What does your fall look like? If you're like me—and a lot of the leaders I've been talking to—the big word for your fall is unknown. I know for us right now, as an organization, we're usually packing our bags, booking airline tickets, renting cars, and trying to figure out the hotels we're going to stay in as we travel to over 20 different cities. But not this fall.

Every generation takes a cue from the generation that came before it. The hard truth about racism in any generation is that it doesn’t just happen by accident. It is . . . a reflection a response a reaction to what the adults around them did or didn’t do. The Church is called to be a compass for every generation.

Have you ever thrown a rock into the water and watched the concentric circles form across the surface of the water? This formation of rings along the water’s surface is known as the ripple effect. That small rock, dropped in the water, indirectly affects the surface of the water several feet outside its initial point of entry.

If we lead the next generation to love and serve others, their faith will move in a positive direction. If we don’t, their faith will become shallow and superficial. Not only does loving God affect how we love others, but loving others affects how we love God.

What matters to someone actually matters. When the leaders in your environment take the time to figure out what matters to those they lead, children and teenagers in your ministry begin to believe they matter, too.

Here’s a secret every good volunteer and leader knows: You don’t do something because you feel like it. You do something in order to feel like it. If you only do what you have to do, you will be limited in what you do. It’s the stuff that you don’t have to do that ultimately changes your faith.

A curriculum equips leaders, but a strategy develops them. A curriculum facilitates a meeting, but a strategy prioritizes community. A curriculum provides information, but a strategy mobilizes students to experience what they are learning.

This week, covered here and on the websites of our Orange Bloggers, we’re going to take a look at the OC19 theme, “It’s Personal.” Because, there’s a reason . . . some volunteers have a deeper commitment some parents engage at a more practical level some ministries make a greater impact some churches have wider […]

There’s a party happening. It’s actually going to be one HEAVEN of a party, because the invitation was extended from the Creator of the universe. And the good news is that everyone is invited. This one idea—that God is throwing a party for everyone—could potentially change how we see the world around us. What if […]