best practices Archives

20 11, 2017

Emergency Plan

By Alvin| 2017-11-16T16:17:08+00:00 November 20th, 2017|Alvin Lau, best practices|0 Comments

In youth ministry, you never know where circumstances may lead. Having an emergency plan and a list of emergency contacts is vital to quickly and effectively handling unforeseen situations. EMERGENCY PLAN Unexpected interruptions happen. The key is knowing how to respond. Where are the emergency exits? (Would students know where to exit the building?) If you're not sure, check with your church property rep (or equivalent). Where's the evacuation meeting place? In what situations would you

25 09, 2017

Paying Attention to Transitions

By Alvin| 2017-09-22T08:18:01+00:00 September 25th, 2017|best practices, guest post|0 Comments

(Submitted by Blake Bentley, English Pastor at Pickering Community Baptist Church) I am a new pastor at my church and I’ve been here for two years now. When I came to my small church in Pickering, ON, there were almost no babies in the church, no nursery to speak of, no youth group, no Sunday School for high school youth and no leaders to look after these things. I came

18 09, 2017

Working with Corporations

By Alvin| 2017-09-14T23:21:54+00:00 September 18th, 2017|Alvin Lau, best practices|0 Comments

CBOQ has an almost 20-year relationship with Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment in hosting our Centre Court outreach event with the Toronto Raptors. We are in high standing with MLSE, but it didn't happen over night. Here are some lessons we've learned. Be professional. This may seem redundant, but I've seen some youth leaders who approach corporations as one of their buddies. Whether or not you know your contact, if you're working in a business environment, then

11 09, 2017

Imaginative Hope relaunched

By Alvin| 2017-09-11T08:09:08+00:00 September 11th, 2017|Alvin Lau, best practices|0 Comments

At Assembly, we launched "Imaginative Hope", a concise collaborative message from 50 Canadian Baptist youth pastors to the 1000+ Canadian Baptist churches. The initial report has created a buzz amongst many churches and we are excited about what the next steps might be. To support those next steps, Imaginative Hope is relaunching its website ON WEDNESDAY. Not only will you access the video and the report, you can also glean

2 11, 2015

Best Practices: Intergenerational Interactions

By Alvin| 2016-10-31T13:57:15+00:00 November 2nd, 2015|best practices|0 Comments

One of the leading trends in youth and family ministries is the notion of intergenerational experiences, which happen when the church encourages ministry, service and worship between generations. Research has demonstrated that these kinds of interactions strengthen faith formation for children and youth. Young people learn from trusted adults. In many ways, the Sharing Life concept is an underlying current for intergenerational friendships, which we invite you to consider in

26 10, 2015

Best Practices: Leadership Development

By Alvin| 2016-10-31T13:57:15+00:00 October 26th, 2015|best practices|0 Comments

Developing leaders is crucial in the progression of the church. Leaders at various levels--children’s ministry leaders, student leaders, adult leaders--provide a foundation for the church as a whole. Investing in leaders is one of the best way to strengthen the church. These are some best practices to consider for both student leaders and adult leaders. Student Leaders Building leaders, especially student leaders, takes time and patience. Some students progress faster

19 10, 2015

Best Practices: Community Impact

By Alvin| 2016-10-31T13:57:15+00:00 October 19th, 2015|Alvin Lau, best practices|0 Comments

The person and message of God isn’t meant just for the body of believers; His grace, mercy and justice is meant to transform all of creation, including the communities surrounding a local church. What good is it to hide the light of Christ where no one else can see? At last spring’s Youth Pastors Summit, our group of youth pastors focused on how we can impact our communities through youth

28 09, 2015

Best Practices: Mentoring and Small Groups

By Alvin| 2016-10-31T13:57:15+00:00 September 28th, 2015|Alvin Lau, best practices|0 Comments

“Mentoring” and “intergenerational” have become big buzzwords within the Christian community in the last few years. Research and personal stories reveal a student’s faith is propelled by having a trusted adult (mentoring) and a close peer (small group) walk alongside him or her. It is vital to encourage and nurture these relationships. Here are seven ways to do that. (Some of these can have overlapping objectives and incorporate aspects of

21 09, 2015

Best Practices: Biblical Understanding

By Alvin| 2016-10-31T13:57:15+00:00 September 21st, 2015|Alvin Lau, best practices|0 Comments

One key way we come to know God is through Scripture. We believe it is the inspired word of God, a primary channel through which he shares his love and his directives with humanity. We've also seen that biblical literacy is very low in the Canadian church (e.g. just 14% of Canadians read the Bible at least once a month in 2013, down from 28% in 1996). Building biblical understanding

14 09, 2015

Best Practices: Evangelism

By Alvin| 2016-10-31T13:57:15+00:00 September 14th, 2015|best practices|0 Comments

Last April, we invited several youth pastors to a summit to learn from one another and to provide us with feedback about our ministry direction. Part of our day included discussing a series of best practices in six different areas (evangelism, biblical understanding, mentoring/small groups, community impact, leadership development and intergenerational interactions). Over the next few weeks, we’ll release some of the best practice suggestions from the group (with further