Alvin Lau

26 07, 2014

SL-Toronto: Update

By Alvin|2016-10-31T13:57:18-04:00July 26th, 2014|Alvin Lau, event recap|0 Comments

This last week, 99 students and leaders from four churches (two from the Chicago area, two from the Green Bay area) visited Toronto to participate in Lead222's Servant Leadership experience. CBOQ Youth was a key partner in helping to arrange project sites for them to visit, including St. Jude's Academy of the Arts, Christian Horizons, Matthew House, Toronto City Mission and Youth Unlimited. These teams helped with cleaning projects, served

17 06, 2014

Gear Shift in Ministry Life

By Alvin|2016-10-31T13:57:18-04:00June 17th, 2014|Alvin Lau, youth ministry thoughts|0 Comments

We all go through cycles and season. Some can be tremendously busy. Others allow for a slower pace. At CBOQ Youth, our high season is January to March. That’s where we work the longest hours and put in the most intense energies. In the summer, our pacing typically slows down. It allows for us to shift gears. As I (Alvin) approach the summer season, a couple of reminders strike me.

14 06, 2014

Assembly 2014: review

By Alvin|2014-06-14T19:35:12-04:00June 14th, 2014|Alvin Lau, event recap|0 Comments

This is my (Alvin's) 14th Assembly. The structure and program has changed over the years. But something remains the same (at least it has for the last 14 years): a sense of the Spirit gathering others together for Him. There have been years where it hasn't really felt as such. There are faces that I see maybe once a year. But each time, it's as if it was only yesterday.

4 06, 2014

Assembly 2014 – Before it Begins

By Alvin|2016-10-31T13:57:19-04:00June 4th, 2014|Alvin Lau|0 Comments

This week, we gather with friends across all our churches. It's really a family reunion of our CBOQ tribe. (You can decide who's the crazy uncle at the family gathering.)There's lots happening in the next few days: David Fitch, our plenary speaker, will help us understand some of God's movements in our culture today. Did you know our plenary sessions (Thursday night, Friday night, Saturday midday) are FREE for EVERYONE?!

28 05, 2014

Celebrate!

By Alvin|2014-05-28T02:51:05-04:00May 28th, 2014|Alvin Lau, youth ministry thoughts|0 Comments

With less than one month left in the school year, it's a natural time to celebrate. Even if you have a lot of activities planned, having a time to bring closure to another mnistry cycle allows for reflection and thanksgiving for what God has empowered the last 10 months. At CBOQ Youth, we have much to celebrate: over 2000 students and leaders influenced through our events dozens of churhes and

20 05, 2014

Parental Care: a core of youth ministry

By Alvin|2014-05-20T18:28:23-04:00May 20th, 2014|Alvin Lau, parental care, youth ministry thoughts|0 Comments

Nowadays, many youth ministries are focusing some time and attention towards parents. After all, almost all of them believe the parent is the primary caregiver (spiritual or otherwise) to their child (based from Deuteronomy 6). How that is carried out in practical terms is still in early development. Too many times, some youth ministries interpret "support parents" as keeping them involved and possibly having them volunteer. However, that seems to

3 05, 2014

All the Details in Change

By Alvin|2014-05-03T04:29:04-04:00May 3rd, 2014|Alvin Lau, youth ministry thoughts|0 Comments

At our office, we’re in the middle of switching our email system from Lotus Domino to Microsoft Exchange (that's been a long time coming). As part of an implementation team, we designed a plan that seemed to be solid and well thought out. We thought had answered all the pertinent questions. But as we started moving forward with it, a lot of unforeseen details came out that we never did

23 04, 2014

Finding your youth ministry's Next Steps

By Alvin|2014-04-23T04:48:22-04:00April 23rd, 2014|Alvin Lau, youth ministry thoughts|0 Comments

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. (Lao-tzu) What grand plans do you have? For some, youth ministry is seen as a catalyst for change, whether in students or for the church as a whole. For others, they have no idea where the youth ministry is going next week let alone three years down the road. (Change can be petrifying.) So how do you move forward

14 04, 2014

Transitions: from one chapter to the next

By Alvin|2016-10-31T13:57:19-04:00April 14th, 2014|Alvin Lau, youth ministry thoughts|0 Comments

Change can be hard. Some people thrive on it. Others are paralyzed by it. As they say, change is inevitable. How we prepare for it is vital. Hemorrhaging Faith demonstrated that transitions are key opportunities for churches to support children and youth. So what are key steps in ensuring an effective transition? Here are some suggestions from a youth worker's perspective. FROM CHILDREN'S MINISTRY TO YOUTH MINISTRY With your children's

9 04, 2014

For One Reason and one reason only

By Alvin|2016-10-31T13:57:19-04:00April 9th, 2014|Alvin Lau, youth ministry thoughts|0 Comments

I once heard someone remark, "If you really want to get a lot of students to come to your youth group, just bring in a keg of beer." While his comments may be satirical about how some churches overvalue numbers as a marker for success, it does ask a vital question: What is it that separates a youth group from any other youth gathering? All around us, there are seemingly