We had a great discussion last Monday answering some of the recent questions and debates that were posted to MinistryQuestions.com. Unfortunately, the service we use to hold the conversations, TalkShoe, was plagued with issues once again, forcing us to switch to Blog Talk Radio for next week’s talk.
Nonetheless, the phone part worked without many hitches, so we were able to discuss a couple topics before our time ran out.
January 19: Join us for LIVE YM Talk again this Monday! We’re discussing, “What every youth worker can learn from urban youth ministry.” Our guest will be Eric Iverson, the Multi-Cultural Integrity Director for YouthWorks. We’d love to have you join us! The live conversation starts at 2:00 PM eastern time! See our LIVE YM Talk page for details.
It’s obviously hard not to compare Group’s National Youth Ministry Conference to Youth Specialties’ National Youth Workers Convention, the grand-daddy of youth ministry training. In fact, just in this past week I’ve already received Facebook messages and emails from several of you asking that very question: How do they compare and which one should I go to next year? The answer probably depends mostly on your values and what you’re looking for in a youth leader conference. For example, I personally don’t care for all the marketing that goes on at the NYWC exhibit hall, but I know some people really value having all the vendors together in one spot for resourcing their ministry. Also, some youth workers are looking for training in the wide assortment of topics and issues that are available at NYWC, while others want to go deep in only one area like the NYMC provides. Each conference provides solid youth ministry training, great information, general sessions, workshops and seminars, entertainment, and counselors. The differences mostly lie in their approach and what it is you’re looking for.
One of my sr. high youth leaders went with me to Youth Specialties’ NYWC last October for the first time and now to the NYMC for the first time, also. The video below is a summary our thoughts comparing the pros and cons of each conference.
NOTE: This video is our very first conversation comparing the two conferences and is solely based on our personal preferences and what we were looking for in a conference. Your experience and values may differ and that’s totally okay. I should also disclose that I was a presenter at the NYMC.
NYMC 2009 Highlights
Tom Roepke posted a couple highlight videos of the NYMC from last week:
There was a lot of great youth ministry training at the National Youth Ministry Conference last weekend! Some of it came from your’s truly, which is what I have permission to post below.
Communicating with teens and parents throughout the week
My brown bag lunch seminar on Communicating with Teens and Parents Throughout the Week was packed! Ran out of chairs, so people sat around on the floor and stood in the back. It was a great time! Here’s the description of what we covered:
What means of communication do you use with teens and parents throughout the week and how well is it working for your ministry? Tim Schmoyer gives ideas for improvement, shows you how to utilize aspects of communication technology, and shares ways you can evaluate which method works best for your group.
Panel discussion with a few of our favorite youth ministry bloggers
I was also on a panel of youth ministry bloggers, along with Chuck Bomar of collegeministrythoughts.com, Chris Davis of youthministrygeek.com and Joshua Griffin of morethandodgeball.com. We talked about some of the basics of blogging and answered many questions from the audience on just about everything from online video, search engine optimization, and how to get people to visit your site.
We all love The Skit Guys, especially their improv comedy when using guests to make sound effects for them. If you’re ready for a lot of good laughs, here’s one of their skits in HD.
About me: I am married to my beautiful wife, Dana, and together we live in Minnesota where I serve as the youth pastor at our local church. The opinions expressed here are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my church. More about me...
We had a great discussion last Monday answering some of the recent questions and debates that were posted to MinistryQuestions.com. Unfortunately, the service we use to hold the conversations, TalkShoe, was plagued with issues once again, forcing us to switch to Blog Talk Radio for next week’s talk.
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It’s obviously hard not to compare Group’s 
There was a lot of great youth ministry training at the 
Join us at 2:00 PM EST this afternoon in our 
About me: I am married to my beautiful wife, 
From Ministry Questions.com...
