Renew…Educate…Connect…
Over the last few years, one of the conversations that has come up again and again in youth ministry circles is about how we approach mission and service. Many of us grew up with a model that was driven by ...
Last week, I had the chance to spend a day with our friends in Lutheran Outdoor Ministries Network at their annual conference, and it was exactly the kind of experience that fills your tank in ways you didn’t know you ...
Hello friends, In the past few weeks, news broke that Group Publishing has been acquired by David C. Cook Publishing. Once upon a time, Group was a powerhouse in the world of children, youth, and family ministry. They produced books and ...
As ministry continues to evolve, the ELCA Youth Ministry Network is walking forward with intention. In response to feedback from our community and in the spirit of deep listening, we’ve launched a comprehensive strategic planning process to guide our future. ...
Years ago, I had our sr. high group out on the road on the North Carolina coast, where we were working with Habitat for Humanity. The trip was going really, really well. One of the work days was rainy, so the Habitat chapter asked us to go to a different work site, where we could ...
First, let me jump to the ending: Marty is fine. Healing…walking… He is fine. Now, the backstory: Marty is an awesome adult volunteer in our senior high ministry. He’s been doing this for years and is fantastic. He ‘gets’ good, relational ministry, and is a ton of fun to have around. He is a blessing ...
I think there is sometimes some confusion about workshops at the Extravaganza. Occasionally I hear stories about folks who think “I would really love to do a workshop at the Extravaganza…but no one has ever asked me to.” I’m going to let you in on a little secret: Pretty much no one gets asked. Sure, ...
Sincere thanks to all of you who filled out evaluations for Extravaganza 2013 this past January. We’ve completed the process of collating the responses, writing up reports and doing analysis. There was a ton of great data there. The total, final, “full” report was 47 pages long (small print..single space!) Clearly, people care about the Network and ...
Over time, I’ve noticed that ministry with those in the first third of life seems to be kind of “trend driven.” There are new ministry concepts…thoughts and ideas that tend to bubble up. They become a big deal…they become mainstream…they fade…they are replaced… When I first started doing this work, congregational youth ministry was all ...
Nominations open today for the Board of Directors of the ELCA Youth Ministry Network. Two seats on the board will become available when the next term begins. Those terms don’t begin until February 3, 2014, a long time from now. So why are we already opening up the nomination process for terms that don’t begin ...
“At Disney, demographic information is thought of as factual information about our guests. Demographic information reveals who customers are, where they come from, how much effort they expend to get here, how much money they spend, etc… Another valuable aspect of demographics is that when you know who your guests are, you automatically know who ...
Last week, the Network’s Board of Directors had a final, online discussion, and voted to approve the new strategic plan for the ELCA Youth Ministry Network. This vote comes after a year of development that included prayer and conversation, writing, editing, re-writing, more editing, release of drafts, feedback, rewriting, writing, and so on and so ...
The following letter was released today by Luther Seminary: Dear President Foss, I write to inform you of my decision to retire June 30, 2013. While many personal and professional considerations surround my retiring at the end of this academic year, the timing of the decision is primarily informed by my commitment to joining others ...
The Network is excited to introduce two new membership level options! First, let’s be clear: we are a membership based organization. In other words, the bulk of the funds needed to do what we do come from the members. We do receive some funds from our specific Network partners, but they tend to be ...
Network is a Verb 