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Trip Tricks: Leader Training for Winter Trips

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It’s the middle of September and we are already planning out our winter retreat. If your youth group is anything like ours, your students are amped to go away together during the winter and may already be talking about it. But in order for our winter retreat to be a success, we need the majority of our leaders to sign up to go.

Typically we take about two thirds of our leaders with us and most of them have been on a winter retreat with us at some point in their career. But the reality is that things change year to year. Whether it’s simple things like the speaker or band, maybe the schedule is tweaked a little, or perhaps it’s a bigger change like the location or expectations, there is always some change that happens.

That means we should be seeking to equip, prepare, train, and bless our leaders as we get ready to go on our winter retreat. First things first, you need to recruit your leaders to go on the trip. That should be something that is done well before you start to sign up students in order to make sure you have the proper leader-to-student ratio and can adequately care for and shepherd your students.

Once you have recruited all of your leaders you will need to start thinking through training and equipping them for the trip. Now I will say this: depending on how many of your leaders have been on your winter trip will determine how long and in-depth this training needs to be.

If the majority of your leaders have gone on the trip before, then you can keep the training shorter. If you have a large number of leaders who haven’t been to the retreat, take extra time to ensure they are adequately prepared and their questions are answered.

Regardless of what your timing looks like, here are some essential elements to include in your training:

A leader packet.

This should contain all the pertinent information that your leaders need including a camp map, a schedule, packing list, small group information, small group meeting locations, expectations and rules, cabin information, travel information, and whatever else you deem necessary for your team.

A thank you card.

Your leaders are giving up a ton of time to be present on this retreat. So a handwritten and personal card from you will speak volumes.

Talk through expectations, camp layout, and schedule.

Making sure everyone is on the same page, knows what to expect, and has an understanding of the schedule means everyone is prepared. Helping your leaders understand what is expected and what the camp will be like allows them to lead better and care for their students.

Pray together.

This is key for any trip you take. Preparing your hearts and minds for the trip by bringing everything to the Savior allows your team to be centered and ready for what will happen.

Gifts.

Your leaders are giving up their time, energy, and rest to pour into your students. Many of them will spend the weekend away from their families, others may have to take PTO to attend, and others may be sacrificing study time.

An easy way to encourage and bless your leaders is to thank them with a tangible gift. This doesn’t have to be something that breaks the budget but instead something intentional and fun.

Q&A.

A key part of ensuring a successful training is making sure you’ve answered all of your leader’s questions. So make sure to have a time where your leaders can ask questions to ensure they feel comfortable and prepared.

A Call to Prayer, Repentence, and Fasting

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“Did you see that Charlie Kirk was shot?” The question stopped me cold and I instantly felt a weight on my chest as I began to think through the implications, fallout, and responses that would be coming. And honestly, it was worse than I could ever have imagined.

Let me preface this by saying I have strong opinions on Charlie Kirk, his message, and his method. But I am not here to judge him or to question his faith. Instead I am here today to challenge us as ministers of the Gospel to pray, repent, and fast.

That Wednesday was truly a dark day and, rightly so, we should be mourning the loss of life as all life is sacred to God. But on that same day there was also a shooting at a high school in Colorado where multiple students were injured and the gunman died by suicide. This shooting simply got a blip on the national news cycle and there were very few rallying cries for those students and their families. Further still, a politician was murdered and others targeted in a similar fashion because the murderer held differing beliefs.

There is a problem in our country and it is being fueled by inflammatory rhetoric across both sides of the aisle. But there is a deeper problem that pertains to us as ministers: we have allowed political positioning to infiltrate its way into our faith and this has shaped our response and how we shepherd the flock.

American Christianity has become deeply entrenched in politics and we have often allowed our political positioning to inform how we shepherd, what we say, who we protect or villainize, and ultimately how we are shaping the future of our churches.

I am not here to debate political ideology. Personally, I’ve voted on both sides of the aisle, I have friends from all different political backgrounds, and I’ve seen my own political leaning ebb and flow as I’ve grown and matured. I believe it is a good thing to hold to our convictions and allow them to inform how we vote. But what I am strongly against is using political leanings to attack, dehumanize, and portray others as evil.

All you need to do is pop onto social media and you’ll see conspiracies about Kirk’s murderer being from Antifa, Groypers, alt-right, Republicans, Democrats, or even the president himself. And so many of these posts are being fueled by politicians who claim to be Christ-followers, pastors and ministry leaders, and churches around the country.

In the majority of these posts you’ll find corrupted and out-of-context Scripture that seeks to portray one side as not just ungodly but also undeserving of God’s love and grace. To say we need to fight, there will be a reckoning, that the other side needs to be destroyed, that’s not Christ! To infiltrate your political ideology with out-of-context Scripture to inflame an already volatile state is foolish, ignorant, and anti-Jesus.

And the sad part is, American churches have bought into this politicized Jesus and are running after it while leaving the real Jesus behind them. People have vilified not only those who hold different political or theological convictions, but also the very man whose life was robbed from him.

This type or rhetoric is infiltrating the church left and right, and as the shepherds God has called us to be, we have an obligation to protect our flocks from all types of threats. That means we try emulate Christ in all moments to all people.

Jesus didn’t call us to be judge, jury, and executioner; He called us to love our neighbors and our enemies. He called us to forgive more times than society dictates. He challenged us to see people as He does: children in need of saving. He called us to put away our swords, care for and love others, serve the world, and seek justice.

But too often we like to take the parts of Jesus we prefer and hide the others. To serve a bit-and-parceled Jesus is to serve a false representation of God controlled by humanity. To be frank: I’m not about serving a tiny Jesus controlled by us because that’s not the true God.

So what are we to do? I believe we need to model a different way of living out and embodying our faith that starts with prayer, repentance, and fasting. We need to grieve with one another as a life was stolen. A life that God created was snuffed out in a violent and abhorrent act. But we also need to mourn that our country is at a place where violence is not only seen as an act that should be taken, but in many ways has also been normalized.

We must be praying for one another. For our friends and those who think similarly. For our enemies and those who oppose us. For our brothers and sisters across the political aisle. For our leaders and governing authorities whether or not we agree with them. For our spiritual leaders that they reflect Jesus not political ideologies.

Before we make assumptions, accusations, or offer guidance we had better start on our knees and seek the direction and heart of Jesus as we desire to first and foremost reflect and emulate Him to the world. Then, and only then, should we begin to speak out.

We should repent of the ways we have spoken poorly about one another and the ways we have encouraged others to do the same through our leadership. We need to repent of putting our wants and desires before Christ. We must repent of our desire for power and control. We must repent of seeing others as villains rather than as a child of the King.

And we must repent of weaponizing Scripture to suit our desires and political leanings. God isn’t subject to humanity nor does He fit into our political system. He is far above all and reigns regardless of which American political party is in control and which country has the power! That is the God we serve!

We need to fast from a quick assumption, a short word, an accusatory and broad sweeping social media post, a defamatory post about other individuals and groups, and from sharing videos and posts that use Scripture out of context to stoke the fires of angry political discourse.

We are created in the Imago Dei, just like the people sitting across from us and those who have wildly different opinions and positions. Just because we differ does not mean we dehumanize one another. Instead, we should be able to come together and lament the life lost, the violent rhetoric that permeated our country and churches, and move towards a truly Christ-centered response.

Instead of fueling the fire, may we fall on our faces seeking the triumphant return and restoration that only our Savior can bring. May we cry out for healing, justice, and grace as we seek to model Christ to our world. May our actions and words truly reflect the full Jesus and not a cherry-picked version. And may we cry out “not I, but He” and “come quickly Lord Jesus.”

Though I know they will never see this, to Charlie Kirk’s family, my heart breaks for you. I grieve with you. And I love you. We differ radically in many ways, but what happened to you was wrong and evil and not representative of what our Savior calls us to. May our God grant you peace, grace, comfort, and hope in this time.

5 Tips for Leading Well

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What comes to mind when you hear the word “leadership?” Did you feel prepared to step into a leadership role? What does leadership look like in ministry?

I know I definitely wasn’t feeling very prepared when I stepped into ministry. In fact, leadership isn’t something I was taught a lot about in school. Most of my classes were centered on biblical exposition, hermeneutics, running ministries, pastoral care, and things of that nature. Things like leading a team, handling reviews, and balancing a budget were not covered in class. They were things I had to pick up within the throes of ministry.

But as I continued to serve in churches and non-profits, I began to become intimately aware that leadership is more than just being the person in charge. It is about caring for, developing, and empowering your people to lead well.

Most of the resources I gained about effective leadership came from positions I held outside of the church, but can easily be transposed into a ministry context. Today I want to share five principles that have served me well in leading various teams throughout my career.

1. Communicate.

Communication is truly a lost art and it seems to be more so in churches, which is a little odd when you consider that the bulk of our ministry is focused on communication. But good leaders communicate well, often, and clearly. And they don’t communicate just to get their points across but to help them know more and grow in their roles.

Make sure your team and your communities not only hear what you are sharing but also understand what you’re saying. Clarity equals kindness and when we communicate well we help our people step out in leadership.

2. Empower and release.

This is a big step for leaders because it means leading with an open hand and not micromanaging your team. Empowering and releasing your people means trusting them to step out and lead in the way that God has designed them.

At times this may make you feel a little anxious and it may not always go the way you expect it to. But if you continue to empower, disciple, and release your people, you will not only see them rise and flourish, you will see your ministry grow and blossom as well.

3. Embody grace and forgiveness.

When we empower people to lead and give them the opportunity to do so, there will be times people mess up. And it is easy to pass judgement and be critical in how we respond. But that isn’t how Jesus modeled leadership.

When I worked in jobs outside of ministry, we were taught to be harsh in how we responded to our team. We were told to establish our authority and not let it be crossed. But Jesus’s way of leading is radically different.

We are to be servant leaders who model Christ to our teams. That means we embody grace and forgiveness and help our team to flourish even when they mess up. We need to walk with them and challenge them, but not belittle or marginalize them. The church doesn’t need more toxic leadership, it needs grace-filled leadership that models Jesus to our people.

And as a quick aside, remember that this is also true for us as leaders. We will mess up, we will make mistakes. So be willing to own that, to apologize, to seek forgiveness, and look to grow and change. Good leaders not only lead well, they model what they are calling their team to embrace.

4. Grow and develop together.

One thing I’ve heard way too often from ministry leaders is that they don’t need to continue to grow and develop because they have it figured out. Whether it’s because they’ve been in ministry for a long period of time, they have advanced degrees, or they have been to “all” the conferences.

None of those things mean you’ve arrived and know it all. Life, culture, people, and ministry continue to evolve and we need to understand what is happening and be willing to adapt as it does. This means we need to continue growing and developing, and we should be leading our teams in that as well.

Don’t look at this as an isolation role that’s only for the leader of the ministry. Growth and development are key for all of our leaders and we should be helping them to do so. This can be through training, resources, conferences, coaching, peer-to-peer discipleship, coaching groups, or any of the other litany of resources that are available.

5. Have fun.

“Nick, we always know when your team is meeting because it’s loud and you all laugh a lot!”

I remember the first time I heard this and my first response was to shush everyone. But then I realized it wasn’t a critical comment but one that recognized how much our team loves to be together and have fun.

Fun must be an essential part of every team. Whether it’s in how you structure your meetings, taking intentional outings, laughing at dumb mistakes or silly stories, playing games together, or just sharing life, fun is essential because it embodies the life of joy God is calling us to.

Having fun doesn’t mean we aren’t productive. It doesn’t mean we don’t focus. It doesn’t mean we are silly all the time. It means we are embracing the life God has called us to and celebrating it together.

Having fun is something that will not only make you a better leader as it humanizes you, it will make your team stronger and more united as you share life and joy with one another.

What is a leadership tip that you have seen work well in your ministry?

Embrace Your Facilities Team

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Each of us is acutely aware of what it takes to set up a room, a night of ministry, or a special event. Some ministries have to do their own set up and others have a facilities team that takes care of certain or all aspects of their set up needs.

In my early stages of ministry I was responsible for all types of set up. I was a part-time solo pastor in a tiny church that was comprised of mostly retirees who couldn’t help. That meant I was responsible for all set up on Sundays and any ministry event. Over the years since, that has evolved as we have moved to different churches and each of them have had their own unique experiences with a facilities team.

Often times the individuals responsible for taking care of our facilities and ensuring that events are ready to go can be overlooked. People don’t think about all the work that goes into making Sundays and ministry events happen. We don’t think about bathrooms being stocked, tables and chairs being set up, carpets being vacuumed, doors unlocked, and lights turned on. The reality is that these are just the basic functions that most facility teams handle; many of them handle a litany of other functions.

They are the backbone to our churches and ministries and without them many key aspects of our communities would cease to exist. The sad truth though is that these amazing individuals are often not seen, rarely complimented or thanked, and often spoken about poorly whether directly or indirectly. Typically the only time we think about our facility teams are when we need them.

But what if we actually saw our facility teams and embraced them? What if we helped them to see that they are loved and valued? Imagine if we uplifted and cared for them, highlighting how important they are. That would help our teams, our ministries, and our churches flourish in even greater ways. So what are some ways we can love and care for our facility teams well?

Start by noticing them and saying thank you.

Don’t only say thank you for when they serve you or your ministry. Notice them on busy days, say thank you for how the church works, and stop by their office to share the ways they helped your ministry go well.

Bring them a small thank you gift.

On the cold winter days when they clear the sidewalks and parking lots, bring them some hot cocoa and/or coffee. Stop by with some homemade cookies to thank them for how they set up for your ministry. Bring muffins and coffee in for breakfast for the team; that may mean going to work earlier than normal because most start before anyone else is in the building.

Send them a card or a bunch of cards.

We all know the value of a handwritten card. It makes you feel special, seen, valued, and loved. So why not pen one for your facilities team? Or better yet, why not ask your ministry to write letters? Imagine if all your students and leaders wrote simple thank you notes and you were able to encourage your facilities team that way. What an amazing and encouraging opportunity to help them see that what they are doing matters.

Listen well.

The other day a member of our facilities team needed to talk. I was cleaning up the morning after an event and he came out to help. I’ll be honest: I didn’t want to stay outside to cleanup any longer than I needed to. In central Pennsylvania it’s hot and humid this time of year, and I wanted to get back to my nice, cozy, and cool office.

But I could tell that he had something he needed to share. So I stayed and we talked for over half an hour. It was awesome and super intentional. It was clear he just needed someone to listen and hear him because he felt no one else would. Taking time to stop, engage, and listen to your facilities team will help them know they matter and that you care about them.

Get to know them.

At our church we have handful of facility staff members and a lot of volunteers who serve with them. I’ve intentionally sought to get to know their names and say hello to each of them when I see them. We all know and understand the power and implications of knowing people’s names. When we do that with people who serve our church so well it is an easy way to demonstrate love and care.

Help out.

This is an easy way to embrace the facilities staff in your church. Stepping in and helping to set up or tear down tables and chairs, offering to vacuum or sweep the halls, showing up to help shovel snow, or cleaning the kitchen after an event. These all sound like simple tasks but they quickly pile up and take a lot of hours to accomplish.

By stepping in and helping, you’re giving your facilities team extra margin and showing them that they matter. It does require time and effort on your part, but I can guarantee it will create a deepened relationship and team mentality.

These few ideas are not the only ways that you can love and embrace your facilities team; but they’re an intentional starting point. How do you love and embrace your facilities staff?

Trip Tricks: Road Trip Hacks

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This summer we had two mission trips we went on: one was a couple hours away from our church and our other one was over nine hours away in Kentucky. Both trips were amazing and we saw our kids flourish and grow in their relationship with Jesus and one another.

I could spend countless posts talking about what happened on these trips and all the ways we saw God work in and through our groups. We all know the value of trips and the importance they hold in the lives of students.

However, have you ever stopped to think about the actual drive and what happens during those moments? For years, I would simply hop behind the wheel of a fifteen passenger van and head to a camp or allow the bus driver to drive us to a retreat without a second thought.

But when it comes to ministry, intentionality is key. Even in the seemingly ordinary or mundane moments, we must be intentional with our students and how we engage with them.

This can look different depending on the setting, the makeup of your students, the context of where you are and what you are doing, and what your group has experienced. Today, I want to share with you just a handful of tips to help you make the most of your next trip.

Create different types of playlists.

You know your group which means you have an idea of what kind of playlist(s) you should have ready to go. Whether it’s your whole group together or smaller groups in individual vehicles, creating various playlists allow you to have an appropriate variety of music to play. A couple quick tips for playlists includes:

  • Make sure your playlists are downloaded because there are still places that do not have cell phone service
  • Turn off explicit content. That setting may be on automatically and it could make for some awkward moments.
  • Lastly, make sure you have a good copilot who will potentially be accessing your device for music changes.

Play road games.

These are always a great idea and come in a variety of styles and gameplay. Elise and I love the “Alphabet Game” when we travel long distances. There are other great games that you can find with a simple Google search like these from AAA. These games were stylized for kids and families, but you can easily adapt them for your setting and group dynamic.

Question-and-answer style games are also huge wins because it allows for conversations and for there to be interaction between your group. These types of games can range from deep and serious conversations to lighthearted and fun.

Utilize “Ask Me Anything.”

If you’ve ever driven a vehicle on a student trip, you know how loud it can get. There are some trips when I get back and everyone has left and everything is unloaded, that I just sit in my car for five minutes in silence. But have you ever paused to consider how you could utilize that noise to your advantage?

I love setting up an “Ask Me Anything” because it quite literally sets up a conversation that can and will go anywhere. I’d encourage you to set parameters if needed (i.e. theological conversations, cultural or current event conversations, or get to know you questions) but also be willing to engage with your group. These moments allow for authentic engagement, provide you an in-depth understanding of your group, and help your group get to know you better.

Ask good questions.

This is really key for the driver and copilot or leaders sitting in different positions within the vehicle. Knowing how to ask good, open-ended questions is key to keeping the conversation going and to helping your students grow and mature.

When you are able to engage conversations well, you’ll not only help the conversation to continue but you’ll also get to know your group better. I have found you can simply listening as the conversation develops and interject with questions as the conversation warrants.

This highlights intentionality and that you care enough to engage and listen to them. The key with these questions isn’t to prove you’re right or smarter than them, but to actively engage and walk with your students in an authentic, discipleship-oriented relationship.

Trip Tricks: No Phones

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When it comes to trips, we have a strict no phone policy for students. In our culture this can be fairly divisive because of our love for technology and the fear of missing out due to our comfortability with having everything in the palm our hands.

But here’s the thing: phones, social media, and technology, while amazing resources, actually cause us to be more disconnected, distracted, and anxious. That doesn’t mean that phones and technology are bad things, but it does mean we need to be intentional in helping our communities use and respond to them properly.

While social media and phones may seem to help us stay connected, they actually aren’t helping our students build authentic interpersonal relationships with their peers. They are actually engaging in relationships from a distance that don’t supplement the real relationships we were crafted for. Their online relationships may not be a bad thing, but they are no substitute for the real relationships God has designed us to be a part of.

All that to say, phones and technology can ultimately be distracting and hinder growth and maturity on trips. Instead, we desire for our trips to be places that help students grow in their relationships with Jesus and their peers. We want to eliminate distractions in our desire to foster authentic, Christ-centered relationships.

Now in some ways, this is easier said than done. I have heard all the pushback from parents, students, and even volunteers. But the statistics coupled with the results we have seen (deeper spiritual growth, intergenerational connections, ongoing transformation, and greater desire for transformation in their communities) outweigh all of the pushback. We also implement additional means of alleviating some of the pushback.

Prior to the trip, we communicate with students and families multiple times through a variety of methods (emails, social media, phone calls, meetings, etc.) the expectations and rationale for why we don’t allow students to have phones. We also share the ways parents have to reach out to our team.

We share our staff numbers as well as the camp or retreat’s contact information, and highlight that all of our leaders will have phones if contact needs to be made. Our team also posts intentional photos throughout our trips on social media to showcase our students and help families be a part of what is happening.

It should be noted that while we allow leaders to have phones on our trips, we put expectations in place for them as well. We ask them to primarily use their phones for photos and not to simply be on social media, playing games, or anything else that pulls them away from our students.

Over our career in student ministry we have witnessed the benefits of not allowing phones on trips. Typically students are not excited the first or second time they have to give up their phones. We’ve even had some students sneak burner phones into a camp. But as the trip goes on, students start to relax and become less anxious. They engage more with their peers, they begin having more intentional conversations, and they spend more time growing in their faith.

One of the best metrics for us is hearing from the majority of our students how they look forward to not having their phones on trips. They understand the need for healthy boundaries with their phones and for building into their relationships with Jesus and their communities.

At the end of the day this is a choice each student ministry must make for themselves. I’d strongly encourage a no phone policy on trips, but make sure you communicate why you have chosen to do so, be gracious in your conversations, understand where others are coming from, and make sure you and your leaders are fully engaged as you have your phones.

Trip Tricks: Carabiners

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Trips are an amazing part of student ministry because they allow our students to connect with God and one another in intentional and transformative ways. If you’ve been serving in student ministry for any length of time, you are well aware of how important trips are and how much our students love them.

The thing with trips though is that we need to be intentional with them to afford our students the best possible experience that ultimately helps them grow in their relationship with Jesus.

The purpose of this new series, “Trip Tricks,” is to share specific ways we have learned to do this over the years. These are not a one-size-fits-all approach, but instead suggestions that can be molded and shaped to fit your program and student demographic.

When I started working at my current church I inherited a variety of things. Some I kept and others I didn’t. One of the things I kept, and am forever grateful for, are carabiners.

Now you may be wondering, “why on earth do you need carabiners for student ministry?” And no, I am not taking my students rock climbing, although that does sound like fun.

Carabiners are our way of engaging in intentional community and encouragement on trips. They provide students and leaders alike an opportunity to get to know new people and build authentic, biblical community as they grow together.

Allow me to explain. Carabiners are simply the tool we use, and you can utilize any other item for this. We take a bunch of small carabiners and a special memento that we clip to it that has one of the individual trip member’s names on it.

We purchased wooden keychains that have our student ministry logo on it and on the backside we created a sticker via Canva with each person’s name, trip, and year on it. We printed that off on sticker sheets and all of a sudden we have a keepsake for each person.

We then connect each keychain to the carabiner and attach all the carabiners to a holder. The next step is setting the stage.

On the first day or night of the trip we explain very simply what the carabiners are by saying something like this: “Each of you has a carabiner with your name on it that you will be able to take home at the end of the trip. During the trip, you will be getting someone else’s carabiner and your job is to get to know them because we will take time each day (or however often you want to do it) to encourage one another in our group.”

This is a little stretching for some people because it may mean meeting new people or getting stretched outside of their comfort zone. But affording your team an opportunity to build intentional and authentic relationships by encouraging and caring for one another will help your team flourish.

Here is how you can start your share time: have everyone sit in a circle and simply ask for a volunteer, pick someone, or lead by example. Each person will say who they have and then speak words of encouragement and affirmation into their life. Then they hook their carabiner onto the holder and pass it to the person they just encouraged. This continues until everyone has gone.

Now if it doesn’t go in a perfect circle and someone gets called on who already went, we allow them to choose who goes next. Once everyone has shared, you can hand out the carabiners again but make sure everyone gets a new name that isn’t their own.

Typically on a weeklong trip we try to do carabiner sharing at least five times. But that is how our group does it and it is subjective to the group and trip dynamic.

I’ll be honest, the first few times your group does this may feel a little awkward or indifferent. But the more you embrace it and lead by example, the more impactful this time will become. You will begin to see a culture and relational shift among your team as they begin to engage in Christ-centered ways.

The whole point of carabiners is to draw your team closer as they embrace the authentic type of relationships that God desires for us. As they begin to understand what true, authentic, biblical community is about, your team will draw closer together and crave more of what God desires for us.

Quick Tip: Gift Bags for Seniors

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Are you stressing trying to find a gift for your graduating seniors? Have you ever felt the tension that simply gifting a book isn’t enough? Have your gifts seemingly fell flat before?

Believe me, I’ve been there. I’ve always wanted to be intentional with the gifts we give and I never want our graduates to feel like the gift they are given are an afterthought. Over the years we have been able to rethink and refresh our gifts for seniors and we have found that a thoughtful and fun gift bag is the way to go.

Here’s what we do. We purchase them a book; we add in fun candy; and we get little confetti poppers, glow stick bracelets, a couple of different fidgets, multiple cards, and other fun items like graduation capped rubber ducks. Now here’s the thing: no one thing makes this bag special, but all of these items together make this gift remarkable and personal for our students.

When we give them their gift bag it isn’t a simple “here’s your graduation gift,” but an intentional moment of explaining the “why” behind each item. We explain why we got them the book and its purpose. We highlight the different cards in their bags: one is from our ministry, one is from our church staff, and the final one is a letter of commissioning and promise that is on our church letterhead. We talk about the different fun gifts and how graduation is a celebratory moment and deserving of fun.

The purpose of these gift bags is to show the intentionality, relational rapport, care, and commissioning of our seniors. That means that our gift bags change a little each year as each of our senior classes are unique and different. What doesn’t change is the reality that these gift bags are special and help make this a memorable moment for each of our graduates.

I will also say this: making gift bags can and will vary from ministry to ministry. Each ministry’s budget will dictate what can go into these bags but it doesn’t dictate the thought. Dollar stores, Amazon, and personal touches can help make these gifts fun and intentional. So don’t be hindered by your budget; instead embrace it and lean into making the most of it as you take intentional steps with the gift bags.

Ideas for Celebrating Baptisms

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Easter is an amazing time of year for Christians. Your church is probably gearing up for Good Friday and Easter services. In fact, this time of year is probably shaping up to be pretty busy for you and your church. I can relate to the busyness. Our church has extra services and it feels like it’s all hands on deck.

But one of the amazing things we do during the Easter season at our church is celebrate baptisms on Palm Sunday. It’s become a tradition within our church and it is a great opportunity to invite people in our community who don’t usually attend church to join us.

The individuals who get baptized invite their neighbors, friends, and families as they embody the mission that Jesus gave to all of us in Matthew 28. We then are able to invite them back the following week for Easter and connect them further with our church community.

I don’t know about your church experience, but as I was growing up baptisms were not necessarily celebrated. They happened in church services but were fairly muted in how people responded to them.

What I love about our church is that we have shaped our baptisms into a full service that celebrates and highlights what God is doing in the lives of our people. But how do we do that well? How do we elevate and celebrate the Great Commission within our communities?

Make it community-oriented.

One of the things we do is we encourage families, friends, small groups, and others who have been influential in the person’s faith journey to come up with them. They surround the baptismal and are there to show that they are for the individual and love them deeply. It’s an amazing picture of unity and fellowship within the Body of Christ and it is a wonderful encouragement to the person being baptized.

Create a unique service.

I know this takes more time and potentially more people depending on your church size. But what if the Spirit of God moves and 20 people (or more) want to get baptized? That happened to us and we had to radically alter the service. Our senior pastor was the one who stated, “It’s not that we aren’t having a sermon, it’s that we are having multiple sermons with practical application.”

Simply put: the testimonies are the sermon. It may mean shifting songs and service order. It may mean calling an audible and not having certain elements. But by creating a unique setting and elevating what God is doing, you are making the ordinance of baptism special for the people being baptized and your church overall.

Have a time of celebration.

This could be cookies and lemonade after the service. It could be a photo booth and balloons. Or perhaps it’s a church potluck or BBQ. Whatever way you choose, crafting a time of celebration helps your people see that baptism isn’t just a moment but is an opportunity to continue engaging with one another and sharing the Good News with others.

Have a gift ready.

I get it. Money is tight, and we are feeling it in our budgets. I’m not advocating for anything lavish or over the top. This could be as simple as a handwritten card. Perhaps you’re able to put a small gift card in with it. Maybe you can actually put together a small gift bag with a devotional. Whatever you’re able to do will make this day even more special and memorable for the people getting baptized.

Follow up.

After a couple of days, and when appropriate, ask the person out for coffee or lunch to catch up and see how they are doing. Ask questions about what they remember from their baptism. Ask them who they have shared their story with. See how you can continue to help them on their faith journey.

These moments of intentional follow-up highlight that the church and you care for these individuals and want to help them grow in their relationship with Jesus.

How do you celebrate baptisms in your church?

7 Reasons to Conduct Mission Trip Interviews

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It’s been a very busy couple of weeks for my team and me. We recently launched applications for our summer mission trips and now we are conducting interviews. That means a lot more hours added into our weekly schedules to be able to intentionally meet with each applicant before we confirm they are on the team.

I know some of you may read this and go, “You do applications and interviews for a mission trip?! That’s intense and a lot of extra work!” Believe me I hear you on that. It does add a little more weightiness to applying for the trip and it does add more to our schedules. But there very clear wins and benefits to requiring an application and interview.

1. It helps us know our team better.

This is a big one for me because of the size of our youth group. I don’t know all of my students as well as I wish I could, so these moments help me to get to know them on a deeper level.

Regardless of the size of youth group, interview and application questions help you understand more about your students, their faith journeys, their strengths and weaknesses, and their reasons for joining the team.

2. It provides insight into how we structure our training.

When you get to know your team better it allows you to shape how your training looks. If you know your team needs to be equipped in better interpersonal skills, you can incorporate team building moments that focus on communicating and relationship building. If your team needs to understand more about sharing their faith or ministering in a different environment, you can focus in on equipping them.

These interviews allow you to better understand your team and shape the training to make this trip the most beneficial for them.

3. It generates buy-in.

Having an application and/or interview process generates buy-in because it requires effort and intentionality on the part of the applicant. The process doesn’t need to be crazy long but it should require thoughtful and intentional responses and highlight the importance of the trip. These moments help to ensure your team has the right reasons for going and that they understand what is expected of them.

4. It humanizes the process.

Sometimes just going through a sign-up process or application can feel clinical. But when you add in a face-to-face interview it allows you to put the process on a more personal level and gives you the opportunity to be intentional with your students.

I have found that on applications and in interviews students are incredibly honest about themselves. That affords us the opportunity to truly care for and walking alongside our students in highly relational and intentional ways throughout the trip and beyond.

5. It allows us to see strengths and pressure points.

Part of my rationale in conducting interviews is it allows me to get to know my team better and it highlights pressure points and strengths that each member brings to the table. In understanding that, I am able to see potential opportunities and flare ups that may come up during the training and/or the trip itself. This helps me to both prepare and engage with those responses in proactive ways rather than having to be reactive in the moment.

6. It helps us prepare for interpersonal relationships and conflicts.

This is similar to the previous point, but it takes it a step further and looks specifically at the relational moments that will occur. If you’ve ever gone on a trip with students or witnessed them interact at youth group, you know that there are moments where there is tension, differing personalities, and conflicts.

Now put those components into the context of a mission trip. Emotions are heightened, spiritual growth is happening in rapid succession, students are confronted with their own humanity and necessity for God, lack of sleep, new environments, and all the feels and it can seem like a powder keg is about to blow up. But when you conduct interviews it enables you to see where those potential flare ups may be and therefore allows you to prepare and/or circumvent them beforehand.

7. It helps us as leaders prepare for the trip.

Mission trip interviews take a long time and add a lot more to my schedule. But hear me out on this: while it makes a few weeks busier for me, it actually makes the trips easier. Why? Because I am better prepared.

I know my team. I know more about what needs to be done to equip the team. I have a better understanding of what the dynamics will be during the trip. I have insight into each person and how to care well for them. All of these things empower me to be a better leader and to be more equipped to lead my team well.

Have you done trip interviews before? What’s your go-to question?