place where students can build strong friendships. For years I have always tried to foster an atmosphere where students can feel like they have a place that’s theirs; a place that is safe and comfortable. But after reading Mark DeVries’ book, Sustainable Youth Ministry, not only do I want to create a comfortable place for students, I want to create a place where students are forming deep relationships. This is going to require that I, and the leadership team that I recruit and train, lead by example, building deep relationships with each other. How is this done? By being genuine and authentic. Each one of the three goals are going to require that I make significant changes in how I live and love. It’s going to change my relationship with the Creator, and it will change how I interact with the students I serve. In the end, my hope is to see my students develop deep and intimate relationships with their Creator. - jay
Jay Higham is a 24 year veteran of student ministry; having worked with students in the local church and Christian camping settings. Jay is currently the Youth Director at Hickory Church, located in Western PA. Jay has been married to Amy for 19 years. Together, they are raising 5 kids, 4 boys and 1 little girl. Jay is passionate about student ministry, family ministry, and caring for the hearts of husbands. You can learn more about their ministry to the family and husband by visiting their family blog at, www.TheHighamFamily.com and www.TheGoodHusbandBlog.com!
Now that Amy and I are home from the National Youth Workers Convention, I've begun the task of downloading and debriefing the general session speakers, the YS Explores speakers and the conversations that were shared throughout the weekend. A lot of information comes your way in a short amount of time, and sometimes, it takes a day or two to think through everything. I went into the office this morning to a bunch of warm welcomes. Everybody wanted to know how the trip was. As I was talking, sharing some of the awesome things I experienced, I thought, I should just share the #NYWC15 Recap video. So here it is, the NYWC 2015 Louisville Saturday/Sunday Recap Video. It's a glimpse at some of what makes NYWC one of my favorite places to be. It really was a great weekend. And as is the case, there was much that challenged me. From being stretched by the topics of faith and science to the changing landscape of the churches cultures, to the general session speakers that reminded me love really is the greatest thing we could ever receive and give, there is much to think about. And with that, much to write about in the weeks and months to come If you went to NYWC 2015, whether it was in San Diego or Louisville, what were some of your biggest take aways? Which topics or presentations caused you to think? What presenter or speaker forced you to stretch beyond what's comfortable? I'd love to hear from you. Share your comments and thoughts below in the comment section. And thanks for taking the time to read and share! - jay
It's here... The event that many of us have been waiting for all year long; the National Youth Workers Convention! We rolled in to Louisville, KY, on Tuesday evening to meet up with the YS staff and Volunteer Team for the weekend long, National Youth Workers Convention (NYWC). This weekend the Convention will welcome over 2000 youth workers for three days of training, resourcing, worship, and an opportunity to be refreshed, renewed, and ready to reengage. The NYWC is one of my most favorite events. It's a time that I have come to love for a number of reasons. (Check out this post I wrote a little while back, Why I Love NYWC.) Today was spent getting ready for the Conventions kick off on Thursday. It's now 11:00 p.m. and as I write this, I can honestly say, it's going to be a great weekend! The theme this year is no secret. YS and NYWC have been working to engage youth workers for a couple of months now in pre-convention conversations all centered on the idea of what's BEYOND in youth ministry. The concept is to get youth workers talking about the ever-changing landscape of youth ministry, especially as we consider what's coming down the line in the years to come. The conversations will take us to places that, till now, haven't really been topics that have been tackled. For example, science and faith. How do the two align? Do they align? And how does this conversation effect our students and the future of student ministry. While not trying to persuade anyone or force a doctrine, the hope is to simply start a conversation that leads to a better dialog between the two camps. I know as a youth pastor, questions about Creation, Genesis, Evolution, Adam and Eve, Dinosaurs, and the theories of a young earth vs. an old earth are some of the most asked questions I have had to deal with over the years. So I am very much interested in these conversations, and look forward to what NYWC is trying to do. Aside from the opportunities to think outside the box of student ministry and into the places that go BEYOND what we are currently doing and thinking, many of your favorites are here! From speakers to exhibit hall, the Idea Lab to the book store, seminars to Big Room, Late Nights and of course, the YS Events booth, it's all here! So whether you are on your way, getting ready to make your way here, or you're here all ready, please know, it's going to be a great weekend. We're here, we're ready, and we can't wait to see you! - jay Jay Higham is a 24 year veteran of student ministry; having worked with students in the local church and Christian camping settings. Jay is currently the Youth Director at Hickory Church, located in Western PA. Jay has been married to Amy for 19 years. Together, they are raising 5 kids, 4 boys and 1 little girl. You can learn more about their ministry to the family by visiting their family blog at, www.TheHighamFamily.com! |
AuthorJay Higham is a veteran youth worker of over 30 years; having worked with students in the local church and Christian camping settings. Jay is currently serving as the director of family ministry at a church, located in West Virginia. Jay has been married to Amy for over 25 years. Together, they are raising 5 kids, (4 boys and 1 girl). Jay is an aspiring author, blogger, speaker, vlogger, and social media junkie. He is passionate about student ministry, family ministry, and training youth workers to love and serve their students with passion and excellence. Archives
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