Are you REALLY training your small group leaders?

I hear all the time that Small Groups is where the growth happens. This is especially true for Seeker Friendly churches. I have heard over and over again people complain that they don't get anything out of the Sunday message and that if that's what they want they should join a small group. I agree. But I also believe that you can always get something out of a message. For more on this check out Rob Bell's Velvet Elvis. And I think it is more important for youth than for adults to have small group leader training. I believe adults can discuss and carry on a deep conversation without much direction, but youth need that direction and push.
So, how are you training your small group leaders?
Do you have one training at the beginning of the year and that is it?
Are you meeting with them once a month?
What does your training look like?
Do you even have training, or do you throw your leaders to the wolves?
I personally, don't believe there is enough small group leader training. Some people don't need it. They have been small group leaders for years, and they get it.
It's easy to read out of something and start a conversation, but do your small group leaders really invest in their students?
Are they doing more than showing up on a Tuesday night for an hour and a half?
What are your thoughts?

SNYDER

iPhone iBroke

About two weeks ago I dropped my iPhone on its face. Yeah it was awesome. I feared the worst as I picked it up. Yup, you guessed it. The face has about 30 cracks on it. The best part though is that it still works just fine. I got all the glass out that was loose or could cut me. I am still pretty ticked about it, but I am super glad that Apple makes a product that even when dropped and shattered still works. The bummer, too, is that it is not covered by the one year insurance protection it comes with. I know the new one comes out soon, but I cannot afford it right now, so I will have to make do with my broken one.




SNYDER

Tech in Youth Ministry

How are you using tech and social networking in your ministry?
Are you using Facebook or Myspace or Twitter?
Do you have a blog set up for your ministry? What online tools are you giving to your students?
Do you use YouVersion or suggest it to your students?
How do you use video and other media tools in your ministry?
The more you use tech and and the web and all these gadgets do you tend to find them to be a hindrance or a help in relational ministry?
What do you provide online for your students?
These are some questions I think you need to ask yourself and evaluate. Technology, if used right, is such a great way to reach your students. Use it.

SNYDER

In Youth Ministry do we tend to be anti-family?

How are you accommodating the families of your students?
How are you including families?
Is your Youth Ministry family based? If so how is that working for you?
Do the parents know what is going on in your ministry?
What resources do you have available for parents?
How are you creating shared experiences for students and their parents?

These are just some questions I think as a ministry we should be asking ourselves. Any thoughts? Other ideas?

SNYDER

Why do you do what you do?

The past couple of weeks I have been asking myself this question. Am I doing ministry because I feel called to it? And by ministry I mean either in a church or in a Christian school setting. Am I doing ministry because this is all I have known for the last few years? Do I keep forcing myself to do church or school ministry when I should be doing another type of ministry? I don't know the answer to these questions. I am trying to figure this out. I know that I love ministry and I love tech and media and I love how we can use the internet and technology to reach people, but how does this translate into a job for myself? I would love to do some kind of church consulting with youth, but some would say I do not have enough experience. Is there a youth consulting position out there? I know there is a church consulting job, but what about specifically for youth? I know there is a perfect ministry job out there it is just finding it. The other hard part is I can't work at another church than where my wife works. Mariah, my wife, is a youth pastor and we love our Church. So working at another church is out of the question. Does anyone out there have any ideas for me? If so let me know.

SNYDER

The New Look SWERVE

The guys over at Lifechurch.tv have revamped their leadership blog called SWERVE. It is a great blog and it looks great. If you have never checked this blog out then you are really missing out.

SNYDER

Happiest place on earth

We went to Disneyland last night and i shaved my head. It is really hot. If you know me at all I tend to flip out when my hair is long and it is hot.



SNYDER

Collide Magazine

I know I have blogged about Collide Magazine before. It is a great magazine for some one who works in a church, but even better for some one who works in the media department in their church. They just launched their new website. Check it out here.

SNYDER

Drive conference

My youth ministry friends from Saddleback are in Atlanta at the DRIVE Conference. Kurt and Josh took the JH and HS teams there this week. Check out their thoughts.
And if you are a dude and your wife works in youth ministry at a church check out My WIFE is a Youth Pastor and if you happen to be a lady whose husband works in ministry you will want to check out Married to a Youth Pastor.

SNYDER

Stream from your phone to the web, LIVE

My friend Bobby has been using qik to stream some things live from his phone to the web. Right now only a few phones work with it, but it is definitely worth checking out. If you are doing an event or something that you want people to see from anywhere this is one way to do it that is fairly cheap. You just need a phone. If you are using qik, let me know your thoughts.

SNYDER

My wife is a youth pastor

Obvious statement I know. But I just started a blog called My Wife is a Youth Pastor. If you are a husband of a youth pastor check it out or even if you just want to check it out I would be happy to let you. I got the idea from Jeff Maguire. His wife runs a website call Married to a Youth Pastor. It is for wives, but I am in the minority. Pass it on, let others know. It is a Wordpress site. So if you know anything about Wordpress I could really use the help. Thanks,

Snyder

You Version goes Mobile

You Version has gone mobile. It is a great tool for anyone who wants to grow closer to God. You will not be disappointed. Check it out.

SNYDER

Sunday night services

If you were starting a Sunday night service and you wanted it to cater to a younger generation what are some things you would add? Kind of an alternative/liturgical service. Here is what it will kind of look like. The message is video from the same weekend. Everyone sits around the low rise stage where the band will be. So, it's in a circle. There is one big screen and then 2 flat screen tv's around the circle for the video message. There will be some community hang out time before or after. There will be cushions on the floor, some chairs, maybe some beanbag chairs. What would you add to this? Have you seen this work anywhere else? If so, where? What are your thoughts?

SNYDER

Research, Research and more Research

That is what I have been doing for a few days now and will be doing for some weeks to come. Research for a documentary is a huge part and very time consuming. Good thing I love research. I have a lot of people I need to contact in youth ministry and a lot of questions to ask. The style will be Direct Cinema Style. More handheld, genuine locations, non-professional actors. "Fly on the wall" style. Very non intrusive.
I am not looking to make any money off of this at all. I have a love for the church and for youth ministry and my audience will be church staff. This is project I really want to do. We will see how it turns out. It might be my first and last attempt at this or it might be the first of many.

SNYDER

Started the process

SO if you read my last post you will see I am working on a new project. I am currently in the pre-production stages of a documentary. I would rather not say what it is about right now, but it does have to do with the church and youth. I have a lot of research to do before I even begin writing. I am super excited about this and am ready to see what comes of it.
As I was doing some research today I began thinking about how Sunday School and Youth Ministry used to be. A question cam e to my head. What will the the next flannelgraph be? What in youth ministry will fade away like the flannelgraph has? Any thoughts. It's kind of weird to think about, but you know it has to be something that we are using today in youth ministries everywhere, but what is it? Let me know what you think.

SNYDER