vision in Youth MinistryIn this episode you’ll hear from Nate Turner of Creative Grid Partners.  Nate walks us through the process needed to craft a realistic and powerful vision for your Youth Ministry.  This is a must listen….

Links mentioned:

5 Characteristics We Want In Our Students

Setting Goals In Your Ministry

creativegridpartners.com

@NateJTurner

Resources mentioned in this Podcast:

Sustainable Youth Ministry byMark Devries

Advanced Strategic Planning by Aubrey Malphurs

In this particular episode, you will learn:

  • The difference between “Mission” and “Vision”
  • The process for finding and creating a vision in your youth ministry
  • How to set realistic goals in your ministry
  • HOW TO GET A FREE 1 HOUR CONSULT ON CRAFTING YOUR OWN VISION (deadline March 31, 2015)

Mission > Values > Vision > Strategy > Goals

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About the Author
I am a Youth Ministry veteran of twenty four years, and currently serve as the Student Pastor at High Desert Church.  I help equip and encourage Youth Pastors through this blog and podcast The Longer Haul.  My passion is helping Youth Pastors create a ministry of longevity that they truly love.  I am the grateful husband of Sarah and the dad of Emma, Anna, Lizzy, and Jack.  I am a speaker, lover of vintage VW’s, and the owner of one 1972 VW Westfalia Bus.

11 comments on “TLH006: Crafting Vision For Youth Ministry

  1. Matthew Hart says:

    yay i am the first to comment. I think that this would be beneficial for the student ministry I volunteer at. Very informative and encouraging.

  2. Terry Huey says:

    Good stuff Nate. Each of these are important in making sure that we are not simply spinning our wheels. It gives purpose to the students, parents, and the leadership.

  3. Mathew Robertson says:

    Awesome. I like the idea of the student ministry and the church having a common vision. Too many times the student ministry has such a “youth” focus that they disengage with the “adult church” and find it old and antiquated. Often students leave the ministry they are not prepared to be active participants in the spread of the gospel, let alone be leaders.

    1. Jody says:

      You are so right Matt! I think this is a SUPER important part that we often miss in Youth Ministry.

  4. Joel McDonald says:

    I am a little late listening to this particular podcast, but I thought it was very good. Thanks Nate for taking the time. One thing that was particularly interesting, Jody, was when you mentioned that you were able to sit down and ask questions to 10 college students. Like you said, this is the product we are producing. As great as it is for us to strategically plan (and I am all about it), it seems like we should also make time to really talk with former students to find out what is working and what is not. You mentioned how great it was to get honest answers from those 10 students from another ministry. I think it would also be very helpful to get some of that same information from students that did graduate our ministry. Thanks!

    1. Jody says:

      Joel I can’t agree more! One of the problems with this of course is the lack of longevity among Youth Pastors. If a Youth Pastor leaves within a few years, there is likely no one to follow up with previous students. Of course, if you do not have a strategic plan in place, you also have nothing to measure against. I think a huge part of developing and putting a plan in place is also consistently evaluating the effectiveness you are having. I would totally add the need to follow up and evaluate. The HUGE benefit of the conversation I had with those students ironically was that they were not a part of our ministry so they were very open and honest. Having said that, you do have to know what you are producing to know if you are heading in the right direction. Man, great input Joel, thanks for commenting!

      1. Joel McDonald says:

        Jody, I 100% agree. I was able to have some informal conversations with college students who graduated before I came to get an idea of what was working well and what might need improvement, but I can get much more relevant information from those who have graduated since I became the student pastor. Like you said, that cant happen unless we stay put. And that is such a great point, the importance of the strategic plan is that we actually have something to measure against. Great insight and thanks again!

    2. Nate Turner says:

      Totally agree Joel. I actually just sat with some of my current students to talk about some of the same topics. It was great to be able to get their feedback on where we are and hear their suggestions about how to work toward where we want to be. They had some thoughts I would’ve missed.

      I also think it’s great to have those graduates to be able to see the lives they live and whether they reflect the values we’re seeking to instill in our students. Of course, you’ll always have the bell curve of students who live for the values, are ambivalent, or are just going their own direction. Thanks for the comment and for listening!

  5. Guest says:

    Totally agree Joel. I actually just sat with some of my current students to talk about some of the same topics. It was great to be able to get their feedback on where we are and hear their suggestions about how to work toward where we want to be. They had some thoughts I would’ve missed.

    I also think it’s great to have those graduates to be able to see the lives they live and whether they reflect the values we’re seeking to instill in our students. Of course, you’ll always have the bell curve of students who live for the values, are ambivalent, or are just going their own direction. Thanks for the comment and for listening!

  6. Adam says:

    Jody, big fan of the blog and especially the podcast. We’re in a bit of a crossroads right now with our ministry, lacking vision (though not through lack of trying) and buy in. I’ve, admittedly, failed a bit in taking my role as the leader/vision-caster of the ministry. This is helping me define–for myself–a vision of the ministry and I hope to be able to do the hard work to see if I can help us visualize what it might look like on the other side of this crossroads.

    1. Jody says:

      @disqus_m0RPLbNK3n:disqus I’m so glad you’re finding it helpful. This episode is packed full of super helpful and practical steps for sure. @disqus_HeeUC6CnR1:disqus is a pretty smart guy! Hang in there man. You’re making a difference.

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