I think the months of January through March are probably the most difficult season for most youth ministries.  I’m not sure all the reasons for it but I’m assuming that in part it’s because the “newness” of fall ministry is over. Friendship patterns are set and life for many students has settled into a pretty standard routine.  As the school year progresses there is often more work and much of it seems to happen right as the semester is ending in January. For many students depending on how they did the first semester they may have to start some new habits (or have them given to them by parents) which forces them often to make choices which sometimes leaves the youth ministry out of their lives.  Depending on your region weather can have a big impact on the youth ministry. If you don’t have a good facility and you are forced to move everything inside it can really kill any of your groups momentum.

I think too there are often not a lot of things for students to look forward to during this season. It’s the time where they are just “holding on” trying to make it to spring break, warmer weather and/or the hope of the coming summer.

But, I think there are some things we can do during this season that could help our ministries.  We don’t have to go into hibernation mode for these months. There are things that could bring a spark or create some new connection points for students that may help them and your ministry continue to thrive during these bleak months. I’m going to just list out a few below with a couple comments. This is by no means a definitive list. It’s just a few things I think about.

1. Winter Camp-  One thing I’ve done at every church I’ve worked at (except my current church because we do it in Dec) is to have a February winter camp experience. This gives the students something to look forward too, connects them with each other in the middle of the winter months and kickstarts your ministry. Depending on the camp and it’s program you may end up with a bunch of students who have recommitted to their faith (something I’m actually a huge fan of) and they may come back the next week with a new energy and excitement.

2. Mix Up Small groups-  If you do small groups this may be a good season to try something new. Instead of just meeting as the same small group you did in the fall what if you partnered up with another group for a few times in the winter. Maybe even connect the genders and do some studies. You might find that knowing that their group would be different for a season might actually draw students to come back.  And maybe have the small groups host some fun activities too. A 20 week series on the book of Revelation can get pretty tedious in the winter.  (by tedious I mean monotonous and borring)

3. Try a new event-  One thing I’m actually a fan of is trying something new. Just set it up well so that you won’t lose any money if a lot of students don’t come.  You can use the fall to get to know your new students and see what they like to do and then throw an event or activity in the winter that you know would be something they would do.

4. Encourage Community- Just yesterday I ran into a couple of students just “hanging out” at Starbucks. Maybe during this season students in your group don’t want big events but want to be with each other doing nothing. What if you bought some Starbucks cards for leaders (or even for student leaders) and encouraged them to all meet at a coffee shop for an afternoon. See what type of community could happen.

5. Focus on Service-  After just coming through the Holiday Season most students will recognize they were lucky and blessed to have the families and resource they do.  You can use this to help shift their awareness off of themselves and towards helping them have a heart for others.  One thing we have done during the winter season is the 30 hour famine.  It’s a great program that can help your students look beyond themselves and actually make a difference.

6. Bring in guest speakers-  If you are typically the main teacher at Sunday School or Youth Group they have now heard you speak a lot since September. Maybe mix things up and have some different leadership.  One thing that would be cool is if you spent some time mentoring and working with some of your student leaders in the spring and have them teach in the winter.  I imagine that there would be some great draw for their friends if they know one of their own was sharing that morning or evening.

7. Be Creative-  I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t like it when things become to routine. If I know Sunday School is going to be the same thing week after week then I know if I miss a week I didn’t really miss anything.  I’m a big fan of trying new things and surprising students. One thing we talked about a lot on my leadership team this last year was what kind of effort are we putting into the programs.  Not that “programs” will make all the difference but I think students pick up on our excitement and effort and what we model.

8. Look Ahead-  One thing we have always done is to get our posters, flyers for spring break or summer events, trips and activities up during the winter.  Having all of these things on the walls to look forward too can sometimes really help some students who are feeling the winter blues. I’ll be the first to admit that I need something to look forward that I can think about, talk about and be preparing for.

That’s it. Just a few tips and ideas. Hope some of them work for you.  If you have some other things that you do during the winter months I’d love to hear about them. Just respond in the

I’ve been writing some practical Youth Ministry posts at the Slant33 blog this year. If you are in youth ministry and seeking some very specific questions and answers dealing with the practical side of the ins and outs of youth ministry leadership I recommend you go over there.  My most recent post is below. I encourage you to go to the source though so you can see the other 2 writers and where we agree or disagree.

How do you know when it’s time to consider moving on from a youth ministry role?

I should start out by saying that I have worked at 4 churches so I have a few thoughts about transitions.  I’ll also be transparent here and say in most cases I made good decisions but there is still one church I left that I still question if it was right.

First a funny story:  About 10 years ago I was asked to apply for a job at a large camp in Southern California.  At the time I had a great job already, was going to school (church was paying) and had just bought a house. We were happy. But, I felt like God had opened a door that I needed to explore because when I took the job at this church I specifically told them if this camp ever called and asked me to interview I would.  I made it to the final two in that search but ultimately I just didn’t feel like it was the right decision to pursue that job. So when we started talking about salary and things like that I shot really high because I didn’t want to leave.  It was the greatest decision to stay and I had years of amazing ministry at that church.  Well about three years ago the same thing happened again. Same camp called me.  And in similar fashion I made it to the top 2. And just like before I didn’t want to leave my job but felt like I should at least interview.  Well just like the time 7 years before I didn’t get the job and it just confirmed in me that I was supposed to stay where I was.  I joke about these two situations because in both cases the same person was hired. A woman I respect and think is amazing.  So what I like to say is “Sometimes God speaks in a still small voice and sometimes in my life he just uses Angie.”

Transitions are always difficult to navigate.  In many cases in the youth ministry world churches assume that we won’t stay long term when they hire us. Unfortunately, that preconceived notion by many churches that we will only be there for short-term makes them not commit much to us.

Now there are youth ministers who stay at their churches for a very long time. I think that’s great and commend them for that commitment. We would better serve the world of youth ministry if we all did that. But, it is often just not possible.

So how do you know it’s time to leave or go? Here’s a couple thoughts.

How are your heart and soul?  I work at a church now that I love. I love my staff, the students, families and the whole community.  I wake up in the morning thinking about the church and am really excited about all the possibilities there.  Most of the time I feel like I am valued, contribute and that people care for me.  I worked at a church once where I didn’t feel any of those things.  That was hard.  I think self evaluation of how you are doing at your soul is a huge step.  If you feel like you are at a place that nurtures and cares for it then you are in a good place. If the opposite is true then you might want to consider a transition.

How are you compensated?  I mean way more than money here but I’ll start out by talking about strict finances. Do you get paid enough to live on? Are you able to make ends meet and not eat noodles every night?  Does the church have a plan for how you might be compensated better during life transitions or milestones?  Often in our world churches don’t take care of you differently when you get married, have kids or graduate from college or seminary.  This is especially true in this economy when things are tight.  But, this is a long term question you will have to wrestle with.  Now it may be that you are compensated fairly and I don’t think $ should be at the top of our list when it comes to transitions but it is a factor.

Is there opportunity for growth?  This sounds way more like a business question than a church question but I think it’s still worth asking.  If you’ve been in your job for a while and do it well is there any opportunity to take on more leadership and responsibilities?   In many cases the answer is yes and you could see yourself sticking around for a long time because there are places you can move into as your life changes.  I’ve moved into more of a leader of leaders role as I’ve gotten older and been around longer.  It’s a good place for me.  If you are in a role that will likely never change and you feel already like you are butting up against a ceiling you might want to consider a transition.

What happens when you graduate from school?  I’m a huge proponent in education and for preparation.  Because of that I’ve gotten a masters degree and more.  Graduation is a natural time of transition. I left a church after I graduated from seminary. It was a great transition and everyone celebrated with me.  It may be that you are more qualified for a different role after graduation and doors are opening to you.  You might find though that your church wants to have you move into something else or they want to financially reward you more.

Are you done?  This is a simple yet profound question. The hardest year of ministry for me is always the 5^th year. It is the year after the first group of students that I started with as 9^th graders graduate. We are not supposed to have favorites but in general that first class that I spent 4 years with will always be mine. So the year after they graduated was a difficult year. I missed them a ton. I was done that year but stuck around for 2 more because I didn’t feel like leaving.   All of us will get to a point where we recognize that we know we are finished with our role.  But, many of us like paychecks and hate transition and just stick around because we are to scared to follow God somewhere else.

One thing I really like about the Slant33 blog is that you can read two other peoples thoughts here about transitions.  Getting multiple opinions is probably really helpful for you.  All situations are different.  My last bit of advice is to say you have to weigh all factors before making any decision. Focusing too much on any one factor will probably lead you to make the wrong decision. I did that once. I decided a location I wanted to live and a beach that I wanted to spend a lot of time at.  My blinders came up and I didn’t weigh all the factors.  Great beach, wrong church.

This last weekend I was in San Diego for the National Youth Workers Convention. I’m not sure how many of these I’ve been to but I’m pretty sure I haven’t missed more than 1 since 1997.  And the last 3 years I’ve been to all of them so I guess that’s at least 20.   These weekends are huge highlights for me because they involve seeing friends, meeting new people and engaging with the tribe of people who I feel most embody the career that God has put me in. I love youth workers and I love being around people who care about the lives of students and families.

There were a couple major highlights for me this last weekend.

First, I was encouraged to see how many new people were there teaching and leading.  I joked with several people how much I was stoked that they moved into their new roles.  I think one thing that YS has done well this year is identifying new voices and great talented people and giving them opportunities to lead.

Second, I loved the way that the teaching times had different learning modes. Last January I was with the NYWC planning team and we all sort of collectively ended up thinking about this one.  This year we had lectures, panels, fishbowls and collaborations. I taught a seminar for people who work with large staff teams and it was definitely a collaborative experience and I learned just as much from them as I hope they did from me.

Third, there were some amazing theological panels that I thought really filled in a necessary area at the conference.  For more info about those just click Mike King’s post because he wrote a great one about it today.

If you vibe with any of those things and haven’t made up your mind yet I want to encourage you to come and join us in Atlanta Nov 17-20.  Click here to get more info and sign up. We’d love to have you and I would personally love to connect and hang out.

I was on the Simple Youth Ministry Podcast this morning with Kurt Johnson and Jake Rutenbar.  It was a bit of a technological disaster at the beginning but we ended up making it happen and hopefully I didn’t look like too much of a fat kid on the video.  I enjoyed talking about my book “Youth Ministry on a Shoestring” and how that whole thing came about.

One thing that we talked about that they guys felt like I zinged them with was the idea of thinking about resources before planning events and activities. Specifically I mentioned that I once had a huge storage unit of toys, games, supplies, surfboards etc that sat and only got used once or twice year. They laughed and talked about their closets filled with stuff too.

One thing I advocate in my book is figuring out a way to share resources. I tell the story about how many of my neighbors own lawnmowers and how it’s so silly that we only use those things about once a week and the rest of the time they sit in our garage taking up space.

Here’s a quick challenge to think about.  What resources do you have available to you at your church that doesn’t get used very much and could bless some other people if they had access to it.  Maybe part of your “stewardship” of what God has given you is to think about how you can release some of these resources and provide a way for other youth ministries to do some cool things they otherwise might not be able to do.

I’m Lars. A youthpastor