1.  Plan outdoor activities.
Plan a trip to a pool, water park or theme park.  Schedule some time to have a junior high family picnic.  Plan ahead for these events and start advertising them before summer comes around.

2.  Schedule a spiritual emphasis.
Prepare a special summer ministry plan and promote it for your junior high students. Plan an exciting series of messages and activities during your groups meeting time that your students don’t want to miss.  Don’t lose momentum in the summer. Even if you do have a little smaller group, keep moving them in the right direction.  Junior high students can make life-changing decisions during the summer.

3.  Be available.
Don’t sit in your office all summer. Be deliberate about contacting your students for lunch, golfing, supply hunting for youth group or even help you with yard work. Spend time with junior high students (be specific with making sure you don’t show favoritism in this).  This will build trust and let them see you outside the building.

4.  Connect.
Contact your students on a regular basis during the summer.  Whether it is through social media, texting, or even and old-fashioned phone call, do it.  Make sure that you are available as aa student or parent need arises.  This will make you a part of their life instead of just that guy at the church.

Follow this plan or tweek it for yourself and you will find that summer isn’t just to sit back and relax. You might find that it is one of your most effective times to do ministry.

This guest post was written by Terry Goodwin.  Terry has been working with Junior High Students for the past 12 years.  He currently works as Junior High Minister at Second Church of Christ in Danville, IL.  He is also the creator of JuniorHighMinistry.org (your source for everything junior high).

For each of these games, you will need one major thing: clear painter’s plastic. You can pick up a pretty large roll of it at Lowe’s for a decent price.

Slip n’ Slide Kickball. By far, this is my favorite water game. It’s simple! All you need is the painter’s plastic, four blow up kiddie pools, and water. Take the four kiddie pools and spread them out as bases as you would in a normal kick ball game. Once you have the kiddie pools (bases) set, outline the diamond with your painter’s plastic. Each kiddie pool should be connected with the plastic. Fill up each kiddie pool with water (for an added bonus, add something like shaving cream or baby shampoo to the water in the kiddie pools) and spray the plastic so it’s nice and slick. Grab a ball that is easy to kick if barefoot, and play it like a normal game of kickball. The fun part is watching the students run the bases on the slip n’ slide and jumping in the pools as they go. I have done this game numerous times in the past and it is always a hit with the students! Just make sure there are no hidden rocks under the plastic or pools!

Slip n’ Slide Relay. This is another pretty simple game to set up. Take the plastic and make a straight, flat slip n’ slide that is about 20-30 feet (or whatever you see fit for the space you are in). On one end, have a large trashcan full of water. On the other end, have a smaller, empty trashcan or round cooler with a pitcher inside (one for each team). First, split your students up into two teams. One team starts behind the empty trashcan and one at a time has to run down the slip n’ slide, fill up the pitcher with water, and bring it back and dump it into the empty cooler. Their goal is to see how much water they can dump into the empty trash can in the allotted time that you give them (I usually do 2 minutes). Here is the twist. The other team gets to stand on the sides of the slip n’ slide and throw balls at the other team as they run back and forth trying to fill up the trashcan (use the plastic balls from Wal-Mart in this game). Switch it up every two minutes so each team gets two or three rounds in this game. The team with the most water at the end wins!

Giant Slip n’ Slide. This really isn’t a game, but it is always a huge hit with students. After you have done a few games with the painter’s plastic, take all of the left over plastic and make a giant slip n’ slide. Allow the students to have a free for all and enjoy the fun of the giant slip n’ slide. Be sure to check for rocks and sticks before you lay the plastic down to save your students, and yourself from injury.

These are just a few of the many water games you can do with your students this summer. Again, games are not for everyone and some student ministries may do better without games, but if you’re looking for some outdoor, summer games, these are three that I recommend. If you need more info or details on one of these games, feel free to contact me via e-mail (austingmccann@gmail.com) or on Twitter (@HUBpaustin).

It seems like every time you turn around there is a new youth ministry book that is promoting a new “model” or “philosophy” of youth ministry. Don’t get me wrong, I am not against these types of books and many of them have been instrumental in shaping my own philosophy of youth ministry (click here to check out my personal youth ministry philosophy). But far too often as youth pastors and youth workers, we look to the next “big thing” and quickly abandon what we are doing for the sake of doing youth ministry differently. This is not always bad because in a changing youth culture, we must be changing the way we minister to students in that culture. But we must not get caught up in what’s wrong with our youth ministry and quickly jump to trying something new. We need to realize a lot of what we are doing is working and actually making a different in the life’s of students for the sake of the Gospel!

This is why Mark Oestreicher book, A Beautiful Mess, was such a breathe of fresh air for me! Finally, a youth ministry book that didn’t talk about what is wrong with youth ministry, but actually explained what is right with youth ministry! Mark explains some of the current things in youth ministry that are working and bringing fruit in the life’s of our students. He helps us see that the glass is half full, not half empty. This book allows youth pastors and youth workers to be encouraged and walk away feeling like they are making a difference, because they really are making a difference! Mark admits that we must not resist change because we always need to be changing the way we do student ministry, but we must not change for the sake of change. We are doing some things right in youth ministry and let’s see the glass half full and continue serving students with the love of Christ.

I would recommend this book for anyone involved in youth ministry. This book will help you identity some of the things we are doing right in student ministry and encourage by reminding us we are making a difference! Click here to download this book for FREE for a limited time. If the free offer expires time you see this, you can still purchase a copy of the book for a great, low price here.

One of the most important groups of people you should use to help you evaluate your student ministry is your graduating seniors. The majority of them have been in your student ministry for quite some time and see the ministry in a whole different light than you normally do. They can reveal things about your ministry that you may not be able to see. Plus, they will probably be extremely honest with you about your ministry flaws and failures because they are about to be out of it! Either way, your graduating seniors are a great group to help you honestly evaluate your student ministry and it will also show you how your ministry has impacted them.

Chuck Bomar, founder of College Leader and pastor of Colossae Church, has provided a document with ten questions you should ask your graduating seniors. Chuck says, “Asking graduated seniors the following questions can help you become better at what you do, be more in tune with the actual needs of your students, and provide a natural way for you to give a few things for them to think about as they move onto the next stage of education.”

Click on the link below to download Chuck Bomar’s document of ten questions to ask your graduating seniors.

Ten Questions to Ask Graduating Seniors by Chuck Bomar

1. Trust in God’s sovereignty. At the end of the day, God doesn’t need us to preach or teach the world’s best sermon. Isaiah 55:11 says, “So shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” God’s Word is powerful and able to change the heart of those who you are preaching to. You don’t have to read the Bible very long to see that God uses things that look “terrible” to us to accomplish His will. God still spoke through your terrible sermon. However, this shouldn’t push us to not prepare well and not strive to communicate God’s Word the most creative way we can, but it should give us comfort when our preaching doesn’t come out the way we intended it to.

2. Don’t dwell on it. I have a tendency to dwell on a terrible sermon. I will usually ask my fiancée over and over what she thought about it, and sometimes I even catch myself trying to “explain” to her why it was so terrible. The best thing you can do after preaching a terrible sermon is simply move on and focus on preparing your next sermon. Remind yourself of number one, trust in God’s sovereignty, and move on.

3. Learn from it. Another thing you can do after preaching a terrible sermon is to simply learn from the experience. Last night when I had my “terrible sermon” experience, I knew it wasn’t because I didn’t prepare the sermon right or study the Scriptures; it was because I stayed up way too late the night before. I was mentally and physically exhausted which resulted in not being able to communicate God’s Word well. Learning from a terrible sermon is a good way to stay humble as a preacher of God’s Word. Admit it was not your best sermon, and move on by learning from the experience. See what you need to change or do better so you can avoid it next time you preach. As people who are preaching and teaching God’s Word, we must continue to learn and grow from our mistakes.

I hope these simple thoughts will help you when you face your next “terrible sermon.” Even though God’s Word is powerful and can change hearts, we as preachers and teachers will struggle to share it well every time. If you preach God’s Word often, you will have some sermons that are not your best, but rest assured, you will have a few sermons and lessons that you knock out of the park!

Steven Furtick, lead pastor of Elevation Church, wrote a great article on this same subject. I ran across it after I wrote this post and believe it would be a great article to check out. Click here to view that article.

For more info on The Hub Student Ministry, visit our Facebook page. You can also see more of our video on our vimeo page.

1. When it takes the place of your own personal relationship with God. In a post awhile back called The Hardest Person to Lead, I quoted Chris Finchum as he said, “It’s easy to fall in love with the work of Christ rather than the person of Christ.” Student pastors must say no to something if it will get in the place of their personal walk with God. Doug Fields said this about his early years in ministry: “Because in the busyness of my first decade of ministry, I abandoned my first love (God) and developed a love affair with doing ministry.” The number one key to successful youth ministry is being a student pastor who is in love with Jesus and walking consistently with Him. Many student pastors are missing this important key because they are too busy with youth ministry to invest in their own walk with God. Revelation 2:4 says, “But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.” Say no if it will get in the way of personal walk with God.

2. When it puts your character and integrity at stake. Another time we need to say no in student ministry is when it puts your personal character at stake. The first qualification for a leader given by Paul in 1 Timothy 3 is to be “above reproach.” As student pastors, we must guard our character. From example, don’t say yes to taking a student of the opposite sex home if it’s only going to be yourself and the student in the car. Your personal character is more important than a ride home. Some may disagree with me on this point, but I believe a student pastor’s personal character is more important that ministry to teenagers. We are called to be holy and must say no to whatever puts that at stake.

3. When it gets in the way of your family. I remember listening to a Perry Noble leadership podcast as he talked about the topic of putting your spouse before ministry. One statement he said that stuck in my head was “Jesus will take care of His church.” God called student pastors to be pastors to their spouses and children first. We are to be leaders at home, before we are leaders at church. At the end of the day, Jesus will take care of your youth ministry. God has called us to be pastors of our home before pastors of the students at our church. Don’t sacrifice your family on the alter of student ministry, it’s unbiblical and not worth it. Say no if it gets in the way of your family.

These are just a few times I believe we need to say no as student pastors. You may have noticed, I didn’t say anything about programing or even the student ministry, I focused on the leader as a person. I believe building a person is more important than building a ministry. Ric Garland says, “Build the man and God will build the ministry.” When student pastors focus on growing in Christ as a person, God will grow the ministry.

I mentioned Doug Field’s book What Matters Most a few times in this post. This is a great little book that I would recommend anyone in ministry to read. It will help you underatand what matters the most and how you can say no to all the other stuff. Click here to purchase a copy of it from Amazon.

Personal commitments determine the direction I lead myself. The direction I lead myself determines how I lead others.

From the statement above, we see that personal commitments is the starting place of leading ourselves well. The results of leading ourselves well is being able to lead others well. In order to lead yourself well, you must be committed to six things:

1. Commitment to love Christ supremely (Matthew 22:37). In Christian leadership, it’s easy to fall in love with the work of Christ more than the person of Christ. We must make sure we love Christ more than everything, even ministry! Our commitment to love Christ supremely is the foundation and driving force to all other commitments. Without it we become legalistic.

2. Commitment to unwavering integrity (Proverbs 10:9). Is there an area of your life, if brought into light, would damage your testimony? In his book, Being Leaders, Aubrey Malphurs says that people don’t follow ministry’s mission or vision statement for very long, they follow you. Personal integrity is the foundation to leadership.

3. Commitment to live a disciplined life (Proverbs 6:6-9). One of the most neglected areas of many Christians life’s, especially Christian leaders, is physical discipline. We focus so much time on”spiritual disciplines,” which are important, we neglect physical discipline. We don’t take care of ourselves physically the way we should. We must commit to spiritual disciplines and physical disciplines.

4. Commitment to having a teachable spirit (Proverbs 19:20). Part of leading yourself well is being able to stay teachable. Once a leader a leader stops learning and growing, their leadership will level out. Leaders must intentionally seek Godly counsel, surround themselves with leaders who are better than them in certain areas, respond graciously to criticism, and read good books.

5. Commitment to personal accountability (Proverbs 27:17). You cannot lead yourself well alone. You cannot remain focused spiritually alone. You cannot live a holy life alone. You need accountability in your life! Who in your life asks you the “hard question”" or will tell you the honest truth? Awhile back, I wrote a post called “How Leaders Can Prevent Moral Failure BEFORE it Happens” and in that post I said one of the best ways to prevent moral failure in leadership is to have accountability in your life. The leader who does not have accountability in their life is asking for the enemy and their flesh to destroy their leadership position.

6. Commitment to push outside of your comfort zone (Matthew 14:29). Often, leaders tend to settle. Leaders must have a God-sized dream for their ministry or organization. A good question to ask yourself to see if you have a God-sized dream or not is this: Do you have it all figured out, or does your dream push you to your knees in prayer?

It’s important leaders take these commitments serious. Until leaders learn how to lead themselves well, they will always struggle at leading others well.

I do not take credit for the majority of these thoughts. Majority of this post comes from a workshop lead by Chris Finchum at a recent Word of Life Associate School Conference. You can find Chris on Twitter @chrisfinchum.

The first book I am going to giveaway is Pushing the Limits by Mike Calhoun and Mel Walker. This is one of the better books I have read when it comes to student ministry. Each chapter is written by someone different and covers a wide range of student ministry topics. It’s a great book to read and have on your shelve.

To enter this giveaway just answer the following question in a comment on this blog. I will randomly pick a winner and contact them via e-mail by Saturday night.

What are you currently reading and how is it impacting your thoughts on student ministry?

Promotion. This is probably the biggest way we use Twitter in our student ministry. Because Twitter is so easy to use and get’s information straight to the students, we use it to promote all of our activities and events. I will Tweet out reminders before our mid-week gathering and also before upcoming events. Twitter, along with Facebook, is a great way to promote your student ministry and it’s events in a place students will most likely not miss it. Most students will not check e-mails or listen to a phone tree, but they will check their Facebook and Twitter. So use Twitter to spread the word and get information about your ministry in your students hands.

Relationships. Another big way we use Twitter in our student ministry is building relationships. A few of my leaders, including myself, have their own Twitter accounts. Having our own is a great way to see what is going on with our students and a way to connect with them relationally. As with all social media, we must be careful when doing this and use caution when we are connecting with students relationally through Twitter. Awhile back, I posted a blog called “Guidelines for Using Social Media” that is worth looking at when it comes to connecting with students through sites such as Twitter. Twitter is a great way to connect with your students in a relevant, relational way.

Quick Pictures and Videos. Have you ever been on a youth retreat and took a quick video or pictures of an unforgettable moment? With Twitter, you can instantly post that video or picture so others can see it. There are a host of apps out there that let’s you post pictures and videos to Twitter. A few of the more popular ones are Twitpic, yfrong, and instagram. Most student pastors love to take quick photos or videos on youth activities, so Twitter is a great way to post them quickly so others can see.

These are just a few ways you can use Twitter in your student ministry. I still think Facebook can be used more in your student ministry, but it would not hurt to also use Twitter. What are some other ways you have used Twitter in your student ministry?

My friend Josh Evans posted a blog about using Facebook in student ministry (click here to see it).