The advent of Lent

The Lenten season is a long one. Forty days plus Sundays makes for a long commitment for whatever you are considering for the season. In my short time of practicing Lent here is what I have learned.

Search your heart before you commit. You want the experience to be meaningful. It helps to begin seeking and praying ahead of Ash Wednesday about your commitment.

Consider new practices along with your fast. Most people only consider something to give up. Use this opportunity to start something new as well, even if it is for a season.

I began journaling as a part of my commitment years ago.

Start again if you break the chain. It’s ok if you mess up on your fast. Just keep going. Sometimes you need to adjust and that’s ok. Let’s not be too legalistic here.

Consider charity. Most often I only heard about what people were giving up for Lent. It was only recently that I discovered that charity is one more part of the Lenten experience. Be prayerful and ready when an opportunity for charity arises. I keep cash with me as a constant reminder to practice charity this season.

Partner in prayer. Experiencing Lent in community is an opportunity to be the church.

Wait, don’t rush. God help us to slow down! Follow the experiences of the early disciples who had no clue that Jesus would be crucified and arise. Be patient, methodical, and wait.

Holy Week. Clear your schedule. Walk with Jesus. Let him speak to you as you await the resurrection.

Discover. Pay attention to what God is speaking to you in prayer in the scripture. Anticipate new life and a new season.

Mid points and the uh-oh effect

Midpoints serve a critical role in our process of on time delivery of events. When taken seriously, they wake us up in the slump or jump emotions of getting things done.

Setting midpoints early helps one anticipate the timeline and progress with less stress.

For Student Ministry, here are some high performance steps to get you ready for the next season and beyond.

1. Set aside one hour a day to focus on the steps or preparation for the next season.

2. Begin with the end in mind. Open your calendar to August 31 and write down every Student Ministry event on your calendar.

3. Group the activities under similar headings to determine projects due..For example, mid week would be one project where you would work on themes and outline your study series

4. Once you have your groupings, sequence your work based on importance of schedule and time required. An example would be a mission trip. It will take more time to plan and prepare for this kind of event than a group outing or event.

5. Initiate now. Start your list. Work your process.

The goal is to be stress free by the time Spring Break arrives. Visualize accomplishments of the goal and plan a reward for your accomplishment.

The secret to starting again.

At the beginning of every New Year, people make resolutions and it's no accident, it’s science.

Social scientists refer to the first day of the new year as a “temporal landmark”. This New Year resolution is similar to a navigational landmark, it gives direction to where we want to go.

While the start of the New Year may get the most notoriety, there are 85 other days where one can start fresh. It’s simple

These days are referred to as social or personal landmarks. January 1 is a social landmark as well as other days of the year where a fresh start syncs with our routine. The first day of the week–52 days, the first day of the month, 12 days, holidays.

Personal landmarks are birthdays, anniversaries, first day of the semester, graduation, first day on the job, etc.

My personal favorite landmark is my birthday, January 16. It follows the momentum of the New Year and gives me more time to focus on themes, objectives and goals for my life, not just the New Year.

My favorite month for starting something is February. The 28 days is a great number to create a routine over four weeks

My favorite season for fresh starts is Advent, the beginning of the new Christian calendar.

There are plenty of days for you to experiment with what works best for you. Even uncomfortable days can become good landmarks. Like a death of a loved one serving as a start of something new as a tribute to the individual.

It’s exciting. It’s fun and who doesn't need multiple times to start again?

Building teams in 2026

Your ministry will never outgrow your leadership.

If you want to reach more students, consider building a team to make it happen..

Building strong teams provide consistency and influence that extend beyond that of a ministry leader. As the team grows, the ministry grows.

Here are a few tips on building a Student Ministry team.

1. Share your dreams for reaching students. Leaders are inspired by vision. If you lack clarity it will be hard to recruit good leaders.

2. Don’t prequalify leaders. In the Student Ministry we have a tendency to recruit leaders like ourselves or leaders that we think students will like.

   If you limit your leaders you limit your reach. It takes all kinds of leaders to reach all kinds of students.

3. Always be recruiting. If you are passionate about your ministry and your vision, you should always be talking about it. Vision and passion are contagious.

4. Create a community that outsiders notice. Everyone is looking for community in some way. A leadership community with a purpose is contagious.

5. Find adults that were a part of a healthy Student Ministry.

6. Create jobs before you need them. So much of team recruitment is reactionary. Be intentional about growing and outreach. Develop leaders before a need arises.

7. On the practical side of things, keep a list of potential leaders. Include parents,friends you have in the church, preschool and children workers who step out of a leadership role, youthful senior adults, etc. Be creative. But keep a list.

Now get started. Train yourself, train others, and shape students to shape the world!

Fast start practices for the New Year

Youth Ministers are busy!

Getting control of your time where you can be most effective is a battle. Here are some fast start practices for the New Year or anytime, that will help keep you focused and aware.

Six week vision on repeat.

Begin with the end in mind by looking at your calendar six weeks from today (February 17). Make notes on any significant events that fall in the six week period. Develop a sharp awareness of anything that is coming up on your calendar for the next six weeks. Make notes and plans.

Repeat every week.

Schedule focus periods.

Focus periods can be measured in minutes or hours, depending on what you have ahead of you on your calendar. Review your six week calendar and determine where you need to focus your work, then determine how much time you will need to focus and schedule it as an appointment.

Trimester mindset-Spring, Summer, Fall.

Each season in Youth Ministry has a unique rhythm. You can effectively plan by asking “when is the best time to ….” The timing influences teaching themes, events and outreach. Each community will also have its unique rhythms. Be attentive, evaluate each trimester and make notes for future planning.

Anticipate obstacles.

You cannot anticipate most obstacles but there are usually some hints upon further observations. Know your calendar well and make sure it is synced with school, family, church wide emphasis. Obstacles squeeze your time and your ability to anticipate those moments will help you stay on track.

The Secret to Accomplishing Goals

In my experience, focus has been more important than goals. This may not be a universal concept but it has worked for me. That’s the point. Discover what works for you.

To do nothing is within everyone’s power –Samuel Jackson, 18th Century.

Here is a simple guide to accomplishing goals this next year.

1. Focus on the next 12 months. Get an annual calendar. A wall calendar is perfect for this where you can see key dates that will affect your rhythm.

   Create a mental picture of the next year, Focus on key events for your ministry, your family, and your personal growth.

   Transcribe this to a journal or digital written form. Keep it where you can reflect on it every week for the next year.

2. Script your desires. One of the early influences on my life (the 18 year old version of myself) was Psalm 37.4.. Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.

   What are the desires of your heart? Speak them to yourself and to God. Make them known! Write it down and keep it in a place where you can pray and seek direction throughout the year.

3. Set your lead measures. This was new to me until I read the 4 Disciplines of Execution (affiliate link). Lead measures are the actions you control that determine the lag measures.

   In ministry, lag measures tend to be butts in seats, budgets, and buildings.

   Our goals are often lag measures. Start to think in terms of lead measures and the lag measures will take care of themselves. Often beyond anything you would have imagined.

Focus on action. Know specifically what actions you will take to move the needle of your vision.

Finishing well

Finishing well is knowing what to do and when to do it.

It’s not time to procrastinate or get frustrated, it’s time to take intentional action.

In sports, the best finishes often follow a time out. A time out is not a retreat, it is a pause in action to focus on the next step.

In your schedule, understanding the significance of the SMALL moments will help you with the BIG moments. Take a timeout.

In a game you get several timeouts but there is a limit. Use them wisely, but use them all.

Finish well and finish strong.

One word. One vision.

What is one word that defines your ministry over the last year? What is one word that you would like to define your ministry next year?

Defining words are not casual. They help us with vision and purpose. The words you chose become a target and measurement throughout the year.

Use the one word process to define your goals for:

• Your spiritual development.

• Your family.

• Your profession.

• Your character.

• Your influence

Keep going with your own ideas.

Make a note. Check regularly and evaluate your progress.

Next year is going to be a great year.