Are you struggling to come up with your next sermon series? Are you needing some inspiration when it comes to preaching on a specific topic or during a specific time of year? Well, we want to help.

There are many things you can do right as a youth pastor to make sure your student ministry grows and thrives. But, there are also many things you can do wrong that could negatively affect your ministry. With this in mind, here are four things you should avoid doing as a youth pastor for the betterment of your students and your student ministry. 

Writing a sermon is no small task. And as a pastor, when your job entails preaching every single weekend, writing sermons can feel overwhelming. So to help you as you get in the rhythm of weekly sermon prep, here are a few steps to consider as you begin writing.

The key to having a healthy church is having a healthy and effective small group ministry. When your members and attendees feel like they belong, when they experience all the benefits of community, they are not only going to keep coming back to church. They are going to plug into the church in other ways because it will start to feel like home.

Have you ever been to a church, or maybe watched a pastor preach on TV or online, and wondered, “How is preaching this entire sermon without any notes?” It can seem like a very daunting task, but at the same time, preaching without notes is not impossible. It just takes some creativity, resourcefulness, and preparation.  

As pastors, our goal should be to never stop learning and never stop growing. There is always room for improvement and development as we grow not just in our ministry, but in our personal relationship with Jesus as well. Obviously, the source we should always run to first and foremost when we are seeking to grow and develop ourselves is the Word of God. Scripture has more than enough guidance, wisdom, and encouragement to help us in our personal growth journey.

Conducting an interview is no small task. And when you’re interviewing someone for a position on your church staff, the pressure can feel even more overwhelming. Not only are you trying to determine if this person will be a good fit for your team and a competent co-worker. You’re also trying to figure out if they will be a good and faithful shepherd of whatever area of ministry they will be working in if they join your church staff. 

Jim Ryun once said, “Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.” When it comes to working in ministry, we can have all the motivation in the world, particularly when we’re starting out, or we’re in a new season of our ministry. But what happens when the monotony sets in? What do we do when the day-to-day gets overwhelming? How do we remain effective in our ministry? 

Spending alone, uninterrupted time with Jesus each day is something we should all be prioritizing as followers of Christ. But just like anything else you do on a regular basis, it’s easy for our quiet time to start to feel stagnant and stale. So, if you find yourself in a rut when it comes to your time with Jesus, here are 5 tips to improve your personal quiet time. 

Jerry Seinfeld once said, “According to most studies, people's number one fear is public speaking. Death is number two. This means to the average person, if you go to a funeral, you're better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.”