We're printing t-shirts again!

Yes, I design and print t-shirts. I've been doing it for years. And I am hoping to print some t-shirts for you!

When I started out in student ministry, I wanted to make sure my students had great t-shirts. Whether it was a retreat, or an activity, or just something happening that we wanted to give out t-shirts for, I ordered t-shirts for everything. Because I dabbled with graphic art, I would often design my own graphics. I would then find someone who could take my design and apply it to a t-shirt. I've used both silk screener and heat  transfer.

During those early years a built a relationship with a local printer who used heat transfer. The transfer process provided our group with great looking, long lasting t-shirts at a fraction of the price of silk screening. But I quick came to the realization that I could do what he was doing and cut out the middle man. So I did.

For the next couple of years I worked to acquire my own press, while developing a new relationship with a thermal printer. It didn't take long to to get started. By designing and printing my own t-shirts, I was able to provide our student ministry with shirts at cost, saving money a long the way.

In September 2015, we returned to full-time student ministry.  But the return came with a significant cut in our salary. Now, in order to stay in full-time ministry, we have to supplement our income. One way we are looking to do that is by printing t-shirts!

Apparel options? Take a look! We work with some of the biggest names in t-shirts and printable apparel. 

And what about selection? Well, we have a selection! From t-shirts to sweatshirts to work wear to sports wear, we have a huge selection of apparel options for you to consider!

SPORTS TEAMS
Basketball, Baseball, Bowling, Cheerleaders, Football, Gymnastics, Intramural Teams,
Little League, School Sports, Soccer, Softball, Volleyball

CLUBS
Youth Groups, Boys and Girls Clubs, Car Clubs, Churches, Country Clubs, Kawanis Clubs,
Lions Clubs, Marching Band, Motorcycle clubs, School Clubs, Scouts, Ski Clubs

BUSINESSES
Car Dealers, Cycling Shops, Fire Depts., Freight, Gift Shops, Hotels/Motels, Lawn Maintenance,
​Military, Musical Groups, Restaurants, Retailers, Home Improvement, Unions, Utilities

Let us help you with your next t-shirt order! As you can see, we can do a lot! And we'd like to help you with your next order! Simply contact us and we will get started!

- jay

​Looking to try a little old school youth ministry on your students? These classics never die! Here are 4 classic games that are easy to put together and fun to play and work great if you're planning a night crazy games.

​Frosty Feet...
This game I call Frosty Feet. It's kind of my own little twist on a game that I once saw played at a summer camp. Here's what you need.

• a shallow pan, about 6x9 in size. I usually just pick up a disposable aluminum pin from the dollar store or WalMart. You'll need one per player.
• ice (and plenty of it.)
• marbles (20 to 30 per contestant.)
• drop cloth or tarp (this one could get a little messy.)
• a chair for each contestant.
• shaving cream (optional.)

Set Up: In each aluminum pan, count out the same number of marbles. Somewhere between 20 and 30 is usually good. Spread the marbles out and cover with ice. For an added element of surprise, cover the ice with shaving cream. The shaving cream hides the ice, leaving the participant almost fully unaware of what he stepping into. You will want to construct the pans no earlier that 15-20 minutes before playing the game. This gives the ice some time to melt. However, the shaving cream will dissolve if you let it sit too long. The final thing you'll want to do is lay a sheet of plastic or drop cloth down and place one pan at the feet of each player.

The Game: At "GO!", players must remove as many marbles from the pan as possible within the designated time allowance with only their toes. About a minute and a half should be adequate time. Much longer and students will begin dumping the pans.
Be sure to have a video camera at the ready for the icy reactions. The one rule I try to enforce is the "No Shoveling" rule. Student are not allowed to use their foot to "shovel" the ice out of the pan. The marbles must be removed with the toes of a foot.

Izzy Dizzy Bat...
This one is my all time favorite. I play it every summer when we have relay competitions. It's super easy to put together and brings gut-busting laughter. You'll need a plastic, wiffle-ball style bat for each team. Divide your students into equal teams. You will also need to establish a start and finish line about 10 to 15 yards apart.

On "Go", players race to their bat left at the far end of their race. Students then pick up the bat, place the knob on their forehead and the barrel on the ground. They must then spin around the bat a designated amount of times. I usually set 10 as the limit. Much more than that and, well you'll find out.

Once they have spun around the bat, they drop the bat and run back to their team to tag the next person in line. The first team to get all of their players down and back wins!

Some Tips: When you play this game you will want to consider having an adult standing with the bat to count out the number of times a student spins around the bat. You may also want to have a couple adults stationed along the run way to make sure students don't run into each other or end up running of off course do to being dizzy. AND, you might want to video tape this one.

The rumors are no longer rumors, but is this what the fans want? Speaking as one, I'm not sure...

Rumors have plagued the internet for years, the return of dc Talk. I'm going to do something dangerous, and share just how much I am a fan of dc Talk. I was introduced to them in 1991 while working at a week long summer camp. Immediately I was hooked. From then till now I have been a huge dc Talk fan. I been to multiple concerts. I have every album. I have a signed t-shirt and poster. I've even had the opportunity to meet Tobymac and write a bible study for J-Train, that was published nationally by Forefront Records. The only thing that comes close my love for dc Talk is my love for Star Wars. So of course when I hear a rumor of a return, I check it out to see if there is any truth.

Last week someone mentioned to me about a rumor they had heard about a reunion. I brushed it off saying that there are always rumors of a reunion. But then I saw something on social media that had a little more validity than most rumors. But i had to wait until today to found out if there was any truth.

At noon, the news was released and the rumors are no longer rumors. If you've missed the announcement, I've included the video below. (If the video doesn't fire, click on the link below it to view it on YouTube.com.)

A cruise?

Really?

Not the announcement I was expecting. I was expecting the announcement of a new album, a killer tour, or even a special project, but a cruise?

Now full details haven't been released, so I don't want to jump to too many conclusions, but I'm not sure a cruise is what most dc Talk fans are looking for.

I hoping more information comes soon. And I hope we get to hear some new music from Toby, Michael and Kevin. 16 years is too long to have to wait. But I guess we don't have a choice.

What do you think? dc Talk. Are you a fan? What do you think about a cruise?

Share your thoughts below.

​- jay

So...lately I've been into trying new games with our students. Over the last couple of weeks, we've been working on introducing our students to some new, and fun, games. Today, I want to share one that I saw on social media.

First, credit to YouthMinistryIdeas.us, who shared a post from @epikosfuse and @pastor_tank on their Instagram account (@youthministryideas).  A short video of the game was shared. They called it, Head Shoulders, Cup. We called it, The New Cup Game.

The game is simple. 

Pair your students up and give each pair a cup. With the students facing each other, place the cup on the floor between them.

Call out a series of commands such as head, shoulders, knees, etc. Students touch the parts that are called. I started slow for the first couple of rounds. Once the students got the hang of the game, I started to speed things up a bit.

Here's the fun. At the end of your commands call, CUP. The student who grabs the cup, wins! We played the best two out of three rounds. Winners go on to play other winners. Keep going until you have one student standing.

To keep the students playing, we had the losing students play other losing students.

This is a super easy game that needs very little set up. Just grab some cups and you're good to go.

If you us plastic cups like Solo or Dixie, be sure to keep a few on hand. After a few rounds, the cups will be destroyed and needing replacement.

This is a great game for small or larger groups and can be played just about anywhere.

Enjoy!

- jay


*Photo credit to Dave N.

It's Monday morning. Perhaps like me, you might be walking into a disaster of an office. Boxes, sports equipment, stacks of files, spare clothing, a sleeping bag, and a pancake griddle, are just a few of the item taking up space. Why? Because I just survived a weekend of ministry. In fact, I'm in the middle of 3 big ministry weekends.

Two weekends ago we held our annual 30 Hour Famine! This past weekend our Friday night student outreach. This coming weekend, a student led worship of Friday and Youth Sunday on Sunday.  During clean up, my office became the dumping-ground for all things famine/outreach/youth Sunday related.  Add in three full weeks of teaching, assisting with worship, worship set up, and after school activities. That's a lot to cram into three weeks but, this is youth ministry.

Unfortunately, during busy seasons like this, the office space suffers the most. With each activity comes it's own pile of items that need to be cared for. Usually, these items find their way into our offices. But a messy office isn't always good. Sure, a little clutter isn't horrible, but if it effects your work, then something needs to happen. Sure, you could go to Starbucks for a couple of hours, but that only delays the inevitable. At some point, you will have to clean your office.

For me a clean office provides me with a small sense of professionalism. I feel good when my office is neat, especially when the church family stop by to say hi or talk. A clean office also helps with my creative processing. And I feel better about myself and the work I do knowing that my space is neat and tidy.

Now I'm not advocating for the deep clean, although you should do that a couple times a year, but you should try to straighten up and put things away." Taking the time to care for your work space is a great habit that will help you stay organized and more efficient.

What does your office look like? Do you find keeping a neat office helps you do your job a little better?
Or is your office  simply the storage room for all things youth ministry related?

I'd love to hear what you think. Share your comments, thoughts, and idea!

​- jay