Tim Schmoyer, over at his Life in Student Ministry blog, recently identified some Signs that a youth leader is lacking maturity and healthy adult relationships.

You know the type:
> the automatic buddy who will always side with a teen over their parent(s) or another adult in the program…
> the confessional adult who too often shares TMI (too much information) inappropriately in public and with the kids
> the “ambulance chaser” ready to rescue any young person out of any situation, not matter how big or small…
> the adult volunteer who hangs much more often with the kids than the other adults…

Tim has a whole list here; check it out, then come on back with a comment regarding any signs that you think are missing.

Recently, I re-read An Open Letter to Youth Ministry Workers Planning Short-term Missions, a posting by Dave Livermore on YouthWorker.com.  In it, Livermore asks us to “imagine how humiliating it is to be on the receiving end of many of these trips.”

In our own local Justice Action Week program, the staff refers to this as “the zoo effect.”  It is what occurs when one only does drive-by service focusing more on the impact upon themselves rather then genuinely engaging in solidarity with the local community, with an individual.  Participants are encouraged not to view their experience from a safe distance.

Livermore  concludes his letter with “You’re not bringing Jesus to us. He’s already here. In fact, He’s doing some amazing things here. And we know He’s in your midst and doing amazing things among you. We have needs. You have resources. You have needs. We have resources. Let’s pursue a relationship and see how God unfolds His mission in and through us—together!”

John Rinaldo of the Diocese of San Jose recently made the argument that youth ministry coordinators should be seen as administrators.  He is calling for a shift from the perception of the youth ministry coordinator as just the youth group leader.

John is calling for a paradigm shift that Youth Ministry  is about team leadership. If we are to truly affect the lives of young people, we need to spend time equipping and empowering volunteer leaders that will allow us to more fully reach out to the youth population in our parishes. He places the priority for the youth ministry coordinator to be  equipping and empowering volunteer leaders that will allow the parish to better fulfill their mission to “the younghurch.”  Please consider reading John’s whole post.

Is social media a fad?

Or the biggest shift since the industrial revolution?

Beyond the obvious push for the Technology Procedural Recommendations (opps, snuck that one in there, didn’t I?), we all have to work harder as church about wrapping our ministry around the right side of this.

Over at Fast Company, they made some recommendations regarding Twitter, but it true as well for Facebook, blogging, and the rest. Here’s my take on ‘em:

1). Take it past a hobby. Make it more than the time-killer it can be and invest some strategy and effort into it.

2). Give more than thou receive: Seriously, everything you post does not have to be about you, does it?

3). Be undeniably genuine: Everyone can eventually detect a fake, even on-line.

4). When others show a little viral love, say thanks. It’s that easy, show a little virtual manners.

5). Keep it simple: It’s all there, just figure out what you already have available to you.  Forget the programs or the classes, invite “that kid” (you already know which one) who can help you figure it out.

Busy?  Great!  Lots to do?  Awesome!!  Deadlines pending?  Wonderful!!!

Really, if this stuff is all getting to you, keep it (mostly) to yourself.  Your boss and your co-workers, your best volunteers, and especially the kids don’t really need to hear all about it.

Sometimes, we will whine  just to portray ourselves as one who is a little more important as to have been burdened by so much.  Seth Godin suggests that we have the false belief that “whining equals intimacy (in our relationships.) It doesn’t. Whining and complaining is easy and natural, but it’s not a foundation for a long term relationship.”

Catch yourself when whining.  Let’s share our hopes and our dreams. Let’s share the Hope and the Dream, not just the stuff that ticks us off.

Obsessed with cool. Trendy. Impulsive. Self-focused. Caught up in the moment. Probably sounds like a description of some of the kids in your youth group. Actually, um…well…this is not an article about youth culture or the world of today’s teenagers. This is an article about those of us in the youth ministry culture and how we seem to be sliding into an adolescent approach to our faith and mission.

So starts a wonderful article by Duffy Robbins for YouthWorker. He goes on to recommend a maturity that has perspective, hope,and love. Take a moment for a little youth ministry examination of conscience.

The fine folks at MyCatholicVoice.com have been in the process of posting up general sessions and the workshops from the National Catholic Youth Conference.

They are all available for download at a small price.  I’m going to be downloading a few for the workshop for some Advent time in the gym.

For those who attended NCYC, are there any workshops that you would recommend to me and us all?

Marcel over at the Aggie Catholic Blog recently posted this wonderful list.  It’s such a great resource that I’m re-running the complete list.

John Rinaldo is the director of youth ministry in the Diocese of San Jose. He recently blogged about a youth ministry coordinator gathering where Julius and Benjamin Bercasio spoke about marketing our youth ministry programs. The workshop offered some free online resources to make a good and eye catching flyer, to using social media tools, to guerilla marketing.

We must market. Our young people need to know that we, our church, is out there for them.

John thought the most provocative thought that was shared before you can do any marketing, your ministry needs to have answers to the following questions:

   1. What are you and what are you about?
   2. What are your core values, mission, and vision?
   3. What is your core message?
   4. How do you effectively communicate this to you’re target audience?

Thinking about and naming these things are not enough. John suggests that we need to write these down and educate our community about these things before we can begin to effectively market our ministries. The next step is to ask how you create eye-catching designs that would be able to communicate your messages to your audience?

Read John’s whole post and check the attached power-point. For additional insights, check out churchmarketingsucks.com (where I found this online tutorial to help churches create a marketing plan that was put together by the United Methodist Church.

Planning ahead for your New Years’ Resolution?  Got one for you right here!  Be an entrepreneur!

The entrepreneurial spirit has been described as involving passion, positivity, adaptability, leadership, and ambition.

My friend Sharon insists that this “is precisely this type of spirit to which the Church of the 21st Century evangelizer is called.”

A new year offers an opportunity to recommit ourselves to new ways of living, but you don’t have to wait to stop yourself of being in the trap of doing the same old the same old way

Pope John Paul II in Ecclesia in America  reminded us that  “We must commit to a new ‘new evangelization’ –new in methods, new in expression, and new in ardor.’”