SYM is building a new catalog and we want to capture the most classic youth
ministry moments you can remember.
What we need from you:
- 1 sentence to 150 words
- Classic youth ministry moments based on:
- Fun times
- Mistakes you’ve made
- When God has shown up
- Etc
We will be picking our top 3 favorites and giving you $100.00 in
downloadable Simply Youth Ministry product.
The deadline to enter is January 13. All you need to do is submit your
comment on this post.
Thanks everyone!
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Justin Boling is the Marketing Coordinator for Simply Youth Ministry. [
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I came over from the UK to work in youth ministry in 2000 and I was sure that coming to a country who spoke the same language would be a breeze… or so I thought. In my first month of being in the States, I discovered that there were certain phrases that I had always grown up with in the UK that carried a different meaning here it the States…
On one occasion, the evening before an early morning event, I was trying to explain to a female student that the leaders would be coming to her house the next day to take her to the event… But, this is what I actually said, “Hey, we’ll be coming to your house to ‘knock you up’ at about 8am”… Everyone looked at me with that look… you know the one, like, “he said what”… I quickly learned not to use that phrase again…
I just was hired at a church and was asked to preach. I had this ‘great’ illustration using a football pass play. We had rehearsed the timing, location of the throw from me to a guy in the back (it was in a school cafeteria). But when church was in session my throw was off and It hit a wall, bounced off and hit a stroller with a 6 week old baby in it.
The family was little miffed (obviously) but about 2 months later started volunteering in our jr high ministry and they were great leaders!
During an all worship night, we used candles at table where people could go and write something that was keeping them from forgiving someone on a post it, and then they would lit it on fire with a candle inside a tin, and leave it there. About half way through the night, the wax had built up around the candle and at one point, the flame was 15ft high before it put itself out.
Needless to say, we ended there. None of the kids remember the message that week, or the great times in worship, or the breakthroughs we had that night, but they all remember how we almost set the youth room on fire.
Our Jr High program meets in several houses around the community every other week and I teach at one of the houses… Couple of weeks ago we had a lesson on decisions and the concept of ripples on a pond was one of the ideas we used. I had a large plastic tub with 4-5 gallons of water in it that I would toss marbles or small stones in throughout the discussion… When I threw in a large stone, about 8″ in diameter and 10lbs the bottom of the tub broke and dumped the water all over the living room floor of our host house… Chaos ensued, but I am sure this is a lesson the kids will remember for a while…
One night about an hour before youth started I got brave and prayed for God to help me to make a difference in one students life that night. I didn’t know who or how, but that’s what I prayed. About 30 minutes before the night started I was running around getting everything ready. In walks this kid who had visited a couple of times. In my hurry I almost told him to hang tight while i finished getting ready. I almost missed the answer to my prayer. Overcoming the urge to keep doing stuff, I sat down and started talking to him. We got to know each other and an awesome relationship developed after that. And to think I almost missed it because I felt that I needed to “do” ministry..
Ok now my funny one. For our high school ministry we had an outreach night that involved watching movies. It was called “Friday Night Flicks”. I created a pretty standard flier except I used the font “metro neuveau”. I printed it and sent it out without checking it first…little did I know that the L and the I of the word “flicks” had combined in that font to form a U. So essentially I had invited all of our high school teens to Friday Night F***S. A former co-worker still has the flier and uses it to make fun of me.
God had been challenging me personally on the truth and necessity of brokenness. After trying to prep for a lesson and not being able to think clearly, I spent time praying and playing and singing worship to Him and was brought to tears, but didn’t know why. That night at youth, we sang one song about God’s love for us. After I played one jr. high student had tears and I thought he was maybe struggling with some deep addiction or sin. He asked me if I’d ever just “run into God’s love- like it became real.” I was blown away. A Jr. Higher taught me what happened in my personal time with God.
I think the biggest thing I’ve learned during my first two years is that I don’t know everything, but I do know something. When you’re right out of school, you have all this knowledge built up, ready to put into action, so it’s easy to always think you have the answers. At the same time, you’re dealing with a lot of firsts- first counseling session with a hurting teen, first time having 30 students in your care, first time trying to lead people twice your age. It’s a lot of uncharted territory, but you have to find the right balance of confidence in God’s call on your life. You don’t know everything, but you do know something!
And a funny one: At a 5th and 6th grade lock-in, we were playing a game similar to hide and seek, and our “hider” was under a table in the chapel. One of our girls came over to me and asked for a clue. I paused for a second, then started whistling the song “Going to the Chapel.” She looked at me, and suddenly her face lit up. She yells, “That’s elevator music! They’re in the elevator!” then sprints down the hallway to our elevator. By far, one of the funniest moments I’ve had in ministry!
My first few weeks in my first full time ministry position went off to a great start. The students and I clicked, and there were several laughs. However, there was one moment that still stands out. I took one of my older students out to breakfast, and I was told that this student will never come to anything. He confessed many sin struggles, habits, and emotions. I talked with him through it and prayed with him. He said he desperately wanted to see God work in His life. Now, two years later, he is one of my strongest student leaders. His relationship with God is solid and he’s actively sharing it with his students. I remember leaving that meeting two years ago saying, “I think this is why God wants me in youth ministry.” Now I know why God wants us in youth ministry. We are dramatically changing lives!
Here are two very short ones…
There is nothing like shining a flashlight and seeing a student hiding in a stain glass cross during a game of sardines. Very creepy.
There is never backlash when a student flips an adult off during the middle of Sunday morning worship.
We had a van full of Middle School students, mostly boys, leaving an Event in Portland on Halloween night. We were going to a hotel but missed the freeway on ramp and ended up downtown. At first we were just embarrassed that there were several inappropriate Halloween costumes and lots of drinking. But then I noticed a strip club ahead that had a girl poll dancing in the window and the light had just turned red, trapping us right in front of it! I quickly started talking about how the building on the other side of the van and how it was haunted or something until the light turned green, which seemed like an hour. I don’t think any of them noticed, or at least they didn’t tell their parents if they did!
When I started volunteering as Youth Director I had two kids show up to class weekly. So I prayed and changed up class and made it fun. I didn’t change the message, just the method. Well I started playing role playing games like Taboo and Guesstures and the kids started to come. I went from 2 to 20. Well one of the parents at a staff meeting told the others that all I was doing was playing games because her daughter never wanted to come to church as she does now. Well when I heard that I was upset and hurt. But then our pastor shared with me, you don’t work with these kids for the parents or to get praise or criticism from people, you do it for God. Now I go by the motto, God did not call you to be successful; he called you to be faithful.
In one of our high school small groups we were memorizing I Timothy 4:12. One of the guys was so proud that he could memorize God’s Word that he wanted to quote the scripture back to me. He said, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in… puberty”, instead of purity. He said it so confidently and that made it even funnier. He laughed once he realized what he said. Later I was hit with how right on target his little mistake really was.
We were playing “Anatomy Clumps” at our midweek event (you know, 4…elbows! 3…chins!) We had an odd number that night and I just happened to call out an even number of booties to get in a clump. One of our senior girls was frantic trying to find a clump. In the mic, I yelled out “Ooo! Carlee is lookin’ for booty!” We had to end the game.
We had just finished building 5 houses in Mexico with the youth group and we were packed up ready to cross the border right after leaving the houses. I cut my work jeans into ‘daisy dukes’ as a joke and celebration. We stopped for some fish tacos and shopping in a little market and one of our 5 vans were stollen. It happened to be mine and it happened to have our passports and all my clothes and items in it. We still had 3 days in California after that and a lot of the guys in the youth group kept offering me shorts and i would just look at them funny and say “why? I already have shorts on?”.
This is both a funnny story and a time when God showed up because the attitude that all the kids portrayed was one of joy, and worship.
I had just been hired by my first church part time in college. We planned a pizza/go-kart outing, and needless to say it rained (and rained). With no other options I chose to take them to a movie, but only one movie hadn’t started yet. It starred Robin Williams and so I figured good clean wholesome fun! So we sat down in the movie and soon realized that isn’t always the case as there I was 15 students and myself watching “THE BIRD CAGE!” To say that it was awkward would be just a bit of an understatement. Needless to say, I didn’t lose my job, but had a bit of apologizing to do. I learned two things that day-always have a back-up plan, and always expect spontaneoud sexuality discussions (especially when they are brought on by your choice!)
Every year we had an incredible Jr. High winter camp called, “Bedlam”. One year we had tons of snow but it started to rain. One guy brought only one pair of wool socks and only a pair of Chuck Taylors to wear. Soaked the first hour there, he decided to dry his wool socks at the end of a blow dryer. Of all the bad smells I’ve experienced in youth ministry— by far the worst! A few guys nearly threw-up. We had to air out the cabin in the middle of a Canadian winter.
Never think a student is kidding when he says he’s peeing in a can…on the church bus…coming home from camp. He might really be doing it. I thought he was kidding and got a phone call from some very angry parents asking how I could let that happen.
I was speaking to our youth group one Sunday morning and I was speaking on how God wants our very best. I had hoped to say, “You will never regret doing your very best.” Except it came out as, “You will never regret doing your very breast.” I tried to keep going but all the kids heard it and started giggling. We all laughed for a good minute or so and then we continued on.
You think you’re being cool and the kids really like it when you drive a little crazy, go over some extra bumps, and swerve a little in the church van. Until you make them start throwing up and you’re the one hosing the van out.
Still the only time I’ve ever ridden in the back of an ambulance was at a Midnight Bowling event with my youth group. I decided to grab one of my senior higher’s unlaced shoe strings so that when he began to bowl, he’ll be unable to walk forward. Little did I know that instead of walking to the platform to bowl he would impersonate one of our football player’s bowling forms (one big giant swing backwards). The ball caught me right in the middle of my forehead. They actually collared my neck and rushed me to ER thinking my neck could be broken, but it was just major whiplash and a concussion. Two days later, I had my ordination service (gentle with those hands). It was my first year of full-time youth ministry, and boy was it memorable.
Decided to ease the tension during my first ever interview for a ministry position by referring to my past criminal record.
Jr. High has to be the only time in your life that you can break up with your girlfriend on the bus ride TO the weekend retreat, and get a different girlfriend on the bus ride FROM the weekend retreat.
I took my middle school guys to a fall retreat last November. On the second night of the retreat we were all lying in our bunk beds, when the guy’s started asking questions. You know, the serious questions about life. A seventh grader busted out with this one, “I know I am not supposed to have sex until I am married and I am not going to do that. I don’t want to go to hell or anything. But what does the pastor mean when he talks about SEXUAL IMMORTALITY?” I called my fiance in the morning and told her we would have sexual immortality after we got married. I’ll never forget this one!
I loaded up my group for a trip to go Christmas caroling and one of our church members let me use his tractor and trailer that was filled with hay. We got all 25 kids loaded up and off we went. We had to cross a bridge and as we got over it I heard screaming and as I looked back I noticed the trailer going one way as I went the other. The trailer and kids eventually were stopped by a large bush which was very close to the water.
Evidently, the guy forgot to attach the trailer and lock it on. Nobody was hurt and everyone laughed but it was definitely one of my scarier and most memorable moments.
“Distraction”
We were playing a game called “distraction” where you would try and distract the other team as they tried to accumulate points. One of the youth (who had a habit of saying inappropriate things) tried distracting the other team by yelling “there is a naked lady in the window.” I told him to stop, and shortly thereafter he yelled it again….this time replying “I’m serious there is a naked lady in the window”. Sure enough, there was!! Apparently, hiding behind the church bushes to change, she neglected to notice she was changing in front of our youth room window. Definitely a memorable night.
I was getting to know one of our senior high girls one night at youth group and she was sharing about how interested she was in learning about the Amish and Brethren churches. She said she wanted to move to Lancaster, PA; to which I replied, “Wow, you’re REALLY in to sects!” Both of us instantly turned bright red, while i tried to “explain” what I had really said!
Clearly, church vans hate me. In the first few weeks of my internship, we were taking the youth group to a theme park and I was driving the van. I am pretty sure that Moses drove this van in the wilderness. Things were ok until I noticed that, even though the speedometer read 55, I was flying past everyone else on the road. Apparently, the alternator had gone out and so had my dash gauges. The van following us estimated we were going between 80 and 90 mph before realizing what had happened. We had a number of other issues with the van that summer, but at least we got to ride roller coasters that day.
It was Saturday night at the big weekend Youth Conference I had take my youth group to, and after a powerful gospel presentation and worship time, we were filing out for breakout sessions. One of my youth leaders came up to me and said, “Eric needs you.” I looked and saw Eric sitting in his chair, hands to head, crying.
I knew Eric was going through some stuff, so I went and put my arm around him and prayed over him for a while. Then I asked how he was. “I can’t get up…” “It’s alright Eric, we can stay here as long as need.” A few seconds later, he said again, “I can’t get up…” And I responded again by saying we could pray as long as needed and it would be alright.
It took a while before I learned he had torn a muscle in his knee and couldn’t stand; he was crying because of the pain!
I took 12 students to Chicago for a ministry trip (by myself-first mistake). There was a terrible heat wave that summer (100+ temps). It was Sunday night and we toured the John Hancock building. On the way down (in the worlds fastet elevator) all 13 of us decided to JUMP (second mistake). Well everyone didn’t jump so we DID IT AGAIN (third and final mistake)! The worlds fastest elevator came to an abrupt stop and we were stuck in the elevator for 1.5 hours with 100 degree heat. By the end the walls were covered in condensation. 4 students went to the hospital for panic and dehydration, 900 miles from home.
Just remember White Youth Pastors can’t JUMP!
I took 12 students to Chicago for a ministry trip (by myself-first mistake). There was a terrible heat wave that summer (100+ temps). It was Sunday night and we toured the John Hancock building- a 94+ story skyscraper. On the way down (in the worlds fastet elevator) all 13 of us decided to JUMP (second mistake). Well everyone didn’t jump so we DID IT AGAIN (third and final mistake)! The worlds fastest elevator came to an abrupt stop and we were stuck in the elevator for 1.5 hours with 100 degree heat. By the end the walls were covered in condensation. 4 students went to the hospital for panic and dehydration, 900 miles from home.
Just remember White Youth Pastors can’t JUMP!