“We will not hide them from their descendants; We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done.” – Psalm 78:4 What does it take to run a youth ministry? The simple answer is whatever is available at your church. Perhaps you might feel that your church doesn’t have the resources or personnel to run an effective youth ministry. Let’s
This article was originally published in the CBOQ Sunday 2022 magazine. What does it take to run a youth ministry? The simple answer is whatever is available at your church. Perhaps you might feel that your church doesn’t have the resources or personnel to run an effective youth ministry. Let’s define an effective youth ministry first. At its very core, the purpose of youth ministry is to pass the truths
Mentoring is a vital part of a young Christian’s faith formation. In the past few years, CBOQ Youth has encouraged churches to support mentors, who walk alongside those about to graduate high school. Pickering Community Baptist Church has been guiding and supporting high school graduates in this way for a few years now. We asked some of their mentors and recent mentees (Grace Wong, Kiya Fu and Jimmy Chao) to share about their experiences. We hope this will encourage
It’s been two weeks since students have been in their classrooms. Many have spent a LOT of time at home (likely a considerable amount in their rooms). Some go to their default past-time (whether it’s gaming, Netflix binging, Tik Tok videos to name a few), others complain of being bored (despite not being willing to do anything). There is a better way for students to use their time, and for you to encourage your youth in the process. Before we start, a couple of considerations: A person doesn’t need to tackle all 5 areas. Some may overlap. If any
While we have always seen mentoring as an important part of our faith, its value is especially highlighted by the statistics released in the “Hemorrhaging Faith” document. We were surprised to note that one of the most common times for youth to disengage from faith is during the transition into their Jr High years. I really had to mull this one over, but it does make sense. One contributing factor
As I was studying and reflecting on Immanuel Baptist Church and the surrounding community of Finch and Don Mills, I became aware of the need for youth to be mentored. I am passionate about mentoring, and having experienced the significance of it personally, I felt and noticed the longing of youth to have someone who would truly care, love, encourage, invest and pour into them. As part of my masters
One month has already passed in this school year. Your high school grads are only nine months away from graduation. How are you supporting them in their transition to emerging adulthood? Renegotiating Faith highlighted that home church youth groups and mentors are key in the successful shift into emerging adulthood. Here is one way for you to help your grads. On June 1, 2019, we along with Power 2 Change,
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
“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
The following is an excerpt from our book Faith Formation 2.0. Traditionally, churches have focused on ministry programs as the primary way of ministering to people. Typically, these ministry programs are geared towards age-specific audiences. It seems to work generally when children are younger. However, as research has shown, as people get older, these ministry programs seem less and less effective. The diagram above demonstrates that a church can still
