Tag: ideas

Helping Your Group Prepare for a Trip

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Our winter retreat is coming up toward the end of this month, and we are so excited to be taking our students and leaders to a place we know and love. In thinking about how we gear up and plan for trips, I reflected on how the ways we prepare have grown and evolved during our time in ministry.

As the ministry leader, it’s often easy to assume we know what needs to be shared, posted, and explained, but I’ve learned during my time in ministry that what I think is correct and needed isn’t what our people need. Listening to leaders, students, and families has helped our team understand what is needed and seek to communicate it better.

Today’s post is designed to help you think about how best to prepare your group for trips. It is important to think critically about what is communicated, how it is communicated, and to whom it is communicated. Here are some ways we have learned and developed to help do just that.

Post on social media.

We typically post about upcoming trips and departure times, but in the past few years we’ve started creating posts on Canva and sharing things like packing lists and important details for the trip. Other great things to post on social media include departure times and details; photos during the trip; prayer requests before, during, and after the trip; and return times. In order for this to be the most effective, it is important to remind parents that you will be posting helpful information on your various channels to communicate effectively.

Host leader meetings.

When we host these meetings we try to keep them to an hour max, right after church when most of our leaders are present. We walk through what the weekend will look like, explain the schedule, talk about expectations, outline small group time, and more. We talk through what to expect, how the camp is laid out, who will be in what cabins, and our rules and the camp rules.

We also give out gift bags to help make the trip a bit more bearable. These gift bags have snacks, drinks, coffee, Advil and Advil PM, lip balm, a flashlight, hand warmers, and other necessities for a trip in the winter with students. Typically our camps don’t provide discussion questions for small group time until we arrive, so we also curate some generic questions for our leaders to help them guide their group in a discussion. We also make sure to answer any questions our leaders have and to spend time praying together for our trip.

Email families.

This is a big one and helps to get communication out in a timely manner. We send emails with departure and return info, packing lists, what to expect, links to the camp website, contact info for our team, and other helpful information. The key to these emails is sending them well in advance of when people need the info and sending follow up emails as your departure gets closer.

Make announcements.

I don’t often suggest making multiple announcements to students because they frequently forget about them. But when we spend time and highlight the importance of the announcement it allows us to communicate what needs to be heard. For our students we highlight key things like departure time, packing lists, and what to expect. These key aspects are highly important and allow our students to hear what is necessary for them leading up to the trip.

Have supplies ready.

This is important for both leaders and students. We equip our leaders with mini first aid kits (we have larger ones in specific areas or with specific leaders), camp maps, full itineraries, and anything else they may need (see above). We also have snack totes, game totes, and a resource tote with Bibles, pens, notebooks, and other items that we tell our leaders about and where they will be located. For our students, we let them know that we have additional toiletries (think travel section at your local dollar store) if they forgot anything, a few extra pairs of winter gloves and hats, and of course Bibles, pens, and notebooks.

Wait to make cabin assignments.

This is specifically for students and families. We used to release cabin assignments before the trip and this often led to parents and students trying to change assignments for a variety of reasons. Trying to change assignments can be messy and difficult, but it will also add more complexity and frustration for you as the planner. Instead, we only share cabin assignments with leaders ahead of time, and tell students where they will be when they arrive for check-in.

Now I will say this: we try very hard to keep friends and small groups together and overall we do a great job at this. This has caused families to trust our decisions. When they do ask for a change we take it on an individual basis and assess the request and reasoning before working to change anything.

Have a list of departure announcements ready.

This is more for you as the key leader of the trip. Having a list of announcements to run through will help you expedite the departure and also remember the key things that need to be stated. We highlight treating our drivers with respect, cleaning up the vehicles, treating the camp and their staff well, listening to leaders, following rules, and not taking prohibited items including phones (we will hold them for students but not charge them to help them be intentional in their time at camp).

Our Picks: A Christmas Resource

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You are probably reading this after Christmas, but we wanted to share with you a resource we have found incredibly beneficial and meaningful for students and ourselves. Our desire isn’t that you rush to buy this resource and accomplish it, but instead to recommend something you can utilize in years to come in your ministry and personal life.

This resource is the Advent Study Book by She Reads Truth. If you click on the link it will actually take you to a resource page that has all of their advent guides for this year listed. They have resources for men and women that are also applicable to students, resources for children, and both physical and digital options. And if you purchase a study book, they will send you even more resources through email.

We have written about She Reads Truth before and the devotional guides that they have. These guides are hugely beneficial for students and they have all different types of studies that can relate to different students and learning styles.

This is a great resource for Christmas and one that can be utilized in small groups, for individuals, or even as a guide for leading a large group study through advent. She Reads Truth sets up this study to be easily accessible and relatable to anyone who picks it up, and provides connections from Scripture to our daily lives. One of the ways this is helpful to students is highlighting the connectivity of the Old Testament to the New Testament. The story of Jesus that is featured in this study is a wonderful opportunity to highlight the redemptive plan of salvation that God has for humanity.

Another awesome aspect of this study is the intentionality it shows in highlighting rest and peace by incorporating “grace” days for each Sunday. These days are designed not to just be a break from doing devotions but to truly help us engage with sabbath rhythms and to rest in Christ. They are designed to help us rest in the goodness and wonder of God, and to take the time we would have spent engaging with the study to reflect on what God has been speaking to us over the past week.

She Reads Truth always includes fun extras in their studies, and these extras will vary from study to study. This one includes a very special cider recipe, some classic Christmas carols, tips for memorizing Scripture, prayers, an introduction to advent, and much more. This is a wonderful study for the advent season or even if you are doing a “Christmas in July” event.

Another thing that I love about the advent studies from She Reads Truth is that they stick around, and typically the prior years will go on sale during the current Christmas season. So if you’re on a tight budget or looking for something a little cheaper, you can purchase the prior year’s study and utilize it for your current setting. There are no dates in the actual study, but the front of the book will list the year it was made for. If you are willing to look past the year, these are awesome resources to pick up on the cheap in the new year.

Overall, this is an incredible resource and one of my favorite studies that She Reads Truth puts out. The intentionality and ability to draw people into the story of Jesus is amazing.

What resources have you found to be helpful and meaningful to your community during the advent season?

Last Minute Christmas Party Games

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It’s the week before Christmas and for some of us, that means taking a break from ministry for a week or two. But there are other ministries that keep going and may be meeting sometime this week for their Christmas party. If you are in the latter category and looking for some easy, quick, and little-prep games for your party, you’ve come to the right place.

Let’s face it: we’ve all had a moment where for whatever reason, our event and activities have been placed on the back burner. That’s not a reflection of you or your heart, but it sometimes happens. And right now you may feel pressed for time and wondering if you’ll even be able to pull this party off because you still need a great Christmas message and games may not be your thing. It happens, we’ve all been there or will be there. This post is meant to help you have a great Christmas party for your students, or maybe even show up at your staff party as the hero with fun activities, or give you something fun to do when all of the family is over during the holidays. So here are some quick and easy Christmas party game ideas.

An easy Christmas scavenger hunt.

We have written about scavenger hunts in the past where we have used Scavr. This is not what I am suggesting. That takes a lot of back end work and would completely bog down any prep time you have this week. Think of this in the classic “Bring Me” style game but instead of doing it one item at a time, it’s a scavenger hunt where students either have to physically collect items or take photos of them. It could also have various elements like “have a group take a video singing Christmas carols in front of a manger,” “take a group picture by Christmas lights,” or “have your group dress up as wise men.” Including elements that are within your church and relatable to your church will help make this game relatively easy and successful.

Charades or reverse charades.

Charades is always a fun group game to utilize where you have a group of people guessing the action of an individual. This can be played in head-to-head fashion with multiple teams competing against each other, or if you have a smaller group it can be played all together with your group guessing the actions of one individual at a time.

Another fun way to play this game is reversing the function of the game: the group will act out the action while one person or only a couple of people guess. This allows for your group to be a little more creative and to craft a scene. I would suggest giving your groups around 30-60 seconds to come up with a plan if you are doing reverse charades. The scenes that you are utilizing should be Christmas-focused and could be Christmas movies, winter/Christmas activities, Christmas carols, or Christmas stories.

Christmas Scattergories.

Scattergories is a great game regardless of the time of year. It can be utilized in a smaller group where individuals play against one another. Or larger groups can be broken into small groups competing together, or even as a head-to-head style game where competitors go back and forth on answering. Regardless of how you run this game, think about different categories you can use to make the game more Christmasy.

Here are a few ideas to get you going: Christmas movies, Christmas songs, Christmas food items, Christmas characters, stocking stuffers, Christmas activities, Christmas traditions, something at the North Pole, gifts, or Christmas decorations. This is a game that is sure to produce lots of laughs and some spirited debates. But as long as you can keep it moving and see that your crew is having fun, the longer you can lean on this game to help make your Christmas party a blast.

PowerPoint Games.

Download Youth Ministry has a bunch of PowerPoint games available on their website, and I’ll be honest with saying these have saved me in many circumstances. There are all different styles of games and they can be utilized in a variety of ways depending on your group size and dynamic. Most of these will need to be paid for, but they are totally worth it. My advice would be to purchase games that have a higher review rating and ones that will connect with your group.

Christmas tree or Christmas present decorating.

Now I know what you’re thinking: why would we have our students decorate a tree or wrap a present? But hear me out: what if the tree or present was a student or leader? Right?! Now you’ve given your group the challenge to decorate someone in the most festive way possible and this is easily accomplished by purchasing (or finding) some gift wrap, bows, tinsel, tape, and maybe a few other additional items.

Another fun piece to include if you’re going with the gift idea is to get some larger boxes to wrap your people up in. Let your group go crazy with how they decorate their people and then up the ante by having them walk a runway and have a teammate explain their creativity. Another quick tip: purchasing these items can be done in an inexpensive way by shopping at a dollar store or Walmart or in a pinch purchasing online on Amazon.

Our Picks: Royal Servants

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As a student ministry leader you have probably led your own mission trip or partnered with a mission agency at some point in your ministry career. We all know that mission trips are important in the lives of students because of how they impact their hearts and relationship with Jesus. We know that when they are in a focused environment, building relationships with people, and serving others, they will begin to grow as a disciple of Jesus.

If you have led your own mission trip before you know how much work goes into planning and leading the actual trip. There’s setting the schedule, organizing service projects, figuring out meals, scheduling travel, arranging sleeping assignments, handling debriefs, managing conflicts and stressors, and all the other things that pop up. Leading a mission trip that you are putting together takes a lot of preparation, planning, and intentionality as you not only lead but also care for your students, leaders, and the people to whom you’re ministering.

If you’ve found a partner agency to go with that meets your needs and focus as a ministry, you know how beneficial this can be. Our ministry typically looks at running our own trips or partnering with the different mission arms of our denomination. This allows us to make sure the vision and mission of our ministry align with those of the partnering organizations. But, I also love to find additional opportunities for our students that embrace our vision and actively engages in discipleship.

That’s where Royal Servants comes into the picture. Royal Servants is part of Reign Ministries and offers summer-long trips for all students including middle school, high school, and college age. These are trips that take place all over the world and are focused on reaching people with the Gospel and helping students to engage and grow in the discipleship process.

Like many youth workers, I found out about Royal Servants from a phone call. Hank Dahl, one of the mission trip leaders for Royal Servants, reached out to connect and to simply share his heart. What I instantly respected about Hank is he wasn’t looking to make a sales pitch or offer me something in place of what we do as a ministry. Instead, he wanted to offer an additional option but only after pushing our students toward our own trips. Hank’s and Royal Servants’ heart is to be an additional option for students with the express desire to help them grow in discipleship and missional opportunities.

The first time we had Hank join us, he asked if he could speak to our students. He didn’t ask to share his own lesson but instead offered to teach on whatever our series was focused on. Being a youth ministry veteran, Hank instantly connected with my students and did a superb job sharing that evening. At the end of his lesson, he gave a brief synopsis of who Royal Servants is and what their trips were for that year. He then encouraged our students to go to small groups and find him afterwards at a table in the lobby. Hank didn’t try to pull our students away from time in their small group but instead pushed them into their discipleship time and encouraged them to take initiative in connecting with him afterward.

Hank’s heart, that of his team and Royal Servants overall, is to partner with student ministries around the country and to help them provide additional avenues for their students to engage in discipleship and missional opportunities. We have had several of our students participate in trips with Royal Servants and all have come back changed and strengthened in their faith. When many of them returned, they took leadership roles and began to reach out to people in their schools and communities. They also began to push students in our ministry to serve in their spheres of influence and to go on mission trips with our student ministry. It wasn’t focused on just encouraging their peers to join Royal Servants, but to instead serve where God is calling them. This again highlights the way that Royal Servants equips and trains students and is why I will continue to invite them to our church and encourage my students to participate.

If you’re looking for a great partner organization, one that seeks to reach the lost and equip students as disciple-makers, then Royal Servants is the organization for you. I highly encourage you to reach out to Hank–let him know I told you to :)–and see what this ministry can do to help your students grow and flourish.

7 Tips to Care for Hurting People

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“Hey Nick, sorry I haven’t been here in a while.”
“It’s all good. How are you doing?”
“Not good. My uncle just died.”

In the span of a few seconds at youth group I was immediately aware of how deeply one of our students was hurting. After their reply I could see the pain etched in their face and in their body language. They were hurting and I knew that they needed to have people love and care for them.

“How are you doing with all of that? That’s a lot to handle.”
“I’m trying to put on a brave face because if I think about it or talk about I’m going to cry.”
My heart broke in that moment for that student and for a pain I couldn’t fix.

Most of us have had moments like this regardless of where we serve in ministry. When you’re in a position that involves working with and caring for people, you will be acutely aware of their pains and hurts. As someone much wiser than me once said, “Proximity breeds empathy.” Today, I want to offer you seven ways you can effectively and meaningfully care for people who are hurting.

1. Be present.

One of the best things you can do is simply be fully present in the lives of people who are hurting. It’s so easy to feel the pull of distractions especially on a youth group night, but the more focused you are on the individual, the more they will be seen and cared for. That may mean moving out of a loud space, it may mean shifting your schedule for the night, and it most definitely means not looking at a clock or your phone. Being present involves a physical, emotional, spiritual, and mental presence when caring for hurting people.

2. Involve their community.

Whether it’s their small group leaders, friends, or other staff members, bringing in people (when appropriate) to walk with and be for the individual(s) is key. They can organize meal trains, sit with the individual, take them out, and love them in tangible ways. Look to bring in a village to walk with, care for, and love on those who are hurting so they know they aren’t alone or forgotten.

3. Empathize and sympathize appropriately.

When caring for people who are hurting, a natural response is to grieve with them. We feel their burdens, we hurt with them, and we sit in the pain with them. What isn’t okay is to fake those feelings–instead, just be yourself–or to tell them you fully understand and feel the same way (unless you’ve experienced the same thing).

I had a coworker who struggled with severe chronic pain. They functioned at a pain threshold of 7-8 out of 10 on a daily basis. We were praying for them at a staff meeting and we asked how we could walk with them. Their response: sit with me, cry with me, but don’t tell me you understand because you don’t and it feels dismissive. If we try to tell our people we understand their pains when we have never experienced them, we minimize what they’re experiencing and they feel unseen and unloved. Make sure to choose your words wisely and to love well when empathizing and sympathizing with others.

4. Send them something.

Giving something may sound like the easy approach, but when it is coupled with the other aspects of care, it is a tangible way of loving your people. When someone experiences a loss we can send flowers, or a meal, or a gift card with a handwritten note to let them know they are seen and loved. Depending on the circumstance and person, what is sent will change. We want to send something meaningful and heartfelt that helps the individual and their family to know they are seen and loved.

5. Follow up.

It isn’t just about being present in the moment, but also about ongoing care. Pain doesn’t just dissipate after a brief interaction, we often sit with that pain for days, weeks, and months. Pain and grief are long term emotions and we need to be engaging and following up with our people. Making sure to check in, to grab coffee, to be present when needed (i.e. funeral arrangements), and to let them know they aren’t going through this alone are paramount to caring well for your people.

6. Listen well.

Sometimes I tend to interject in conversations without listening fully. I’m a fixer at heart and I want to do my best to help and care for my people. But by not listening well or only listening to find solutions, you are actually devaluing the people you care for because you are dismissing them and their problems. So listen well. Sit and allow for people to process and grieve. Allow for there to be silence and wait to see if the individual is done before you start to share.

7. Know your limitations.

Sometimes we want to do all we can to care for people, but we often do that even when it is beyond our capacities or abilities. Instead of trying to be all things to those who are hurting, let me encourage you to simply be you and to know when you can and can’t do certain things. If someone needs to speak with a counselor and you aren’t trained or equipped to do so, connect them with someone who is. This should be our approach not because we don’t care but because we do! Caring well for people means connecting them with the right individuals and resources that they need in all circumstances.

How to Interview Potential Volunteers

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We know that in order for student ministries to run well we need quality volunteers. We don’t just need warm bodies, we need people who will actively engage in life-on-life discipleship with students.

Elise and I have recruited many volunteers over the years, and Elise is an active volunteer herself and has served with co-leaders throughout her time in ministry. However, if I am being honest, there have been times I’ve rushed the process or recruited someone who wasn’t the best fit. Thankfully God has still used those individuals in those moments, but it has forced us to think about the recruitment process and how we interview leaders.

With our unique backgrounds of recruiting volunteers, being a volunteer, and serving with volunteers we wanted to offer some helpful insight and suggestions on what your interviews could look like when recruiting new volunteers to your ministry. We want to offer insight into what we have learned through our time in ministry that has impacted our recruitment and interview strategies.

Ask them to share their faith journey.

One of the best ways you can get to know someone is asking them about their faith journey. You get to hear how God has worked in their life, what has changed for them, and also why they care about serving in the church. Often times you will hear about how student ministry impacted their life or how their experience with Jesus has directed them to work with students.

Get to know them and their family.

During an interview of potential volunteers I always try to get to know them at a personal level. I ask about their favorite restaurants, their favorite snacks, what they do for a living, and I ask about their family. Family is super important and it’s always good to be able to walk with your volunteers and their families. This allows you to care holistically for your team and to see how you can pray and care for them.

Ask them to share the Gospel.

When it comes to working with students who fall all along the faith paradigm, it is important to know that your leaders can share the Good News with your students. Ask them to share it and pay attention to how they do it. If it’s a typical Romans Road style, ask them how they would share their faith with students who aren’t sure they believe the Bible just yet. Encourage them to think outside of the “typical” methods and think about doing it in a boots-on-the-ground way when students ask hard and personal questions.

Have them do a personality assessment.

This is always a great idea to do with any leadership team, but especially with new volunteers. You’ll learn about what they value, you’ll find out their stressors, you’ll uncover strengths and weaknesses, and you will be able to figure out who should be their co-leader based on how they will work together.

Ask them about their leadership style.

As you are getting to know the potential volunteer, ask them about how they lead. Do they work well with other leaders? Does their style work with what your vision is pointing toward? Are they focused on discipleship or simply teaching at students? Are they confrontational or willing to work with different people and personalities? Is it their way only or will they work with leadership? What are their strengths and weaknesses? Knowing the leadership style and gifting of your volunteers allows you to place them in the portion of your ministry where they will succeed and have the greatest impact on your students.

Find out why they want to serve with students.

This is a question I learned to ask because I began to see disconnects among some of my leaders. We are a discipleship-based ministry and our leaders ask our students a lot of questions during small group time and help them think through practical application for their lives.

But we had some leaders who thought small group time was another time to teach a secondary lesson or reteach what was already taught so it was taught correctly. That presented some difficult conversations with those leaders, but ultimately we were able to all be on the same page. It’s important to make sure the values and reasoning for serving with your students reflects the heart and mission of your ministry.

Ask how they would work with another leader.

Depending on where you serve, the possibility of having two or more leaders for a single small group is a luxury you may not have at this point. However, you will at least have them working with you as the other leader, which means you need to know more about how they work with others. Ask them questions about their leadership style. Ask them how they respond to authority. Investigate how they handle disagreements or differences with other adults. Ask about their communication style. These questions will help you think through how they will fit within your ministry and with other leaders.

Ask them their thoughts on the vision of the ministry.

Whenever someone is looking to join a ministry or an organization, you should make sure that they understand and align with the mission and vision of the ministry. Having someone serve on your team who doesn’t align with the direction and focus will ultimately lead to tensions and disconnects, which will come to a head. When you interview someone ask them what they think about your vision. Ask them how they see that mission playing out in their lives. Ask them how they will help model that vision to the students.

After sharing the requirements of the ministry, verify if they can commit to them.

This has been a misstep for me all too often. I’ve noticed confusion after the fact because I didn’t clearly articulate what we are asking of each individual leader. This often came about when leaders thought they had to serve in both our Wednesday and Sunday programs. And that rests on my shoulders because I hadn’t stated that they choose to do either or they could do both, but both programs aren’t a requirement. So make sure that the commitment is clearly stated, and then make sure that the volunteer can follow through with it.

Ask how you can be praying for them.

If we are truly shepherding our people, we should be doing this with even our potential volunteers. Often our people are carrying huge burdens, and simply knowing that a leader cares about them will mean the world. Be intentional, be relational, and be caring as you meet with individuals and love them well.

Theme Night Ideas: Spring Kickoff

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Most of us are not thinking about spring right now. In fact, some of us are probably revisiting our winter weather and wellness policies because those fall sniffles and murmurs of snow are beginning to materialize. But that is why this is the perfect time to think about a spring kickoff because it gives us time to prepare. Preparing in advance helps us to put things together without feeling rushed or disorganized. It allows us to build something meaningful and intentional that will reach our students and their peers.

I do want to clarify what I mean when I say “spring kickoff.” For our ministry, we host our spring kickoff in January after we come back from Christmas break. Many of you are probably crying afoul because January is most certainly not spring, unless you live in a place that is perpetually warm. But here is the rationale for calling it our spring kickoff: we have just come back from a prolonged break and we want to celebrate being back and it is the start of the spring semester for students.

Our church is a regional church which means we serve multiple school districts and none of them follow the same format for semesters or marking periods or trimesters. So instead of trying to do a “semester kickoff,” it made the most sense for us to call it our Spring Kickoff. I am not advocating for you to replicate the name–thought it most certainly isn’t trademarked–but I am encouraging you to be intentional with the time when you come back from a prolonged break in programming. This is a great point at which to celebrate and reconnect with your students, and to have fun in the process.

In looking at the time of year this happens, many of us we need to think about indoor activities. There are some ministries that can be outside in January, but for those of us who cannot, we must think about activities that can be utilized indoors. All of the ideas below can be used outdoors as well and can be shaped and molded to fit any space and ministry size. Today, I want to share with you five ideas for a spring kickoff event that are guaranteed to be a ton of fun!

Cutthroat Kitchen.

Cutthroat Kitchen was a cooking show on Food Network where competitors were given a set amount of starting cash they could use in each round to either buy advantages or purchases sabotages for their competitors. DYM put out a Christmas version of this competition that can easily be tweaked to meet the needs of a spring kickoff. You will need to play around with the graphics and some of the names of the games, but it is a great springboard and has a ton of helpful guidance.

This is an event you can do for one night or for a months-long competition. We took a month leading up to it for small groups to win “money” by competing in various games that they could use in the main competition. It was a ton of fun, and our students still talk about it.

Team Competitions.

Team competitions don’t have to be like the relay games of yesteryear. They can actually be a lot of fun and it is all in how you cast the vision and know what your group enjoys. You can host a trivia night where small groups compete against each other. You could have small groups plan and share skits or a talent show. You could have a lip-sync competition between small groups. Or it could be any number of things, but the key is knowing your group and what will get them excited and participating.

Scavenger Hunt.

We have written about using Scavr for our spring kickoff before, and honestly this is an amazing resource for youth ministries. This is an option that costs money depending on which version you would like to use, but I will say it is totally worth the value. All you need to do is figure out the clues and answers for the hunt, have your teams download the app beforehand and create a log in, and then just manage the submissions.

Gone are the days of trying to track all the scores or figure out who did what. Scavr does that all for you. This is something you can completely scale and shape to fit a theme, environment, or your church setting. We love to incorporate trivia questions about leaders and staff, utilize staff who are on-site for photo opportunities, and have our students running all over.

Minute to Win It.

This is a classic event for student ministries. You can literally find tons of Minute to Win It games online and even find websites with the games broken down by categories. There also a lot of Minute to Win It countdown times on YouTube that you can use for this event to keep things moving and make it feel like you are actually competing on the show. You can set this up where you have multiple stations and students will move through them in groups and you keep track of which student/group got the quickest time. Then you figure out which team or individual won the most games or had the best overall score, and you have your winner.

Bigger and Better.

This is a classic game that we used to play all the time at my youth group growing up. The premise is fairly simple: each team starts with the same “small item.” We always started with a quarter. You would then have to travel around and trade your small item for something bigger and better, trading items until you’re out of time. When time’s up, everyone reconvenes at church to see what each team got, and to pick a winner.

We learned pretty early on that you had to have certain ground rules in place like “no stealing,” “no drive-able items if you’re under 18,” and the item you receive you have to be able to keep. The last two were because someone had a family member drive their 18-wheeler to church. But this is a game you could play in a neighborhood, a smaller community, or by utilizing church staff and/or members to engage in more inter-generational community. The last one could even be an opportunity to have dessert at one of the homes and celebrate together.

How to Create a Proper First Aid Kit

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Have you ever had a student get injured playing a game? Or maybe you’ve been at camp and desperately need Advil for a leader after they slept on the camp mattress that was anything but built for lumbar support. Perhaps you were on a mission trip and needed to have medicine when someone got sick.

Regardless of where you serve or how big your program is, a proper first aid kit is a must. Sure you can buy a pre-stocked kit from Walmart or Target, but my experience with those kits is they often don’t have all you need and their items are not always the best quality. To ensure that you have all you need, it is helpful to build your own by purchasing the items you need and putting them in a central kit for your team.

As the leader of your ministry, you are acutely aware of what your students and leaders will be participating in and what you will need on trips and at programming. What we want to do with today’s post is to share items we have in our first aid kits to help you think through what you can include in yours. We want this to be a springboard to generate helpful thoughts in building first aid kits for each of our ministries. Here are some items we always want in our kits.

Bandages.

Often we pack band-aids in first aid kits, but it’s also helpful to have different types of bandages and accompaniments. Having bandages of different sizes and shapes, along with butterfly sutures and gauze is highly important as it will allow for you to address multiple cuts and wounds. Also included with bandages should be various types of medical tape and wraps. These will allow you to secure bandages better as well as utilize them for other parts of first aid like splints.

Ointments.

Having different ointments is a must in a first aid kit. Think about adding antibiotic ointment, Cortisone Cream, and other products like alcohol wipes. I would also recommend having a package of wet wipes to utilize for cleaning wounds before applying to the needed area. Another ointment to have would be Vaseline in the event of dry or irritated akin. Along with Vaseline I would encourage you to have some aloe to treat sunburns especially if you are going on a summer trip.

Medicines.

Having different medications will allow you to help your team for a variety of ailments. Some of the more common products to have include ibuprofen, Tylenol, aspirin, electrolyte tablets, sugar pills, Pepto-Bismol, antacids, anti-diarrhea pills, Ex-Lax, and Benadryl. This is not an all-inclusive list, and depending on where you are going and what you are doing, you may need different items or you may need to add additional items to this list.

Splints.

This is something that is often overlooked in packing first aid kits. Having a variety of splints for fingers and thumbs, wrists and ankles, and a few other small ones will be highly beneficial. Another good resource for splints is having popsicle sticks to help splint fingers or other appendages as needed.

Electrolytes.

Heat exhaustion is very real and happens to students quite frequently because they can be stubborn about drinking water during summer trips. Typically we think about having Gatorade or Propel packets in our kits for trips. However, these tend to have a lot of sugar and it may take multiple packets before people start to feel better. Another option that I have come to love is either having electrolyte tablets or Liquid IV. Both of these tend to have a faster recovery rate and less additives that don’t help in the long run.

A pocket knife.

This is something I have always seemed to need in different moments. I would suggest a good multi-tool and a regular pocket knife in your first aid kit because they can be utilized in different settings. Having a reliable multitool will help you to fix and repair things as needed, where a regular pocket knife can come in handy for various activities and needs.

Scissors.

Having a quality set of scissors is a must for a good first aid kit. If someone is injured and you need to cut through clothing, strong scissors are your best friend. Look for quality scissors that can be utilized for a variety of circumstances.

Tweezers.

If you’ve ever gotten a splinter that you can’t get out with your fingers, you know how important it is to have a good set of tweezers. Thinking of students and all that you do as a ministry, there are multiple opportunities for students to get stuck by something that tweezers can pull out. So having these on hand is a must.

A tourniquet.

You may not think that this something you will need on a youth trip but it’s always better to a have something and not need it than to need something and not have it. We may never need to use one of these but it’s better to have it especially if you’re at a camp with no nurse or even on a mission trip. If someone nicks an artery or sustains a bad injury, it is best to have one of these ready to go.

Feminine products.

I’ll be honest, this is not something I would have thought of on my own. It was actually while I was working in collegiate security that I noticed them in our first aid kits. We had them on hand for nose bleeds, but as youth workers we must understand that having these items on hand for our female students and leaders is not only important but also a way to love our people well. If you a guy who’s unsure what to get, talk to your spouse or a female leader and have them purchase the needed products for you.

Sugar pills or candy.

I referenced having sugar pills earlier in the post, but I wanted to mention them in their own bracket because of their necessity. If someone goes into hypoglycemia, having sugar pills or candy is highly important. Candy is a quick fix if someone just has low blood sugar, but if someone’s blood sugar crashes due to hypoglycemia, sugar pills will be the most helpful.

Eyewash.

If you’ve gotten an eyelash in your eye, you know it’s uncomfortable. If you’ve gotten dirt or a splinter in your eye, you know that the pain is unbearable. Having a bottle of eyewash will allow you to help your people who get stuff in their eyes. Just make sure to get eyewash and not contact solution as they are different.

Ice packs.

These are a must-have for any trip. You can purchase the types that you pop to induce a chemical reaction so you don’t need to think about refrigeration for your packs. These types also come in a variety of sizes so you can choose which ones will be best for your group and your kit.

What are some essentials you include in first aid kits?

Ways to Care Well for Leaders

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We are all aware of how important volunteer leaders are to our ministries and the people we care for. Our leaders are the glue that hold the ministry together and they are often the ones who do life-on-life with our students. Leaders give up so much to disciple students and, let’s be honest, it can be a lot. It’s taxing, time consuming, emotional, and at times difficult.

In order to help support our leaders, it is important to care for them. Now as we think about caring for our leaders, it is pivotal to think about how each leader receives things. Thinking through their love languages and what they value and appreciate will help you to care for them in the best possible way but also in a way that is meaningful for them. So what are some tangible ways you can care for your leaders?

Send them a handwritten note.

We are in a technology-driven age, which is why receiving a handwritten note or card is so important. It shows such intentionality and a desire for community that it truly builds a greater connectivity between you and your leaders. A handwritten note shows your leaders how much you care about them and can truly be a highlight for them.

Ask them how you can pray for them and follow up on the request.

Praying for and with your leaders is a deeply personal and spiritual way of caring for your leaders because it shows them you care about them as a person. It shows that you don’t just see them as a volunteer but someone you truly care about and want to see thrive in all capacities. Spend time asking how they are doing, how their families are doing, what’s going on in their lives, how they are handling work, and what they need prayer for. By doing this, you are showing them how important and meaningful your relationship with them is. In doing this, make sure to follow up with them on their requests and check in to see how they are doing.

Call them.

Reaching out to your leaders with a phone call that isn’t work or ministry based will mean a lot. When the focus of your connection isn’t simply checking in on them from a ministry context, it allows you to strengthen your relational equity with them. Call them and ask how they’re doing. Check in with them and how you can care for them. Have a casual conversation and see them as more than a volunteer. This type of connection will strengthen your friendship with them and also help them to grow closer to you as they see your heart and passion.

Take them out for coffee or a meal.

One of my favorite things to do with my leaders is take them out to a local coffee shop and just share life. It allows us to build rapport and community together and it’s in a comfortable setting. However, doing something like this means working around your leaders’ schedules. I think we can get in the habit of doing things on our time table, but ministry timetables are often different. So we need to remember that to care for our leaders well and to go out with them means doing so when it works best for them.

Invest in them and their families.

Caring for your leaders means investing in them and their families. Leaders often sacrifice time at home to be with students, especially if they serve weekly and/or go on trips. So investing in your leaders by being involved in their lives and knowing how their families are doing is huge! Know if their kids are engaged in sports or other extracurriculars. Be aware of how their spouse is doing. Acknowledge how their jobs have been going. Be there during the hard moments. Care about them and love them where they are at. These are moments when your leaders will feel cared for because they see it is bigger than just them as you love and care for their families.

Praise them personally and publicly.

I love to do this! I love praising my leaders in front of my students and in front of the church. I want everyone to see how awesome my leaders are so I praise them whenever I can. We also highlight different leaders at our training sessions and thank them at key gathering throughout the year. It is also important to thank them privately. There are many moments we can thank our leaders for that may not be for the public setting. And those are moments that leaders will remember because you are being intentional and approaching them individually to praise them.

Share life with them.

Inviting your leaders over to watch football, going to a trivia night together, hosting a BBQ, or doing a movie and game night are all fun ways to engage with your leaders in everyday life. You can simply invite them to share in normal moments where you can laugh and have fun together.

Send them a gift.

We ask our leaders each year to fill out a brief questionnaire that has questions like, “What is your favorite candy bar?” Or, “If I got a gift to (fill in the blank) I’d be really happy.” And, “My favorite place to shop is (fill in the blank).” I know not every ministry can afford to do this type of thing regularly, but being able to surprise or bless your leaders with a gift card or gift is a special and tangible way of showing them you care.

6 Tips for Designing Your Space

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Typically there are two responses to this type of an article: I don’t have a designated space or I already have my space set up.

Those responses highlight a mentality of frustration or completion and I can fully resonate with both. When you don’t have a space that is specifically for your ministry due to multipurpose usage it can be really discouraging and frustrating. On the other hand when you have your space and it is fully set and designed how you like, your response may be to continue with the status quo, because why change what is working?

But may I suggest to you that neither of those responses are helpful nor beneficial? In fact both of those attitudes can lend themselves to complacency and an unwillingness to adapt and change. That is not a helpful place to be because it leads to tensions, frustrations, resentments, and bitterness. Instead what we should should be doing is thinking creatively and identifying ways in which our space can be most utilized to reach and impact the communities we serve. The question then is how can we design and utilize our space to that end?

1. Know your ambiance.

What is the vibe that you want your ministry to have? Is it a classroom setting? Do you want it to feel more like a party? Or is it a coffee shop environment? It may be none of these or a hybrid of a few different options. Regardless of what you choose, how you embrace the ambiance and build your space to reflect that is key. So know what you are going for and commit to it.

2. Consider your lighting options.

Our space is pretty set with lighting options because it’s a multipurpose room. This means we can’t add or change anything unless it is something the entire church agrees on or the items must be able to be removed after each event. For us, that means that either we use the lights that are in the room or we get creative. We chose to get creative and we have purchased floor lamps and market lights to change the ambiance of the room for our youth group nights. While yes, they do make set up a bit longer, the change of lighting and the effect it has on our environment has been more than worth it.

3. Think about seating.

Here’s the thing: chairs and tables aren’t always necessary. They can add to an environment but they can also detract from it. Deciding how you want people sitting may sound like it isn’t important but it can shift the the entire ambiance and purpose of your space.

When I started at our church, Sunday mornings were a little dull and lifeless. Students would come and sit in rows and there wasn’t a reason for why we had rows. So I shook it up, and we moved to round tables with chairs to foster conversations and discussion on what we were teaching. Changing seating will switch up the ambiance, the energy, and even the purpose of what you’re seeking to accomplish. So think through how you want your seating to be and make sure it matches your vision and purpose.

4. Intentionally set up your room.

We just talked about chairs and tables but it is important to think through your room setup holistically. Where do you have your TV or your projector? Where are you putting snacks? Does your room setup convey a welcoming environment? Where and how will you incorporate games and activities?

Like I said above, we utilize round tables and chairs but that really inhibits us from being able to do active and mobile games. We knew that with our current set up we would need to be creative, so we utilize PowerPoint games that are usually in an all-play style.

We should also think through how our rooms bring people in and what we are conveying. Is it welcoming? Does it feel warm and inviting? How are students engaging and interacting? These questions will help us to think critically about room setup and if it is what we need for our program.

5. Incorporate student elements.

This is something I would love to do in our main spaces, but unfortunately cannot at this time. Instead I’ve encouraged students to bring in paintings and drawings, poetry, photos, stories they wrote, sculptures, or any other artistic elements to decorate our Leader Hub. Allowing students to contribute not only highlights their gifts and skill sets, it also helps to encourage your leaders as they see their students growing and flourishing.

6. Utilize food and music.

Music and food are two amazing elements we often don’t consider but just have at our gatherings. But why do we use them and how should we use them? Food is a natural barrier breaker. Have you ever noticed how often Jesus had conversations around food? I believe it is because when you share a meal, people’s walls start to come down and it allows us to engage in community. So as you think about designing your space, think about where you’ll be incorporating food and if it is truly helping your group engage in community. If food is at the back of the room and difficult to get to, you aren’t helping your cause. But if it is readily accessible and in a place students see, it will help you succeed in your vision for your program.

Music is hugely important when it comes to designing your space. Have you ever gone to a coffee shop or a supermarket and there’s no music playing? It’s a little creepy right? We begin to wonder why there isn’t music, it feels awkward, and we pull inward. The same is true for student spaces. You could have the most beautiful space but if there’s no excitement and nothing filling the dead air, students will not want to be there. So play music but also think about what kind of music you want, and how it is rounding out the environment you are seeking to create.