* THIS POST CONTAINS BOTH AFFILIATE AND PRODUCT LINKS,
ALONG WITH LINKS TO THIRD PARTY WEBSITES MENTIONED IN THE POST.*
It was August 1999, my 9-months pregnant wife, my 15-month son, and I moved from north central Pennsylvania to the South Hills of Pittsburgh. Yes, 9-months pregnant wife and a 15 month old. We pulled up to our apartment that quickly, and affectionately, became known as the Shack. There was already a gathering of parents, students, and church members standing by to help us move into our new home.
It was chaos, but in a matter of a few hours 90% of our belongs were moved from the truck into the apartment or the lawn beside it. More church members arrived bringing food and essentials that would help us get settled. We were overwhelmed, grateful for this incredible welcome. But while that moment continues to be special, it was another welcome that has been a game changer for me, my family, and my ministry.
The truth is, that day changed my life and my ministry.
I didn’t know exactly what it was. On the surface, it was a bunch of guys getting together for lunch, talking about our ministries, swapping funny stories, bragging about our mistakes, and praying for each other. Each year we worked together to host at least one large community-wide student event and the annual Baccalaureate service for our high school graduates. It was about ministry, there was fellowship, and I couldn’t wait for our time together each month. Over the years, I have never, NOT, participated in or organized and lead what we now call Youth Ministry Networks. We didn’t coin the phrase, nor the idea. In fact, I would say, it was something we did not really knowing how important that time together was. And we weren’t the only ones. Groups like the ones I was participating in were happen all over the place. It was because of these networks that I grew as a husband, father, pastor, and friend. These small group gatherings of youth workers became a band of brothers and sisters that grew into a vital part of my longevity in student ministry.
Needless to say, it was a much needed time away to connect with brothers and sister that get it. They get the calling. They get the passion. They get the desire. Because the feel it too. They see and understand the need, and recognize that if we don’t step in with hope, the outcome will be devastating.
There are thousands of youth workers across the country (and around the world) that need to know that they are not alone. They need to hear that they are loved, that someone cares about them. They need to know that someone is praying for them; that someone is willing to ask hard questions about their life and ministry, someone willing to speak Biblical truth in a loving and God-honoring way. They need someone who has walked the road they’re walking, who understands the highs and low, knows the pain and struggle. Someone who get’s their heart and know’s their passion. They need to know that someone is willing to sit across the table, answer the phone or text, and show up when needed. Someone who can stand in the mire of life and ministry with them, then celebrate the God moments and faith-wins.
I said it before, that invitation in August 1999, changed my life. It set me on a trajectory of healthy, long-term ministry. It gave me a place that welcomed me, cared about me, challenged me, held me accountable, and demonstrated what it looks like to be a Godly husband, father, pastor, and friend.
So here we are. Over 30 years later, almost 25 of those years in full-time ministry. And it’s not over yet. In fact, this might just be the start of a new and exciting season in student ministry. (Stay tuned\ Here’s what I want to leave you with. If you are in student ministry, whether paid or volunteer, full-time, part-time, whatever-time, and you are not connected to a local student ministry network, can I encourage you to please, prayerfully consider joining one. Don’t know where or how to find a network? No worries, I got you. My friends at the National Network of Youth Ministry (NNYM) can help you. I will provide links below that we help you connect with NNYM and their ever growing database of networks across the country. They can help you find a network near you, and put you in touch with someone who can help you get connected.
If you are in the state of West Virginia, please reach out to me through the blog or my social media. I am in West Virginia, and I would love to meet with you, hear your story, and help you connect with youth pastors and youth workers in our state.
If you are in Western Pennsylvania or Eastern Ohio, I can help connect you with youth workers who would love to know you. Lastly, if you are a youth worker, and you need someone to talk to, I would love to help connect you with my friends at PACT Ministry. PACT Ministry is a team of seasoned youth workers, trained to encourage youth pastors in their personal walk with God, family life, and ministry through life-on-life discipleship, coaching, mentoring, and strategic ministry training. Don’t wait till it’s too late. You have been given a tremendous calling to minister to students, but your weren’t called to do it alone. We are here and we want to walk with you.
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* THIS POST CONTAINS BOTH AFFILIATE AND PRODUCT LINKS,
ALONG WITH LINKS TO THIRD PARTY WEBSITES MENTIONED IN THE POST.* - repost -
It's one of my favorite games for the Halloween/Fall season. It's a little messy, a little gross, and a whole lot of fun! Pumpkin Puzzles! Easy to prep. Easy to play. And so much fun to watch.
The Halloween season can be a fun time with Halloween and Fall themed games. This month of October, we are bringing in the seasonal fun with games that use some of the items we think about when we think Fall. One of the first games is one that I came up with a number of years ago. I was planning a pumpkin themed costume party for our students. I wanted every game to utilize a pumpkin ins some way. I surfed the internet for ideas, but I could find enough game ideas that would fill our time or involved more than simply smashing, rolling, or pitching. So I cleared my desk and just started thinking.
1. Get your pumpkins
You're going to need a number of large, jack-o-lantern style pumpkins that are approximately all the similar sizes. In the Fall, pumpkins are in ample supply. Just run to your grocer or local farm. I purchased my pumpkins at Aldi's for about $3.00 each. Since this game is best played with teams, be sure to have one pumpkin per team.
Before the students arrive, cut the pumpkins up into puzzle-like pieces with unique angle or Tetris-like features. Don't make the cuts too small or intricate. You might find the pumpkin difficult to take a part and reassemble. keep track of how many pieces you cut so that each pumpkin has the same number of pieces to reassemble with. Don't worry about the contents, they can stay adding a gross, slimy aspect to the game. Note: to help with set up and clean up, I covered the tables with plastic table clothes and used hard plastic trays for the pumpkins. If you are on carpet, you might want to put down drop clothe to keep the deacons happy.
Set up for this game is pretty easy. I think it took me 15-20 minutes to cut up four large pumpkins into 11 piece each. Just have a sharp knife on hand to cut through the pumpkin skin. to give your students an incentive to complete the task, award the winning team with a prize like Reese's Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter pumpkins, or Bach's Pumpkin Candies!
Clean up is fairly easy as well. If you cover the tables with plastic, simply roll everything up in the plastic and put it into a trash bag. But don't leave the trash in your building. Make sure it reaches a dumpster. You don't want the pumpkins rotting and smelling up the church or your youth room. Here's a short video our my students playing Pumpkin Puzzles!
If you decide to play the game, let me know what you think! How did it go? What did you learn? Any fun variation you created? Share in the comments below! And thanks for reading the blog! There are plenty more ideas, games, resources, and content coming in the future! And, subscribe to the YouTube channel for more videos and content for your youth ministry!
- jay
THIS POST CONTAINS BOTH AFFILIATE AND PRODUCT LINKS,
ALONG WITH LINKS TO THIRD PARTY WEBSITES MENTIONED IN THE POST.*
** Bog & Podcast Repost **
Back in 2020, I had the opportunity to welcome Mac Lake, to the Conversations with Every Day Youth Workers Podcast. We had a great conversation about leadership and developing leaders. If you are looking to grow your leaders, or your leadership team, take a listen to our conversation.
Welcome to episode 15 of Conversations with Every Day Youth Workers, the podcast of The Youth Worker Daily. How are you developing leaders? In this week's episode, I get to have a conversation with Mac Lake, founder of The Multiply Group, and author of The Multiplication Effect, Leading Leaders, and his just released, Leading Others.
Mac has served as a youth worker, a pastor, a church-planter, and a leadership developer. His passion is growing leaders for the local church. Today we talk about the importance of pouring into our volunteer leaders as it relates to and impacts student ministry. Grab a pen and some note paper because you are going to want to write some of this stuff down! BE A DEVELOPER OF DEVELOPERS
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Do you want to win a free book? Then make sure you listen to the end of the episode for details!
If you found this episode helpful and encouraging, would you help us get the word out? Share us with your friends, follow or subscribe to the podcast, give us a rating, and leave comment! And, we'll see you next week! |
meet Mac Lake
Mac felt called into ministry when he was 17 years old. Growing up in a small church in rural West Virginia he was surrounded by a loving group of people who believed in him and encouraged his spiritual journey.
In 1981, Mac packed his bags and moved to the Windy City, Chicago, to attend Moody Bible Institute. After graduating Moody, it was time to head south, where he took a position as a youth pastor at Northwood Baptist church. It didn’t take long for Mac to realize he needed more training so he and his new bride Cindy, moved to Dallas, Texas to attend Dallas Theological Seminary. Over the following years they had three amazing children: Brandon, Jordan and Brianna. After graduating seminary, they moved back to South Carolina where Mac served for seven years as an Associate Pastor at Pawleys Island Community Church. An incredibly supportive group of people poured their best into Mac and gave him amazing opportunities to grow in ministry. |
Order Mac's books
meet jay
Jay Higham is a veteran youth worker of over 30 years; having worked with students in the local church and Christian camping settings. Jay has been married to Amy for 27 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 also the host of the podcast, Conversations with Every Day Youth Workers! Jay is passionate about student ministry, family ministry, and connecting and networking with youth workers to help them serve their students with passion and excellence.
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ALONG WITH LINKS TO THIRD PARTY WEBSITES MENTIONED IN THE POST.*
Since 2020, The Youth Worker Daily has been a hit or miss. As a full-time youth worker, I had to balance my ministry with the site and, quite frankly, ministry came first. But things have changed. My roll in full-time ministry is different, and now I have time to really work the site as I've always hoped.
My goal for The Youth Worker Daily, has always been to encourage youth workers, particularly youth workers who are just beginning their journey. Through tools, tips, and resources I want to help youth workers thrive in their ministries.
Today represents the relaunch of The Youth Worker Daily, and it's very exciting. It's exciting because I'm going to finally have a chance to do what I've always wanted to do and publish a true, online student ministry resource for youth workers. What will the reimagined site look like? |
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New Content
Refreshing some old content
Resources. Resources. Resources.
Conversations with Every Day Youth Workers
The Youth Worker Daily Vlog
It's going to be a great adventure, and we can't wait to get started with you!
- TYWD
Jay Higham is a veteran youth worker of over 30 years; having worked with students in the local church and Christian camping settings. Jay has been married to Amy for 27 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 also the host of the podcast, Conversations with Every Day Youth Workers! Jay is passionate about student ministry, family ministry, and connecting and networking with youth workers to help them serve their students with passion and excellence.
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this weeks highlights
- Students loved the fact that we served dinner.
- Our Old School games were a huge success.
- We welcomed a five, first-time visitors.
This weeks games
Game Night
It's game night! We packed the majority of our time with some classic, or Old School games! List of Games...
This Weeks Minute To Win It Game...
Needs:
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looking for games
Check a true classic, Play It, from
Mike Yaconeli and Wayne Rice.
[ affiliate link ]
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This Weeks Worship Set
- House of the Lord
- Goodness of God
This weeks Message Summary
Meet Jay
Jay Higham is a veteran youth worker of over 30 years; having worked with students in the local church and Christian camping settings. Jay has been married to Amy for 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 also the host of our new podcast, Conversations with Every Day Youth Workers! Jay is passionate about student ministry, family ministry, and connecting and networking with youth workers to help them serve their students with passion and excellence.
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Author
Jay 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.
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