Tag: Resources

Planning Ahead: Empowering Students to Participate in Lent

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If you’re like me, you grew up in a church tradition that did not incorporate participation in Lent. It wasn’t until I was in college that I learned Lent wasn’t just something for Catholics, and that many of my Protestant friends also participated. Still, Lent wasn’t something I considered participating in until I heard a podcast on the topic, and felt challenged to join.

For the past several years, I’ve found different ways to participate, each one bringing more depth and understanding to my relationship with Jesus, and my yearly journey toward Easter. I’ve learned that Lent is about so much more than just “giving up” something. It’s about engaging in rhythms that prepare our hearts for the Christian life and our calling to follow Jesus wholeheartedly.

I think Lent can be meaningful for our students, too, if they are empowered and equipped to participate well. If this isn’t something your ministry is already doing, let me encourage you to consider it. I also want to share some ideas, which I hope are helpful whether you’re already doing Lent as a student ministry initiative or considering it.

Reimagine intentional fasting.

Fasting is typically the “big” aspect of Lent that we think of, and it can be a beautiful rhythm to engage in intentionally. When it comes to our students, I think we have to treat fasting with care as some students’ relationships with food can be complicated.

Rather than simply focusing on fasting from food, I would encourage you to challenge your students to ask themselves, “What thing has the potential to be, or has become, an idol in my life that I can give up during Lent?” Help your students drill down on the things that most often draw their attention away from God, or that they use to self-medicate, that they can feasibly fast from for over a month.

Students might be tempted to list things like school, friends, sports or other activities, which they can’t realistically take a break from. So you may need to offer guidance and help them determine what can be removed. Maybe it’s social media and using that as their primary way of connecting with friends. Maybe it’s intentionally stepping away from homework for 15 minutes each day to read the Bible and pray in a quiet space.

If a student does want to fast from a food item, encourage them to choose something that isn’t good for them, or has the tendency to become an “emotional support” food. This could include fasting from desserts and candy, soft drinks, or junky snack foods.

While they’re fasting, students should be encouraged to turn their thoughts to God, especially if they’re struggling with it. The reminder in fasting is that we desperately need and depend on God, more than the thing we’re fasting from and missing. In those moments of struggle, they can choose to engage in a spiritual rhythm. (More on that below.)

Include an intentional “feast day.”

When I was learning about Lent, I liked the idea of making Sundays a “feast day.” And while that meant indulging in something I was fasting from, more importantly, I loved the idea of celebrating the goodness of God. So rather than just having a day of indulgence, I wanted it to be intentional.

If students are creatively fasting, feast days may look different for them. Maybe it makes sense for them to fast the whole Lenten season, or maybe they can intentionally allow engagement on Sunday.

Another way to look at feast days is doing something as a group if you gather on Sunday mornings. Open up the floor to a time of sharing what students are learning, how they are celebrating God, and what they are thankful for. You could also provide treats that provide a physical feast element for students to partake in.

Do a group study.

I have loved doing daily studies throughout Lent that help me focus on the themes of the holiday season. Doing one as a group can help students engage on their own, but also feel part of a larger community participating in Lent together.

The YouVersion Bible app often has a Lent study or two available, which can make it easy to participate as a group if you initiate the study and invite the students to join. Another option if you have time is to create your own study, which affords the ability to cater it to your specific group. Just make sure to give yourself plenty of time to create it if you go this route.

Focus on spiritual rhythms.

Lent is also about engaging in other spiritual rhythms, not just fasting, though they can go hand-in-hand. I grew up hearing that prayer was an integral part of fasting, as it helps us remain strong. Lent is also an opportunity to pray for something consistently for a set period of time and watch for God’s answer.

Another spiritual rhythm I love to engage in during Lent is meditation on Scripture. I frequently choose one verse to focus on or memorize. Before I get out of bed in the morning, I read the verse and pray to start the day.

Another traditional part of Lent is giving. This can be monetary, and you can find a ministry, organization or person to support as a group. Or, if your students don’t have money to give, you can help them identify needs of others and find creative ways to participate. Maybe they can give of their time to help with childcare or service projects. Or they can give of their talents to play music or create art for homebound seniors.

These are just some of the rhythms you can direct your students to engage in during Lent. They can also journal, practice intentionally sitting in silence, or create something based on what they are learning (art, poetry, a story, a song, photographs, etc.).

Incorporate observances into your weekly programming.

If you’re doing Lent as a group, can you tie it into weekly meetings? Think of lessons that dig into the themes of Lent, or a series that follows Jesus’ ministry and journey to the cross. Maybe you want to incorporate communion into one or more of your meetings.

You can provide unique ways for students to engage during lessons with quiet time to meditate, pray in color, or memorize a passage as a group. You can also turn Sundays into a time of celebration where students worship, sing, and create art together.

Or you may decide to create an Easter experience for your students as Lent draws to a close. We’ve written a couple of posts along these lines, one about creating an Easter encounter and another about helping students engage with the holiday. This could serve as the conclusion to your students’ observance of Lent.

Product Review: Habutway Beanbag Chairs

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A couple of years ago we recognized that our middle school area needed a refresh when it came to seating. Our high school area had couches, some bistro tables and chairs, and some smaller round cafe-style tables with chairs. In our high school area we could have more control over the environment and setting but our middle school area only had some couches that were woefully outdated.

We began looking around online trying to find various options. We looked at purchasing newer couches but they were beyond our budget. Floor cushions were an option but it didn’t feel like we valued our middle school students. We contemplated simply putting out more chairs and tables but it felt like middle school was simply forgotten and high school was where intentional environments happened.

Then we happened upon Habutway Bean Bag Chairs. Prior to purchasing these bean bag chairs I was very anti bean bags because I have seen what happens when all the little beads explode out of them. And let me tell you, the clean up for those things is not fun.

However, these bean bag chairs have memory foam in them, so even if they were to “pop” it would not require the same clean up as the others. We purchased three of these chairs and they arrived vacuum packed which meant that packages were significantly smaller than the actually bean bag chairs. Once you take them out of the packaging, you need to break up the foam by tossing the chairs onto the floor and give them around 24 hours to fully “inflate.”

When we put these out for the first time, our students fell in love with them. They have quickly become the most sought-after seats in our program and students love to jump on them and see how many people they can fit on the bean bag.

These bags are incredibly durable and have held up to the wear and tear over the years. The outer covering is also machine washable which is a huge perk when working with students who often have food and drinks or come right to youth group from sports practice.

The one downside for our ministry though is storage space. We meet in a multipurpose space so we need to find a place to store these bean bag chairs and that means stacking them in one of our closets each week. These bean bag chairs aren’t super heavy but they aren’t light either which adds some complexity to stacking them in storage.

Overall, these are a great addition to any ministry space. I highly recommend them, and you can choose from a variety of colors and a couple different sizes. These are a great win for students and will quickly help make your space feel more inviting and welcoming.

Resource: Pastor Stays

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Have you ever needed a vacation? Of course you have; we all have. But let me ask a different question: Have you ever needed a vacation but couldn’t afford one?

Those of us in ministry are acutely aware of the reality that we didn’t go into this profession to get rich. We know that working for a nonprofit isn’t necessarily going to have us rolling in the dough, and there will be plenty of times when we may have pinch pennies (or nickels since pennies are not being made anymore) to get by.

In my years of serving in ministry and talking to other ministers and church workers, one of the places that typically gets pinched or cut early on is a vacation or time away.

This is honestly heartbreaking because not only does it devalue the work that pastors and church workers do, but it also doesn’t allow for them to recharge well. It keeps their families from being able to enjoy time away with their loved ones.

I’ve met countless pastors whose families have never taken a vacation unless someone else paid. I’ve talked to kids of pastors who have been made fun of because they never understood what it was like to take a vacation because all they did were staycations.

This should evoke much deeper conversations about compensation, care, and support for pastors, but that is a conversation for another time. What I want to talk about today is a resource to pastors that offers reduced and free stays at homes and retreat centers around the country. Essentially, think about staying in an Airbnb or Vrbo for free and being able to spend quality time with your family refreshing and recharging. Sound too good to be true? It’s not.

Let me introduce you to Pastor Stays. One of my good friends mentioned this to me when I was thinking about taking a vacation and trying to find a place to stay. When you head to their website, you’ll see a handful of the stays they have and be able to read up on the history and mission of the organization.

This is a ministry that came about during the 2020 pandemic from the vision of Troy and Jana Jones to bless other pastors and their families. Their heart truly radiates as you read through the website and see their desire to care for others.

In order to get access to their website, you need to create a profile and it is a little extensive. They want to get basic information but also to know who is applying. They ask for ministry history and your story. They will also ask for documentation like your ministry credentials to validate that you’re actively serving in ministry and truly a pastor.

When I filled it out, I realized that my ordination certificate was from the first church I pastored and I wasn’t sure if it would be approved. I reached out to their team and received a quick response stating that my ordination would be received without issue and once it was submitted my application would be reviewed.

Each submission is looked at by the Pastor Stays team to validate that a pastor is actually applying and seeking to appropriately utilize this resource. Once approved, you’ll have access to all the different homes and rooms available on the site.

The search function doesn’t always work well if you’re looking for something in a place where there aren’t available homes. However, all of the homes are listed on the home page. The list will ebb and flow as more homes become available.

When you click on the place you’d like to stay you’ll be met with photos, a description of the property, amenities and additional details. If this property works for you, you can submit a brief form requesting to book the property. Many of the properties are free but some do require a reduced payment.

One of the realities of utilizing this website is that these properties may require a bit of travel to get to. However, not having to pay or paying a reduced cost for your stay can make the cost of traveling a little more palatable and affordable. Overall this is an amazing blessing and opportunity for pastors and their families, and we would highly recommend taking advantage of this resource.

Planning Ahead: Teaching Calendars

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Welcome to a brand new series called “Planning Ahead.” This series is intentionally designed to help youth workers think through strategically planning for specific events, dates, and bench markers in ministry.

We will talk about fall kickoffs, Christmas parties, Lent, training sessions, and more. Our hope with this series is to provide you with practical steps to help you succeed in ministry by setting benchmarks in planning and sharing insights we have learned along the way.

If your experience starting out in ministry is anything like mine, I wasn’t taught strategic planning. I didn’t know how important it was to plan ahead or build out a teaching calendar. I didn’t see how intentionality wasn’t just intended for teaching and preaching but also in how we structure, prepare for, and implement important events and key programmatic pieces within our ministries.

I’ve learned how important planning ahead is not just for my own sanity but also for our students, families, and volunteers. When we plan ahead we show intentionality, communicate value and worth, help everyone to understand what we are doing and why. We are able to unify under a shared vision and goal.

So with that in mind, today I wanted to share about intentionally building out teaching calendars by answering some common questions surrounding them.

How far in advance should we plan?

When it comes to a teaching calendar, I plan a semester ahead and I typically don’t plan for a whole year. We curate our content for a semester at a time and try to have it finalized months before the next semester rolls around.

That means we typically have our fall teaching calendar finalized around May or June and our spring teaching calendar finalized around October or November. When you plan this far ahead, it allows you to start recruiting teachers, planning for different events, and strategically choosing teaching series.

How do we pick what we will teach?

When I first started in student ministry, I picked topics that I thought were relevant or that sounded cool. Curriculum with catchy titles and graphics were always a win. But we need to think beyond just what will be relevant or “cool” and instead plan with intentionality, purpose, and vision. That means when you are choosing what you will teach, you do so in light of those things as well as choosing relevant and necessary topics.

So plan your teaching around your vision, themes that you’ll focus on in your ministry, and key dates or momentum seasons. You can also begin building a 3, 4, or 7 year curriculum track based on how your program functions. You could choose a 3 year curriculum for middle school and a 4 year curriculum for high school that repeats (with updated changes as needed) to help students move through key life phases and seasons.

What should be included?

This is a question I used to wrestle with when I was younger because I would second guess myself. But here’s the thing: you know your students best and that means you know what they need to hear and be guided in. Trust your instincts and lean into your group dynamics.

But I would also encourage you to pay attention to culture, what Gen Z and Gen Alpha are searching for, and what students are grappling with overall. You can do this by talking to other youth workers, joining online communities, stepping into various cohorts, and following organizations like CPYU, FYI, Barna, others. If you utilize those key pieces to think about what is being taught, you will have a solid teaching calendar.

How many calendars should you have?

Sometimes I see ministries with multiple calendars and frankly that can get confusing. Instead of having multiple calendars, look to simplify down to one. Yes, you may need to have a calendar for families and one for leaders, but trying to simply the amount of calendars also allows your communication to be simplified and concise which provides clarity for everyone.

I won’t lie to you and tell you that if you do all these things that you’ll always hit it out of the park. We all swing and miss at times. But I will tell you that you will see more success and you can fine tune the necessary areas to fully pour into your community.

Resource Review: The FYI on Youth Ministry Podcast

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I love listening to podcasts. I listen to everything from The Pour Over to Crime Junkies to The Holy Post. My taste is fairly eclectic and I’m always looking to add more podcasts to my playlist. I also really love to listen to ones that challenge me and help me to grow as leader, person, and Christ-follower.

Recently, I came across The FYI on Youth Ministry podcast that is currently hosted by Kara Powell. This is a podcast from the Fuller Youth Institute that brings together insights, research, advice, and stories and experiences from people who serve in the trenches of ministry. It is a conversational podcast that truly helps to inform, equip, and challenge those who serve in student ministry or oversee staff who do.

I must confess, that I’ve only recently started listening to this podcast but in that short amount of time, I’ve binged multiple episodes buecasue of how solid and beneficial the content is. FYI is an amazing organization and I regularly get their emails and search their website for helpful content. Kara Powell is a researcher, author, and speaker who is well known in youth ministry circles. When you pair those two things together with a variety of insightful guests and experts in their fields on the show, this is a podcast that every youth worker should be listening to.

It is easy to listen to and very practical in the information that is shared. Much of the information will not just be helpful to paid youth workers but also to anyone who serves with students. In fact, I will be utilizing various episodes for my volunteers at upcoming training to help generate ideas, facilitate conversation, and provide insights to help all of us succeed in ministering to students.

As you look at the podcast, you’ll notice it is not updated super regularly, but that makes new episodes all the more exciting because it’s almost like a surprise party when they drop. In prior episodes, you’ll find a variety of other hosts from FYI and a range of topics including areas of self-care which is so important but often neglected in ministry circles. You’ll also find helpful topics that we should be engaging our students with and tips and resources for how to do so effectively and biblically.

Overall, this is a great podcast and one I would highly recommend to any youth worker. Whether you’re fresh out of college or a thirty-year veteran in student ministry, this podcast will be a great resource for you. Take a listen, and let us know in the comments what you think about the podcast.

Help! I Don’t Know How to Lead Students

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Sometimes in church life we may find ourselves in a role we never dreamed we’d fill. There may be no one else available, or we may feel God pulling us into a space outside our comfort zone. And sometimes, that may be serving in student ministry.

If this is you, or someone you know, let us encourage you/them. Students are amazing and, in our possibly biased opinion, one of the best groups in the church. While working with them may feel overwhelming, we want to encourage you that if you have a heart for students, you can do it.

The reality is that students crave genuine relationships and connection with others. You don’t need to be the cool leader, you just need to be the leader that genuinely cares, shows up, and listens. The best thing you can do is invest consistently in your students by being present, hearing and seeing them, and fostering a safe place for them to be themselves.

So what are some ways you can do this? Take a look at these tips we hope will get you started and help as you continue in this important ministry.

1. Commit to being present.

This doesn’t just mean showing up to every student ministry event, while that is extremely important. Students do need to see you physically present. It also means being mentally present with your students.

You can be mentally present by putting work and life stressors on the back burner and trying not to bring them with you to youth group. You can also make sure to spend your time with the students, not hanging out with other leaders or playing on your phone.

One of the best ways you can show students how important they are is by giving them your undivided attention when you are with them.

2. Actively listen to your students.

Listening is another way to be present. And while we are to guide and shepherd our students, the first thing they need to learn about us is that we are listening to them. This is how we show them that we genuinely care.

Practice active listening by seeking to understand what your students are saying and why, and by asking thoughtful follow-up questions that continue to foster the conversation. Don’t worry about handing out advice and instruction right away, and don’t listen just to give a response. Show students you are someone who will hear them and wants to know what they have to say.

3. Be yourself and don’t fake it.

Students can spot a fake a mile away, they’re naturally good at it. So do yourself a favor and don’t pretend to be something you’re not. Bring your authentic self to youth group and let that person shine.

The reality is not every single student will click with you, and that’s okay. You’re not there to be everyone’s best friend. But students should be able to see and know the real you, that is one of the best ways you can show them that they matter to you. Give students the respect they deserve by being real with them.

4. Have fun.

If you haven’t been around student ministry before, one thing you need to know about students is that they love to have fun. Whether it’s playing 9 Square, hanging out with their friends, playing sports or music at school, getting crafty and creative, or whatever else they enjoy, students are always up for having a good time.

Since your students like to have fun (and because we serve a God who created a world for us to enjoy), we can also have fun with them. It doesn’t mean you have to do all the things, but you can engage and have fun with them. Laugh, enjoy your time with them, play as you are able, and celebrate with them.

Having fun shows your students that you’re relatable, willing to meet them where they are at, and someone who desires to share life with them. And it can show them that you don’t take yourself too seriously.

If you want to dig a little deeper into leading students, we invite you to check out more of our blog posts! Here are a few to get you started:

Leading Students Well in Chaotic Times

Quick Tip: Giving Students Ownership

Leading Small Groups: Self-Guided Discussion

8 Keys to Building a Successful Student Ministry

Are You Asking the Right Questions?

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.

Fun Game Ideas for Student Ministry

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If you’re like me, games may not be your primary focus each week. I am not saying games are bad; I think they are a necessary and important part of student ministry.

But if I’m being honest, I don’t always think about them because I am not always wanting to lead games. I’d prefer to engage in conversations and just float around while interacting with students.

But, since I know how important games are, I wanted to share some ideas with you that are fun, easy to run, and do not take up a ton of prep time.

The Floor is Lava

This is an old school game that has been having a recent resurgence. If you aren’t familiar with the rules, the game is fairly simple: do not touch the ground or you are out.

The object of the game can vary from completing tasks like collecting objects or moving a team to a safe zone, to completing an obstacle course, to a last person standing challenge. The game can be as creative as you can imagine and will allow various people to play.

Seated Basketball/Soccer/Football

This is a personal favorite of mine. These games take the traditional sports we love and turn them on their heads. You do not have to be super athletic to play these games because you are seated the entire time.

Before you start the game, set up your playing area whether it is indoors or outdoors. Simply place chairs where players will sit the entire game or period and label which team they are for. Then have your students pick a chair and get ready to laugh.

The rules are the same for whatever the game is with one addition: students cannot move from their chair. Have leaders roaming to place the balls back in play when needed. You can also change up the rules and objectives to add another layer to the games.

Hula Hoop Volleyball

This is an easy game to set up and run with. Simply set up a volleyball net, or something in place of it like a sheet on a clothesline, and then place hula hoops on each side that are six feet apart. The rules for volleyball don’t change, except that students may not leave their hula hoop during the game unless it is to rotate spots during a change in servers.

Scattergories

This is a great game to play as a small or large group. You can do a quick Google search for categories and then run the game during youth group. You can simply click through the Google images to get ideas or check out a website like this one.

If you are playing as a small group give everyone a score sheet and have them all compete against one another. You or a leader will assign a letter and have the students write words beginning with it.

If you have a larger group, consider setting this up tournament style. Have students all compete with same letter and then when time is up they will compete only against the other person at their table. The winner will advance to the next table, while the loser stays at the table. If there is a tie have them play Rock, Paper, Scissors to decide the victor. The person with the most wins at the end is the champion.

Cornhole/Bags Tournament

If you do not have a couple sets of these for your youth ministry, let me highly encourage you to get some. I have purchased these before and they have held up very nicely.

You can turn it into a tournament to decide who is the best cornhole player. You can also set up varying degrees of game play (i.e. closer or farther away) to make it more of a challenge for your students.

Charades

Who doesn’t love a classic game of charades? The general idea is that you will have someone acting out an action, character, or activity that they have pulled from a hat. These can be pre-made by you and your volunteers or you can have students submit them.

There are lots of different ways to play Charades like as small groups guessing, or as a large group guessing, or even reverse charades where one person guesses while the whole group acts it out. Whichever one you choose, make sure to remind the people acting out that they can not make noise or they forfeit that round.

Head, Shoulders, Knees, Cup

Have you ever played head and shoulders before? You know the one with the classic song? It’s an easy game because you simply need an emcee up front who calls out what everyone needs to do. If they say head, everyone touches their heads. If they shout knees, then everyone touches their knees. In this version two people are facing each other with a cup on the ground in between them. The object of the game if simple: follow the directions and then when the emcee yells “cup,” both players try to grab the cup. The one who doesn’t get the cup is eliminated and the winner finds a new partner to compete with. Bonus tip: make sure there is enough distance between the players so they don’t bump heads when going for the cup.

Pull Up

All you need is a sound system and music, and someone who can start and stop the audio when needed. Have your group sit on the floor in a circle facing inward. Then choose an odd number of boys and girls to be in the middle. When the music starts the students in the middle must go to a member of the opposite gender, extend a hand, and “pull them up”. They then sit in the open spot and that new student in the middle continues by pulling up a member of the opposite gender. This continues until the music stops and the gender with the most people in the middle loses. Play for as long or short as you would like.

Drip, Drip, Drop

For this game you need just a little bit of prep: paper cups and water, and some towels if playing inside. I’d encourage you to play outside so you don’t have wet carpets. Have your students sit in a circle facing each other much like Duck, Duck, Goose. Pick on player to be it. They stand outside of the circle and are given a cup with a small hole in the bottom. Have them place their finger over the hole. When they start they go around the circle saying “drip” and dripping a small amount of water on the students’ heads. When they yell “drop” they turn the cup upside down on the person and have to run around the circle while being chased by the person they dropped on. If they make it to said person’s spot they are safe. If they are tagged they are it again.

Egg, Chicken, Dinosaur

This is a great alternative to Rock, Paper, Scissors and is really easy to pull off. Explain how to play Rock, Paper, Scissors to the group. Then explain that in this game you can only play with people who are the same as you: i.e. an egg, chicken, or dinosaur. Eggs can only play eggs, chickens can only play against chickens, and dinosaurs against a dinosaur. The kicker is they must walk or waddle in a manner that is befitting of an egg, chicken, or dinosaur. Participants all start as eggs. They must find another egg and play a best 2 out of 3 round of rock, paper, scissors, and if they win they become a chicken. When a chicken wins they become a dinosaur. If they lose a round they go back one level.

Lightsaber Duels

Participants must place one hand behind their back. They will then join in a battle with another person by locking their one hand with the other person’s hand. Students will then extend their pointer finger as their lightsaber. When the music starts they attempt to touch their “lightsaber” to the other person. They can “zap” them anywhere but they cannot bend their finger to complete a touch. If they are zapped they are out. The winner keeps advancing until only one remains.

Bucketball

This game requires some prep and a few quick items. Make sure you have buckets, cones, pinnies/colored shirts, and balls on hand before you play this game. For set up, place a bucket in the middle of a ring of cones for each team where one player (the scorer) will hold the bucket (approximately three feet in each direction from bucket to cone).

Divide your students into groups (we usually just do two but having more groups makes it interesting) and assign each group colored pinnies. The game is played in the same manner as ultimate Frisbee where the students must pass the ball down the field and are only allowed three steps with the ball. Points are scored by players throwing the ball (after three or more passes) to their scorer. The scorer will hold the bucket within the ring of cones and attempt to catch a ball in the bucket. Only balls that stay in the bucket count. The scorer may not go outside of the cone ring and the defense and offense may not go inside the cone ring. Feel free to add as many balls to the game as you would like.

Seated Basketball/Soccer

For this game you need a few items: chair, pinnies, balls, and extra leaders or students to collect stray balls. This game is played just like soccer or basketball in that the goals are the same which means you obtain points how you would normally (i.e. kicking a goal, making a basket). Divide your students into two teams and give them their pinnies. If you are playing soccer have the students remove their shoes to prevent potential injuries from kicking one another.

Have your students then grab a chair and give them 15-30 seconds to place their chair. Explain that this is the only place they may sit for the first half/quarter. Once they sit they may not move from that spot. When everyone has sat down introduce the balls for the game and explain that students must remain seated all the time, and failure to do so will put them in a penalty box. Explain that if no one can reach a ball it will be placed back into play by a leader. Assign times for your halves/quarters and then when a new one begins allow students to find a new spot to sit.

Cat and Mouse Tag

Have students pair up and link arms at the elbows. I would recommend not allowing them to hold hands or wrists as it can lead to injuries. Pick two students to start the game. Explain that one will be the cat who is it and will chase the other student who is the mouse. At any point during the chase the mouse can link up via their arm with a group and the person who is now on the outside is the new mouse. If the mouse is tagged then the roles are flipped and they are now the cat, and the cat is the mouse.

Death Sticks

Take some pool noodles and cut them in half and have your students each grab a chair. Place an odd number of pool noodles on an equal number of chairs in the middle of a large circle of chairs that your students make. Have each student sit in their chair. Then chose an odd number of students to stand in the middle that is equal to the number of chairs with noodles. Explain that this is a guy versus girl game (or however you would like it to be) where when the music starts the guys must take the noodle and bop a lady on her legs, and ladies must do the same to guys.

Once someone is bopped the person with the noodle must return the noodle to the chair they took it from (no throwing it must be placed) while being chased by the person they bopped. If the person who was bopped manages to retrieve the noodle when it placed down and bop the person who bopped them before they sit down in the vacant chair that person returns to the middle. If they cannot they are now in the middle and can bop someone. Winning team is the team with the least of their gender in the middle. And remember that a bop is a soft hit, not smacking someone hard with the noodle.

Review: The Bodies Behind the Bus Podcast

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Elise and I make a habit out of trying to listen to a wide variety of podcasts. Some are humorous, others are true crime, many are focused on ministry, and still others focus on sharing stories and critiques on ministry, leadership, and toxicity.

The Bodies Behind the Bus podcast focuses on the latter part of the list and truly seeks to help the church and ministry leaders be better at how they love, shepherd, and lead the church.

I do want to pause and address the “why” for a moment. Some of you may be asking, “why would you share a resource that can critique the church harshly and point out its flaws?” I think rather than simply ask that question we need to look at the causation for said question.

The cause is this: the church is made up of broken people and when broken people lead without checks, balances, and accountability, problems can and will arise. This leads to toxic leadership, unchecked authority, and a culture of harsh management and fear. This is the “why.”

When the church is made up of broken people, we must be striving to grow and be more aware to protect ourselves from falling into those categories as well as learning and empathizing with others who have been recipients of those negative behaviors.

With that being said, here is why I recommend this podcast. The hosts alternate between interviewing individuals who share their stories, digging deeper into hot topic issues surrounding churches, leadership, and culture, and dialoging about how the church needs to grow and change.

These episodes are highly informative and helpful to understand how to be a better leader who shepherds and cares for the flock. It also helps congregants and lay people understand what healthy leadership should look like while providing helpful and thoughtful ways to engage with your leadership.

The stories you will hear will pull at your heart as you empathize and sympathize with the story tellers. You will hear stories about churches and leaders you may know and many you do not. But by listening to each episode, you are allowing yourself to be shaped into a better leader by learning first and foremost how not to lead but also by becoming a better listener and shepherd for your people.

So often in the stories shared, people aren’t listened to and are dismissed. By allowing your heart and mind to hear these stories, you’re positioning yourself to be a better listener and leader because you’re seeing people where they are at and growing in your relational and emotional intelligence.

I will say this when it comes to The Bodies Behind the Bus: it may be helpful to take your intake slowly rather than the firehose method. These episodes, especially interviews with survivors, can be heavy and soul crushing. They are raw and can feature strong language, and as you hear the stories, stats, and fallout, your soul will grieve deeply. Because of that, it would be helpful to listen to the podcast in bite sized chunks rather than trying to power through many episodes at once.

You may not agree with everything in this podcast. I don’t expect you to. What I would challenge you to do is listen to it and allow for there to be room for empathy and sympathy in your heart as you hear the stories. Then allow for that to help mold you into the shepherd God has called you to be.