Quantcast
Channel: The Young Life Leader Blog
Viewing all 1536 articles
Browse latest View live
↧

Superbowl Party Ideas

January 19, 2015, 4:00 am
$
0
0
Super Bowl XLIX (that's '49' for all of you who don't read 'Roman') is coming up in 12 days on Feb. 1st. 

Seahawks vs Patriots
Clint Gresham vs Tom Brady

It's no coincidence that Clint's number is 49 and that this is Super Bowl 49. It's Young Life destiny. Never before has a long snapper been named Super Bowl MVP, but records were meant to be broken.

If you're doing a Super Bowl themed club or a Young Life Super Bowl party, here are a few ideas you can kick around.

Decorate
Matt Sloan, YL AD in NC, duct taped a football field in their club room and made 2 goal posts from PVC pipe and yellow spray paint. Great visual!

The Young Life Bowl
Start an annual tradition before Super Bowl club of having the Sr./Freshmen Guys play the Jr./Soph Guys in a pre-club game of two hand touch football. Call it the YL Bowl. Award an actual bowl that you've decorated to the winning team. You can go all out with this with referees, team uniforms, cheerleaders, etc. Last year we played on a dark field so we pulled lots of cars around the field and turned on headlights. 

Costumes
Encourage everyone to dress football-y or to wear the attire of their favorite sports teams. Have leaders wear ref shirts.

Start Club: Sing & Flip
Have an American flag flying on your screen and begin the night by singing The National Anthem. Follow the song with a coin toss between two legit fans of each team playing in the actual Super Bowl.

Mixer "Don't Fumble"
Give everyone a single brown balloon. Once they blow up their balloon, they're only allowed to hold it in one hand. They use their other hand to try and pop other's balloons or force them to fumble. Once your balloon hits the ground, you're out. Last one standing wins.

Games

  • Hot dog Hike and Toss
  • Superbowl Trivia   It would be awesome if someone could make a Super Bowl Trivia Power Point game to share with the thousands of leaders who read this site. If you make one and email us, you might find a sweet YL shirt in your mailbox.
  • Or this game, which is straight baller.
  • Bowling with real bowling pins using a football
  • Football Toss (through a hula hoop, blindfolded, opposite hand, while being tackled)

Extras



What other ideas would you add? Email me here and I'll add them in to the post. Thanks! -Drew Hill
↧
Search

WyldLife Wednesday: Game & Mixer Ideas

January 21, 2015, 4:00 am
$
0
0
Last month we asked WyldLife leaders to send in their best game and mixer ideas. Here are some of the best!


Mixer: Islands
Idea submitted by Cierra Shook, leader in Clay County, FL

Materials Needed: Masking tape and extra large pre-cut shapes and figures of your choice.

Tape the shapes and figures to the ground. Play music while the kids go in a circle around the room and when the music stops, everyone has to fit into all of the taped shapes. If you are caught not in a shape, then you're out. As the game goes on, figures are removed until it's down to just one shape and whoever stands in it first when the music stops, wins. This game involves everyone and gets kids moving and makes them separate from their clicks, forcing them to branch out and start to meet new people and recognize new faces!

Game: Pudding Mustache
Idea submitted by Abby Morton, leader in Fayetteville, AR

Materials Needed: Each team gets a picture of a mustache and cup of chocolate pudding. 

You are given 2 minutes to recreate your picture on a leaders face! This was played at our WyldWest club and was a big hit! Rarely did a leader look like the picture with the idea of the more pudding the better.

Mixer: Balloon Battle
Idea submitted by Claire Basista, leader in Raleigh, NC

Materials needed: Blown up balloons attached to string long enough to tie around the ankle or on a shoelace.

Throw all of the blown up balloons into the middle of the room. Instruct everyone to tie a balloon around their ankle or attach to a shoelace. When the music starts, try and pop each other's balloons while safeguarding your own. Make sure to tell kids they must always be moving, or some will end up standing against the wall the whole time!

Game: Soda Sock Chug
Idea submitted by Mike Lawler, leader in Gloucester County, NJ

Materials needed: 3-4 cans soda

Pick 3-4 kids who are comfortable being up front at club and tell them they have to chug the can of soda in front of them. Just about as the kids are about to start, the leader running the game stops and says, "Wait, wait, wait! I almost forgot! Take off one of your socks and put the soda can in it!" If a kid doesn't have a sock, have one of their friends let them borrow theirs. Again, just as the kids are about to start drinking, leader will stop and again and say, "Wait, wait, wait! I almost forgot another thing. Take your soda and pass it to the person on your right!" Finally, kids start to chug their can of soda and encourage the rest of club to cheer them on.
↧
↧

Casting Vision: Where Are We Leading Our High School Friends?

January 22, 2015, 4:00 am
$
0
0
A guest post from Andrew Cooper, YL Area Director in Fairbanks, Alaska. 
(Yep, there's YL in Alaska!)

Do you have a vision for where you want your Young Life kids to end up?

Vision provides purpose and direction to ministry. Without vision we'll lose our way and kids will suffer for it.

In Young Life we have a two fold mission, "To introduce kids to Jesus Christ AND help them grow in their faith." 

Our vision should be the fullest picture of that mission. We don't just want kids to meet Christ once, but we want them to experience Him daily. One of the deepest ways I experience Christ is through being a Leader. I dream that these kids would take their faith and one day share it with their friends, co-workers, families and others they influence.

Jesus didn't wait for his disciples to fully "get it" before he asked them to join him in ministry. Why should we wait? 

Give them a dream for serving others through the power of Christ and as a worship to Him and you'll plant seeds for the next generation of Young Life Leaders, Deacons, Pastors, Small Group Leaders, etc... A generation of people who love God and love making disciples.

You're their Leader. Call them to follow you as you chase after Christ. Tell them the same thing Jesus told his disciples, "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father." John 14:12 

Have a vision for your kids that extends beyond your time with them and you will begin to lead them in a way that when they graduate or move away, they will know what discipleship and leadership looks like! Be encouraged! Jesus only had 3 years with his guys and they turned into rock stars for the Gospel!
↧

The Go Bananas Remix

January 22, 2015, 12:31 pm
↧

How To Make Your Run-On Skit The Talk Of The School

January 23, 2015, 7:43 am
$
0
0
A favorite Young Life tradition is the 'run-on skit.' A 'run-on' (or 'walk-on') is simply a skit where the same characters appear every week. Find ideas for run-on skit characters here.

There are two main options for how to run your run-on:

No Storyline
The skit characters appear weekly at club with no storyline, simply to run-games/sell camp/give announcements, etc... Think of "Deep Thoughts with Jack Handey" from Saturday Night Live or "Mr. Good Times" (a game show host that repeatedly says "Because it's always a good time with...MR. GOOD TIMES) or "The Good Morning Young Life Guys" (that wake kids with video cameras).

Redemptive Storyline
Skit characters appear weekly in club, each week revealing a little more of their story. Typically this method is used to sell camp. 

For example: Twin brothers from different mothers, 'Montgomery' and 'John Michael' are competing in a local arm-wrastlin' contest with hopes of getting to the World-Wide Arm Wrastlin' Championships in Jasper, Georgia at a lil place called Tarp Cop Shove. (Which happens to be 'Sharptop Cove' where you're going for fall camp.) Each week they either train or have a competition. Since every good story involves overcoming conflict, villains are introduced (can be played by kids or leaders) and attempt to thwart their dreams. 

Club games can be used as 'training opportunities' for Montgomery and John Michael. It's great when you can pair up the sin talk week with the run-on week where all hope seems lost (because Montgomery broke his arm). Then the cross week is where he comes back out of nowhere and wins the semi-finals with his left arm to advance to Tarp Cop Shove. Maybe even make a video to show on the bus to camp?

Many of you already know these basic ideas above, but here are three bonus ideas. They can help your run-on skit create some momentum in the school and even help motivate kids to invite their friends to club.

THREE WAYS TO ROCK OUT YOUR RUN-ON

Instagram Fan Page

Create an Instagram account for your run-on characters. A few summers ago at Sharptop, "The Desire" was one of the program characters. The day after we came home from camp, I kept seeing online that my high school friends had become facebook friends with "TheDesire Jones." It was a fun way to keep that camp momentum going.

Give-Away T-Shirts

Connect with a local screen-printing business and ask them to cut you a deal on printing some t-shirts with your run-on characters' faces on the front. If you can't get a good deal, try to find a sponsor. Often an area business will pay for your shirts if you put their logo on the sleeve. They don't have to be super high quality, but just something to use as a prize all semester for the winners of the games you play during club.

Cardboard Cutouts


Honestly, who doesn't like to get their picture taken with a life-size cardboard cut-out? A friend who runs a sign company in town is giving us a great deal on getting two of these made of our run-on characters. We plan on breaking them out before club on week 4, after the kids have become familiar with the characters.

We'll have them set up as a photo booth and post the pics of kids with the cardboard characters on Instagram. The rest of the semester we plan on putting the cardboard characters in funny places around town (like kids' bathrooms/the principal's office/local hangout spot) and taking pictures of them to show at club.
↧
↧

10 Tips On Giving A Young Life Talk From Francis Chan & Simon Sinek

January 26, 2015, 4:00 am
$
0
0
I heard Francis Chan give a talk where he shared the internal struggles he faces when speaking. To address these temptations, he asks seven questions to check his spirit and motives. Below are those questions as they relate to us as Young Life leaders. 

7 Questions To Ask Before Speaking 

Teach With Holy Fear
Am I worried about what kids and other leaders will think of my message or am I most concerned with what God thinks? 

Teach With Love
Do I genuinely know and love the kids I'm speaking to? 

Teach With Accuracy
Am I accurately presenting this scripture, have I studied God's word faithfully and let it sink into my heart and head? 

Teach With Power
Am I depending on the Holy Spirit's power or my own cool factor and good ideas? 

Teach With Integrity
Have I applied this talk to my own life? Do I believe what I say? Am I buying what I'm selling?

Teach With Humility 
Will this talk draw attention to me or to God? 

Teach With Urgency
Do my high school friends really need to hear this?  


TED Legend Simon Sinek's Public Speaking Secrets


Simon Sinek is the third most-watched TED Talks presenter of all time. Here are 3 of his top secrets for public speaking. 

Pause
When you get up to start speaking, don't talk right away. Take a deep breath, find your place, wait a few seconds and begin.

Give
Show up to give, not to take. Make eye contact with kids one by one. If you know a specific part of your talk relates to a certain high school friend, look at them, smile and speak encouragingly. 

Excite
Turn nervousness into excitement. Most of us go through the body's signs of nervousness - clammy hands, pounding heart, and tense nerves. Say to yourself out loud, "I'm not nervous, I'm excited!" 


Let's recognize what an honor it is to be called by Jesus and remind ourselves of the great privilege we have to share the Gospel with our high school friends.
↧

25 'Person of Christ' Club Talk Ideas

January 27, 2015, 4:00 am
$
0
0
We open each semester by giving Young Life talks about the person of Christ. Who is Jesus? What is He like? What does He reveal to us about God?

Below are 25 POC talk ideas.

1. Jesus Is Human, Yet Divine

  • The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” “Yes, it as you say” Jesus replied. Matthew 26:63-64
  • The Word (Jesus) became flesh and made his dwelling among us. -John 1:14
  • God became man.

2. Jesus Came For The Sick

  • "The Son of Man came to seek and save the lost." - Luke 19:10, Mark 10:45 
  • Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. -Matthew 4:23

3. Jesus Was Authoritative, Yet Humble

  • They were amazed at his teaching, for he taught as one who had real authority- quite unlike the teachers of religious law. -Mark 1:22
  • Mark 2:1-12- Authority to forgive sin.

4. Jesus Hung Out With The Outcasts

  • That night, Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with his fellow tax collectors and many other notorious sinners. The Pharisees were indigent, “Why does your teacher eat with such scum?” they asked his disciples. -Matthew 9:10-11

5. Jesus Was Angered By Hypocrisy 

  • How terrible it will be for you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. -Matthew 23:27

6. Jesus Satisfies Our Desires

  • John 4- The woman at the well. 
  • He quenches our thirst. He is the Living Water.

7. Jesus Is Unpredictable, Yet Reliable

  • He was not the king people expected. This talk could go many different directions. Here are some ideas. 
  • Matthew 14:13-34 -Feeding the 5,000. 
  • John 10:37-38 -Jesus puts his money where his mouth is.

8. Jesus Was Tempted In Every Way, Yet Without Sin

  • He faced all of the same temptations we do. -Hebrews 4:15
  • But you know that Jesus appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him there is no sin. -1 John 3:5

9. Jesus Made It Possible To Have A Relationship With God

  • For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. -John 3:16-17

10. Jesus Made Nobodies Somebodies

  • Jesus chose disciples who were fisherman and outcasts. They weren't chosen by other Rabbis, they were the leftovers, the second string, the JV team. 
  • Read Mark 1:14-20. 
  • Here's another helpful article about the disciples. 

11. Jesus Is Gentle, Yet Powerful

  • Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me." -Matthew 19:14 
  • Contrast with the miracles in Matthew 8

12. Jesus Can Sympathize With Our Struggles

  • This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses. -Hebrews 4:15
  • He enters into our despair- John 5:1-9 (Pool of Bethsaida)

13. Jesus Understands Our Sadness


14. Jesus Has Your Best Interest In Mind

  • In the story of Lazurus (John 11:1-46) it seems as if everything has gone wrong, but Jesus always has the big picture in mind. He turns broken things into something beautiful.

15. Jesus Wants To Be Your Friend
  • In Luke 19:1-10 we find the story of Zaccheus. God's desire to pursue a relationship with Zaccheus was not dependent on how good of a person Zach was. He didn't wait for Zach to come to Him, he pursued a relationship with him. Our worship of Jesus grows out of our friendship with Him. 

16. Jesus Can Make You Clean Again
  • We find the story of Jesus healing the Leper in Mark 1:40-44, Matthew 8:2-4, & Luke 5:12-14. 
  • Jesus has the power to cleanse us from physical and spiritual disease. He is moved with compassion for us. 

17. Jesus Came To Give Us Life To The Full
  • John 10:10- Abundant life
  • Luke 5- So many fish it breaks the nets
  • Matthew 14:22-46- Peter walking on water.

18. Jesus Came To Defeat Evil
  • Mark 5:1-20- Demoniac

19. Jesus Came To Give Us Freedom
  • Luke 4:14-22
  • Isaiah 61:1-2

20. Jesus Isn't Who We Often Expect
  • He's the life of the party- John 2
  • Luke 5- Big catch of fish

21. Jesus Wants To Hear Our Story
  • Mark 5:21-43- Bleeding Woman

22. Jesus Fights For Us
  • Jesus clears the temple. He wants nothing to get in between us and God.
  • Luke 19:45-48, John 2:13-17, Matthew 21:12-13, Mark 11:15-19

23. Jesus Gives Us A Do-Over
  • John 4- The woman at the well

24. Jesus Was Persecuted Unfairly

  • The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death. But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward. - Matthew 26:59-60
  • He understands how it feels when you're treated unfairly.

25. Jesus Is In The Storm With You
  • He doesn't sleep through your storm.
  • Who is this that even the wind and waves obey Him?
  • Mark 4:35-41; Matthew 8:18, 23-27; Luke 8:22-25


What other 'Person of Christ' club talks have you given? Email us here and we'll add them to the post. 
↧

Introducing the Young Life Pinterest Page

January 25, 2015, 11:00 am
$
0
0
Did you know Young Life has a Pinterest page? You can find resources for Club, Campaigners, fundraising and a lot more! Check it out here. 
↧
Search

WyldLife Wednesday: How To Start Campaigners

January 28, 2015, 4:00 am
$
0
0
Written by Julie Clapp 
YL Regional Initiatives Coordinator, North Central Texas.

“Can we really go deep with 13-year-olds?” It’s a common question as people think about leading WyldLife Campaigners. And the answer is “yes!” 

When we open up Scripture with younger kids, God uses His Word to change their hearts and lives. Middle school kids may not always be able to verbalize what they’re learning, but they do think about what they hear at Campaigners as God grows these seeds of truth. If you’re ready to start Campaigners, here are three things to keep in mind:

Vision
Think about your vision for Campaigners. What do you want kids to experience and learn in a year? Perhaps it’s as simple as giving them a genuine respect and appreciation for Scripture. Maybe it’s giving kids a picture of the heart of God through stories about Jesus. Consider selecting a theme and planning lessons accordingly. One example: “Jesus knows what it feels like to be…” (tired, sad, tempted, lonely) Maybe it’s giving kids the opportunity to process what they hear at club. Ask the club speaker to prepare questions that can be used at the next Campaigners. Since WyldLife talks are short, it allows kids to walk through the Scripture in more detail.

A Safe Place
Middle school kids want to be loved and accepted, so we need to provide a place where they experience both. The first step is letting kids know there are leaders who care about them. That may mean waiting a semester before starting a Campaigners group. Also, younger adolescents are not always certain how to act around the opposite sex or older kids, so smaller groups divided by grade and gender work best at this age. Finally, consistency and presence are important. Kids may not remember specific lessons, but they’ll remember leaders who were there week after week.

Creativity
You won’t spend an hour with your noses in the Bible. Start with food and games. Give kids a chance to talk, have fun and play for 30 minutes. Then spend 15 minutes talking about God’s Word. Use crafts, activities or games to help this group that learns by doing and experiencing. Surprise kids with a Campaigners activity one week by applying what they’ve learned in a real way. Or have a “cabin time” Campaigners at the end of club and give kids the opportunity to talk about what they just heard.

Bottom line? The Bible is God’s word and it applies to all people of all ages. Middle school kids are looking for truth in a changing world. Our challenge as leaders who know them and love them is to think through how to communicate this truth in an age-appropriate and applicable way.

Resources Recommended by WyldLife Staff
(Some of these shouldn’t be used as is, but are great places to start and then adapt.)
↧
↧

Religion Vs The Gospel

January 28, 2015, 11:14 am
$
0
0
I read this blog post from JD Greear today and thought it was super helpful for us as Young Life leaders. Be sure to read the whole post, but especially the part below. It struck me as a simple way to help our middle and high school friends understand the difference between religion and the Gospel. 

Religion says you 'should' not
The Gospel says you 'need' not. 

Religion is constantly shouting, 
  • You shouldn’t sleep with your boyfriend/girlfriend! 
  • You shouldn’t get drunk! 
  • You shouldn’t lose your temper!
That’s not good news.
That’s condemnation. 

But the Gospel says:

  • You need not give yourself to your boyfriend...because God’s love will never fail you. 
  • You need not get drunk...because Jesus offers a more sure refuge. 
  • You need not lose your temper...because God is in control.
↧

Camp Musician Of The Month: Judah & the Lion

January 29, 2015, 4:00 am
$
0
0
Our featured camp musician for the month is Judah & the Lion. 

Three very different people from very different places, united by a shared love of music. Judah & the Lion met while attending Belmont University in Nashville, introduced to each other through music and mutual friends.

“We all had similar stories, despite the fact that we’d grown up in different places,” explains mandolin player Brian Macdonald, “Judah is the Southerner, I’m the Chicago city slicker, and Nate is the laidback, bearded Rocky Mountain guy."

Whether you’ve heard the band play live or merely listened to those first two releases, you can feel the growing connection between the trio, a musical bond of true and deeply felt emotion. Judah & the Lion possess a resonance beyond their years and a sincerity of feeling that comes in part from childhoods spent performing at youth groups and at Sunday worship.

Recorded March of 2014, their newest album 'Kids These Days' embraces the band’s folk trio roots and expands from there- banjo/mandolin/harmony forming a sonic backbone that incorporates everything from keyboards to electric bass into a heady mix of old and new instrumentation.

On 'Kids These Days,' the band explores a new range of emotional territory, writing about love and fear and joy and all the nuanced spaces in-between. The songs on this album are about past and future, adventure and family, confusion and hope – a collection of stories about being young, about finding your way, while discovering - yourself.



Kids These Days: here on iTunes.

Visit the website: http://www.judahandthelion.com

Follow on Twitter : @judahandthelion

Watch Judah & the Lion here.

Email Judah & the Lion to play at your next Young Life event.
↧

Watch The Seattle Seahawks Share The Gospel

January 29, 2015, 9:51 am
$
0
0
One of our fellow Young Life leaders, Clint Gresham, is also a Super Bowl champion long snapper for the Seattle Seahawks. In his 5 years in the NFL, he has never botched a snap. He's arguably the best long snapper in the League.

But there's one thing that's way more important to Clint than winning a Super Bowl, and that's Jesus Christ. And he's not the only Seattle Seahawk who feels that way. Check out this film the Seahawks made to share the good news of Jesus with the world.

The Making Of A Champion



Follow Clint's Super Bowl Blog


Follow Clint on Twitter

Follow Clint on Instagram  
(He even posts pics of his Campaigner group meeting in the Seahawks locker room.)

Read more about Clint here. 
↧

Capernaum YL: Using An Alternative Club Order

January 31, 2015, 4:00 am
$
0
0
This post first appeared on the YL Capernaum site.

In early December YL Capernaum shared a series of posts that speak to the outline, flow and reasoning behind why Capernaum clubs look like they do. A giant thanks to Jon Bagen (Minneapolis, MN) for taking the time to create all of this in written form for us!


Young Life club is sometimes described as a party with a purpose, that purpose being, to build a platform for the proclamation of the Gospel. Every single element of club serves a purpose, has a reason behind it, and is designed specifically to meet kids where they are. For this reason (meeting kids where they are) if you were to walk into a Young Life Capernaum club, you might find yourself standing on the ceiling (that is…seeing things like you have never seen the before in Young Life, seeing them upside down, or more actually…in reverse).

After years of using the traditional Young Life club model for Capernaum (and struggling with it’s effectiveness for our friends) many Capernaum clubs across the country have adopted an alternative club order, that seems to be accomplishing what we have been trying to do all along—meeting kids where they are (not just doing things because that’s what’s always been done). Now before anyone gets too upset, let me try to explain. The alternative club order doesn’t get rid of any of the tried-and-true elements of Young Life club (songs, games, humor, club talks) it simply put these elements in a slightly different order, and order that better fits the needs of our friends, and ultimately makes the Gospel message of first importance.

If you were to walk into a Young Life Capernaum club, that is using an alternative club order, you may see something like this:

WELCOME (Social Interaction): As students arrive they are greeted, and checked-in. They then spend some time hanging out and catching up with their leaders, buddies, and other friends, as they wait for everyone to arrive. This time will sometimes consist of sit down activities (board games, puzzles, cards, coloring), there might be a snack provided, some clubs even use this time to share a meal together (family-style, sitting around tables, eating, talking, sharing what is going on in each others lives).

PROCLAMATION: After the initial social time, many clubs will transition from here to the club talk. Starting with the club talk allows us to share with our friends the Gospel message (the most important part of club) with our friends when they are most attentive, able to focus, and able to process the content that they are hearing (opposed to trying to ask our friends to focus cognitively after we have just stimulated their auditory, visual, and emotional senses with music, laughter, movement, and games). If our goal is the Gospel, then we must ask ourselves, when will our kids be most receptive to hearing the Good News, for typically developing teens I truly believe this means after they have laughed, sang, and cheered on their friends, but for our Capernaum friends, it is going to be when they are the most focused, and attentive…at the beginning of club.

CONTENT SONGS: Not unlike typically developing teens, music is a huge part of our Capernaum friend’s lives. Songs in club can be a unifying activity, getting everyone on the same page (or power point slide), it makes everyone feel included, like they are a part of what is going on, not to mention, music is fun and enjoyable, and good content songs can do a great job of reinforcing the Gospel message that students have just heard. Looking for great content songs? Check out the new content songs from “The Nashville Nine” available on the Young Life Leader Blog.

RUN-ONS, INTERRUPTERS, & CAMP SELLS: Again, just like in traditional Young Life clubs humor can be a great tool for breaking down barriers, and making kids feel relaxed and comfortable. We have an incredible opportunity in club to redeem humor by showing kids that Christ followers can be funny, and have fun, without being rude, crude, or hurtful to another person. Run-ons/interrupters (whatever you call them in your neck of the woods) are also a great way to get kids at club excited for upcoming events, such as camp, fall weekends, etc. For Capernaum physical humor (characters with funny costumes, movements, etc.…) tend to work better than witty discourse.

MEDIUM PACED SONGS: At this point the tempo and excitement of club are starting to build. Medium songs help step up the pace and the energy level of the room. Songs are also a great way to fill up time during club. Without songs, club can drag on, as you try to fill the time with game after game, etc.

SKITS, GAMES, & ALL-CLUB GAMES: Skits/games (whatever you call them in your club) have always created the WOW factor at a Young Life club, the “I can’t believe they just did that!” is a true hallmark of the fun and excited that is Young Life. Whether it is pie roulette (you’ve always wonder how to spell that haven’t you?), or shaving cream cheese balls our Capernaum friends love to laugh and have fun, just as much as the next guy. Games are a great way to get kids up front in club, just beware of harmful humor. A kid should never feel like they are being made fun of as a part of an in-club game. A kid can get messy, but he/she better feel like a million bucks, with everyone in the room chanting their name, because of it. Also, a lot of Capernaum clubs are using all-club games so that ever student gets to be a part of the action! Using funny characters to “sell” games in club can be a huge winner. Kids look forward to them coming out each week and can’t wait to see what they are going to do next!

FAST SONGS: Keep that party (with a purpose) going by doing some fast-paced, well-known, top radio hit songs (with appropriate lyrics of course). T. Swift, Katy Perry, One direction…you know what I’m talking about. Playing popular secular songs is still a great way to make even the furthest out kid feel like they belong at club.

DANCE PARTY: A lot of our Capernaum friends are way less inhibited than their typically developing peers and they love to shake it. A dance party is a fun culmination of the traditional elements of club and a great way to end that part of the evening.

CLOSING ACTIVITY/CRAFT: A lot of Capernaum clubs are now ending with a closing activity or craft. This is a great way to reinforce the Gospel message from earlier in the evening, using a hands-on activity (opposed to our friends just hearing a verbal proclamation). Ending with an activity also allows for some of our friends to settle down before getting picked up by their parents.


OVER-ALL FLOW OF CLUB (transitions): I am a firm believer that club should start once and end once, not start and stop seven different times, meaning there should be no “dead time” in-between the different elements of club, one thing should move right into the next, almost overlapping. Just like in a relay race, if you want to get to the finish line, the transitions are key.

All in all, we haven’t thrown the baby (the tried-and-true elements of Young Life club) out with the bathwater, we’ve just moved those babies around a little bit, to better serve our friends with disabilities, to best meet them where they’re at, and do whatever it takes (Mark 2) to bring our friends before Jesus.
↧
↧

Creating A Campaigners Group In 5 Months

February 1, 2015, 4:00 am
$
0
0
This guest post is written by Todd Pinkston. 

Asking a volunteer leader to run a Campaigner Group is one of the most intimidating things in Young Life. However, with the proper training and direction, we can unlock the greatest joy a leader can have in Young Life...leading Campaigners.

At the 2012 Young Life All-Staff Conference, Francis Chan said, "The whole idea of discipleship is to duplicate ourselves." We are known for our effectiveness in reaching kids through relationships...but if we are going to properly disciple these kids, it needs to be done with the same roots: relationships.

Reach Relationally - Teach Relationally

Below are 5 steps to help every Young Life leader start a campaigner group of their own in 5 months.

1) Contact Work (2 months)
Contact work is at the core of what we do in Young Life; it is what separates us from other organizations. We should always be doing contact work, but for the first 2 months, a leader should double up their efforts in this area. Take the time you will be using for campaigners down the road and invest it in contact work up front. Learn names, earn the right to be heard, meet parents and faculty.

2) Something to Attract Kids (1 Month)
In this step you go from Their Turf to Mutual Turf. For this month you are doing one of these events to hang out with your kids: craft nights, frisbee at the park, movie night, cooking together, game night, pumpkin carving, etc. You are setting a foundation of fun for your group, learning their schedules, and building relationships with them.

3) Develop Consistency (1 Month)
In this step you go from Mutual Turf to Consistency. What you were doing at different times...at different places...on different nights, you now want to settle in to the SAME TIME..AT THE SAME PLACE...ON THE SAME NIGHT. This step is huge. Consistency is very important for kids. You want to own a night of their week. You can continue to do craft nights or movie nights or whatever else, but you want to hone in on one night.

4) Develop a Strategy (1 Month)
Here you move from Consistency to Routine. Now that you have a constant group meeting, you want to think about the norms you want to have for your group and establish a strategy to ensure these happen. You want to put into place a schedule for your time, and include things like fun, laughter, content, etc. A few years back when LOST was the tv show all my guys were watching, our schedule each week was: 6:30-optional dinner together. 7:00-content. 8:00-watch LOST. By the time each Thursday was over, we had laughed together, eaten around a table together, prayed for each other, reach Scripture together, and shared our favorite show together...what a night!

What you put in your 'content' time will change as your kids get older. It may be a 10 highs/lows time for your 8th grade group that will develop into a 45-minute study of Philippians when they are juniors. What is important is that you build this 'content' time into your strategy and establish it early.

5) Put a Bible Study into your time (when appropriate).
Now that you have a routine established with your kids, when it is appropriate for them, you want to open up the Bible and study it together. This is the goal--it's what you have worked so hard for. You can start off with a verse or two, but we all know that studying Scripture is attractive and kids will be eager to learn how to read it together.

God has wonderful things in store for you as you walk through these steps as a leader.

Thanks, Todd, for this practical application.

We want to know what has worked (or what hasn't) for you all in establishing and maintaining Campaigner groups. Here's how you submit a guest post.

Todd Pinkston grew up in Richardson, TX before he went off to the University of Central Arkansas to play football. His passion for sharing Christ with kids led him to get a masters from Dallas Theological Seminary and go on staff with Young Life. He currently serves as the Area Director for Young Life in Richardson. Todd is married to Erin and they have two chocolate labs, Denver & Tex.
↧

Questions To Ask In Your Post-Club Team Meeting

February 2, 2015, 8:37 am
$
0
0
After club each week it's important to gather as a team and review the night, we call it 'post-club team time.' Our club ends at 9 pm and our team usually meets from 9:15-10:15 pm after everyone has left. Other clubs in our area gather another night of the week because a post-club meeting makes for a long Monday.

We always start the post-club meeting with an extended time of prayer, each leader thanking the Lord for what He did that night. After prayer, we review each part of club and ask two general questions along with a few others, depending on the week.
1. What went well?
2. What can we tweak for next time?


Parts of Club To Evaluate

General

  • Where did you see God show up tonight?
  • Did club feel fun?
  • Was it well organized?
  • Did club flow well or was there too much down time in between club elements?
  • Did we give kids ownership of club or did we do everything?
  • How were our senior leaders and other students made to be producers instead of consumers tonight?
  • Did we leave the club location better than we found it? Did we clean up well?
  • Who is writing a thank you note to the host family?

Pre- club

  • Were we prepared for club ahead of time so we could hang out with kids when they arrived?
  • Did you arrive to club spiritually prepared?
  • What new kids did you meet?
  • Did every new person feel welcomed?
  • Did we get all the new folks to fill out club cards?
  • What parents did you meet?
  • Did we communicate clearly with parents about pickup time and upcoming events?
  • Was parking an issue? Do we need to get folks to help direct traffic?
  • Did the seniors form the tunnel on time, was there clear communication?
  • Did we start on time?

Music

  • What songs worked and which should we cut?
  • Were leaders and senior leaders spread throughout the crowd?
  • Were the lyrics on the screen correct and easy to read? What do we need to tweak?

Game, Mixer, Skit, Run-on

  • What was funny? What worked and what didn't?
  • Were kids made to feel like heroes or goats? Did we pick the right kids for the games?
  • Did the mixer get everyone involved?
  • Were the games/jokes in good taste and above reproach?


Talk

  • Be careful with this. It's important to limit negative feedback right after the talk. It's great to evaluate, but keep this time positive. Make a note of ways the speaker could improve next time and offer those critiques later in the week, not when they're vulnerable after just pouring out their heart.
  • It's helpful if the speaker can lead this time and ask the 5 questions below of the team.
  1. Did I seem prepared?
  2. Was Jesus lifted up? Did the Scripture come to life?
  3. What did you hear me say? What was my main point
  4. What's one thing I did really well?
  5. What's one thing I can work on for next time?
↧
Search

I Stay Leadin'

February 3, 2015, 11:00 am
$
0
0
Enjoy this 3 minute music video made for a YL Leader/Committee Weekend featuring Josh Goodman & Michael McGregor, YL staff in Maryland.

I Stay Leadin'
↧

WyldLife Wednesday: Electricity Game

February 4, 2015, 4:00 am
$
0
0
Looking for a fun game to use in your WyldLife club? 

Electricity Game

  • Divide into two teams and have them get in parallel single file lines facing the same direction (away from the main leader).
  • Have them sit down, so effectively they are all sitting away from the leader in two lines, thus looking at the person’s back in front of them.
  • Have them put their left hand behind them and their right hand in front of them to connect with the person in front of them and behind them.
  • Have the person leading the game (me) sit near the first person in line (at the back of the line effectively) flip a coin.
  • If the coin is “heads” then the person looking squeezes the hand of the next person in line, who squeezes the next person’s hand and so on, until it goes all the way down the line and the last person grabs a ball that is sitting in between the last people in line. Winning team gets one point.
  • If the coin is “tails” they do nothing and you flip again. If a team mistakenly squeezes hands and grabs the ball then that team loses a point.
  • After each “heads” then person at the end (the ball person) goes to the back, so it rotates, everyone moves down, and eventually everyone rotates through each position.
  • Everyone stays silent to make it more fun and the people grabbing for the ball can get a little aggressive too which makes it more fun.

This game was spotted on YLHelp.com.
↧
↧

Love Club Ideas

February 5, 2015, 4:30 am
$
0
0
Below are a few different directions you can go as you're planning your Valentine's themed club.

Call It... 

  • Battle of the Sexes Club
  • Ms. Valentine's Pageant
  • Anti-Valentine's Day Club
  • Dating Game Club
  • Red Club
  • Love Club

Battle of the Sexes
One year we did Battle of the Sexes Club on Valentine's day and it was a big success. Gals wore pink. Guys wore blue. They entered through different tunnels. We had contests singing love songs the loudest. We did the giant pyramid mixer.  We played Battle of the Sexes trivia and a few other fun games you can see here. 

Ms. Valentine's Pageant
This club is very similar to the Mr. Christmas Tree Pageant done with the guys in December. Get ideas here. 

Anti-Valentine's Day Club
I've actually never done this club but I've heard a few folks say that it's gone well for them. If you have ideas, send them in here and I'll add them to this post. 

Dating Game Club/The Blind Bachelor
Have "Antonio Amore" host your evening. He enters to the song “That’s Amore” and is dressed in a suit with red hearts pinned all over him, a mullet wig, mustache, top hat, anything over the top. He has a French accent and repeatedly says “I do not push, I do not shove, I am as sweet (sweet is said in a high pitched voice) as a turtle dove, I get my looks from the man above, my name’s Amore, my name means love.”

In the past we've borrowed a male and female senior leader from our rival high school and had them serve as our guest 'bachelor' and 'bachelorette' for the night. The 'bachelor' went first and entered blindfolded while the bachelorette was hidden in another room. 4 girls (one from each grade) competed to win the date with the bachelor. The bachelor asked the girls a series of questions like these:

  • If you were a candy, what would you be and why?
  • Describe your perfect date? What would we do?
  • What are you looking for in a future spouse?
  • If you were to write me a poem, what would it say?

Ex: "Contestant #1, if you could change anything about the world, what would it be?"

After a series of questions the bachelor makes his decision and writes it (still blindfolded) on a piece of paper placed in a sealed envelope and handed to Antonio Amore. The female contestants all wait in suspense while the Bachelorette enters along with the 4 male contestants, one from each class.

I like to prep the freshmen guy ahead of time with good answers so he's the hero. It's funny when the senior girl wins a date with the freshmen guy.

After the bachelorette makes her decision, Antonio announces both winners. The music plays, rose pedals are thrown down, and the blindfolds are removed. The two winning couples are escorted to the door where the limo awaits! (See if you can get an area limo service to donate or give discounted service. Typically a Monday night isn't too busy for them!)

In the limo, the couples are joined by Antonio and another friend of YL who is the videographer for the evening. The two couples leave club before the talk and head to a local dive like What-A-Burger or Sonic. Have silverware, flowers, placemats, etc... Antonio helps the date along prompting conversation with pre-planned questions and instructions like "feed your date a bite of that milkshake with your left hand.'

Show the video at club the following week!

Other Dating Game Club Ideas From YLHelp.com



The Talk
I recommend using Love Club to address sex & dating. I know its not in our typical YL talk progression, but its something teenagers are dealing with daily and we owe them the truth.

In the past I've done a light-hearted talk, explaining the difference between lust and love. It's important to help our high school friends understand we really desire more than just what our hormones tell us we desire. We really want intimacy: to be completely known and yet completely loved, accepted and unashamed, without fear of rejections.

Gen 1:27, 2:18-25, and 1 Corin. 6:16-19 (from the Message).

Quotes I Love To Use When Speaking About Sex & Dating
-Purity paves the way to intimacy. (Andy Stanley)
-They don't make condoms for your heart. (Lots of folks)
-You don’t have to shop at Victoria Secret and do poll dances to be a desired woman. (Ken Tankersly)
-I'm no sexpert, but... (Can't remember who I stole that from.)
-God loves sex, He's the inventor of sex. Do you think Adam & Eve we're just walking along and bumped into one another? (Mike Ashburn, maybe only Ash can pull that off.)

If you have any other ideas to add, please comment below, or email me here.
↧

Free Frozen Yogurt Tonight At Menchie's

February 6, 2015, 5:00 am
$
0
0
Today from 4-8pm, you can stop by any Menchie’s to get a free 6-oz Frozen Yogurt. No purchase is necessary. Grab your middle and high school friends and go-fro-yo! 
↧

Club Game Of The Week: Lip Sync Battle

February 9, 2015, 4:00 am
$
0
0
A brilliant game idea submitted by Dan Vander Woude, YL Area Director in Monroe, LA. Thanks Dan! If you have an idea to share, here's how you do it. 

At this point in the school year, we're all trying to figure out ways to engage seniors that have already mentally graduated. 

Video clips of Jimmy Fallon’s lip sync battle with Kevin Hart and Will Ferrell were making the rounds last week and it could make for a great club game involving seniors. 

In our club we'll make it a two week game and crown a champion—it could easily turn into a yearly tradition with a trophy passed down. Similar to other skits, kids will be likely to invite their friends in order to support them while they perform.

Format
Choose 4 seniors or teams of seniors to perform a lip sync to a song of their choice and your approval. Each team performs 1-2 minutes of their song, and then have leaders/committee/donors rate their performances in either a camp pool Olympics judging style or American Idol style. The top two teams move on to the next round at the next club with new songs battling for the championship. The championship round could even involve both teams performing two songs. 

Set up a leader with each team to help coach them. It's built in contact work time as you practice and locate costumes. Also, pairing a leader with each team should help the danger of kids going unscripted.

Other Ideas

  • Introduce with a game show type host character that can be used for other club games throughout the semester. In a club setting with a large stage, the same could be done in a 'Dancing with the Stars' format. 
  • Promote the lip sync battle on your social media with boy-bandish shots around town or 'behind the scenes' practice videos.
  • Trophies. Everyone loves trophies. Ask people in your community to donate old trophies from their childhood achievements, remove the name plate, and make a sticker with the club game champion info on it. We recently had a community member give us their entire childhood of 30 trophies to be used at Club.


Video of Jimmy Fallon, Will Ferrell and Kevin Hart’s battle can be seen here.
↧
Viewing all 1536 articles
Browse latest View live
Search