TWO THOUGHTS ON JUNIOR HIGH MINISTRY

I recently picked up the book, 99 Thoughts About Junior High Ministry by Kurt Johnston.

Two thoughts straight out of the book really hit home for me, and I wanted to share them with you.

Quoted straight out of the book:

(Note: I do not in any way get a commission or have been paid nor will be paid to mention this book.) 

“THOUGHT #1 – LEVERAGE THE POWER OF THE ONE-TWO PUNCH.

Over the years, I’ve discovered that God often uses a one-two punch to grab a hold of the hearts of junior highers. 

The one-two punch is the powerful combination of a relationship with a caring adult and spiritual markers.

Caring Adult = Junior Higher = Good Stuff. 

One of the most important things you can do is connecting students with caring adults who love Jesus.

Spiritual markers are those special moments at camp, on a retreat, during a mission trip or in a seemingly normal midweek program when the Holy Spirit does something memorable in the heart of a young student.

As you organize your ministry to young teenagers, think about the power of the one-two punch and how you can best create an atmosphere for it to happen.

THOUGHT #2 – INSTEAD OF SETTING ONE BAR FOR ALL YOUR STUDENTS TO REACH, SET LOTS OF BARS AND CHALLENGE STUDENTS AS INDIVIDUALS.

It’s tempting to set one goal – one bar you hope every student will grab for – and program that end.

There’s nothing wrong with saying things like, ‘This year, we want everyone to invite a friend’ or ‘Our goal this summer is that every one of you would go on a mission trip.”

But by doing so, you set one bar for everybody in your group, and it’s a bar that may be too high for some and not high enough for others.

Because every junior higher in your ministry is at a different place developmentally and spiritually, I think it’s more beneficial to look for ways to get to know each student God has placed under your care and to see how you might be able to set a ‘bar’ that is unique to each of them”

I’m wrestling with both of these ideas and how I’ll implement them into my ministry.

Hope you’ll do the same 🙂

– Nick Diliberto, Junior High Ministry