Welcome to 2022

Welcome to 2022! And welcome to The Youth Worker Daily!

I started The Youth Worker Daily in 2019. It was my hope to bring youth workers daily tools, tips, resources and helps so that you, as a youth worker, might thrive in your ministry. Through a mix of blog posts and video-based tips, I wanted to encourage youth workers with simple but practical helps that might aid in their work.

So far I've created almost 100 videos and countless blog posts that date back to 2015 when I was writing under my personal domain name of www.JayHigham.com. Along the way I wrote articles for Youth Specialties, Youth Ministry 360 (YM360), Group, and Called to Youth Ministry. For a little while, I oversaw the blog management at Controlled Chaos, a blog and podcast for Middle School Ministry. Then in the middle of the Covid-19 Pandemic, I launched a podcast called, Conversations with Every Day Youth Workers, a podcast that invited youth workers to share their story of youth ministry. During that time, most of the conversations were about how we were surviving ministry while in a historic season of shut downs and stay-at-home orders.

Then 2021 came. Promises of a covid vaccine and hopes of returning to "normal" brought little rays of excitement and anticipation. It was also an opportunity to get back to doing student ministry. It was still touch and go at first, but slowly, we managed to eek out a series of student gatherings; first as small groups, then finally in large group gatherings. During this time, I set aside my extracurricular activities of blogging, vlogging and podcasting to focus on the work at hand; rebuilding our student ministry, our kids ministry, and our college ministry.

And while 2021 came with its fair share of ups and downs, I saw God at work in the lives of my students, my leaders, and the families I serve. Ministry, though it looked a little different, was coming back. Families were coming back. Students were coming back. Life and ministry seemed to be moving in a good direction.

Then the fall came. We were giving the green light to do student ministry, so we jumped into our first semester with both feet. And it was good! Really good! September, October, November, and December brought weekly gatherings, activities, a fall retreat and an amazing Christmas Yule Ball Semi-formal. God showed up and did something amazing. Oh, there were still some difficulties. We had to postpone some things due to Covid, and numbers sometimes fluctuated depending on who was under quarantine. It certainly wasn't perfect, but we trusted God to show up and he did.

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But now 2022 is here. And as I get ready to launch our second semester of student ministry, I think we're ready to bring back regular activity to The Youth Worker Daily! God has been super active in our ministry and with our students. While the season of Covid shutdowns and virtual everything was difficult, it brought about the opportunity for us to take a good look at what we were doing in the way of ministry. It was a time to refocus, reinvent, and reenergize. I was reminded of the importance of relationships over programs, personal connections over blast texts and bulk emails, and the power of a conversation versus great social media posts. We learned a lot. I've learned a lot. And now it's time to get back to work.

2022 is going to be an exciting year. Covid aside, I believe we are poised to see God do something amazing. The Youth Worker Daily is back, and with it, more tools, tips, resources and help so you thrive in your ministry! New content, weekly ministry recaps, games and resources, and a look inside what we as a student ministry are doing with our leaders and our students.

I am also looking forward to bringing the podcast back. That's right, Conversations with Every Day Youth Workers will return in February 2022. I love talking with youth workers; listening as they share their stories and what God is doing with their students and within their ministries! But along with these conversations there will also be more interviews and sharing of what's happening within the realm of student ministry. It's going to be great!

So who's ready to see 2022 become a year of growth?

Welcome back to, THE YOUTH WORKER DAILY! We're so glad you're here!

- ythworkerdaily

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