Leader Resources

OverviewBy Toby Rowe You're excited about the chance to work alongside teenagers on a mission trip. You're energized to see how God challenges and changes these young people through the experience. Your leaders have equipped you for your role. Yet...

OverviewBy Doug Franklin Every time you walk out of your senior pastor's office, you leave with a sense of bewilderment and confusion. "Did I just waste the last hour? Did he really hear what's going on with our students? Is youth ministry really a...

OverviewBy Mark DeVries and Jeff Dunn-Rankin Today's youth ministry volunteers are clamoring for training, yet many of them won't show up for tons of meeting. So how can youth workers equip their teams? Youth Leader Training on the Go is an easy, proven...

OverviewBy Tony Myles with Doug Franklin Take a look around at the brokenness in this world and its spiritual poverty. Jesus wants to change all of that, and he's looking for teenagers who want that change to start in them. Youth worker, that's where you...

OverviewBy Mark Oestreicher with Kami Gilmour Parents are the biggest influence on the lives of teenagers—a fact that research has proved again and again. Yet interactions with parents can be one of the trickiest areas for a youth worker to navigate well...

OverviewBy Katie Edwards with Ken Castor Life-shaping discipleship isn't a random event. It's an intentional adventure, and teenagers need someone who's walking with them on the journey and helping them grow as a disciple of Jesus Christ. Jesus modeled...

OverviewBy Rick Lawrence Volunteers have the power to shape a ministry, so youth ministry leadership development and training are extremely important. Through the use of youth leadership training books, you can strengthen your volunteer team, and in...

OverviewBy Shawn Harrison When it comes to ministering to gays and lesbians, far too many churches have chosen silence over service, or a reactive stance over proactive involvement. But congregations must abandon their comfort zone and minister to a...

OverviewThis stuff works. That's because the ideas in this book--hundreds of them—come from people like you: people in the thick of youth ministry. These are best-ever ideas from the pages of Group Magazine's Try This One section. These youth group...

OverviewFew teenagers think of slavery as a modern-day issue. It's something they read about in history books-a painful, troubling chapter from the past. Unfortunately, slavery remains a 21st century reality in the form of sex trafficking. Around our...

OverviewBy Austin Maxheimer and Zach Below What if small group ministries had been invented in 2014... by your local churches? Would anything be different? Would any "sacred cows" disappear—or at least be prodded toward fresh vision and action? Answering...

OverviewBy Rick Bundschuh Make EVERY sermon memorable! Here's how... Are you hungry for Sunday messages to be memorable, meaningful, and move listeners closer to God? So why are so many messages forgettable? Pastor and author Rick Bundschuh asked the...

OverviewMost pastors don't go into ministry because they love risk management and balancing budgets and writing human resource policies. And yet each of these things, plus more, is part of a pastor's day-to-day life while leading a church. Neglecting...

OverviewEver tried to replace the organ with a keyboard? Change the service time by 30 minutes? Introduce a new ministry? Retire an old one? Pastors learn quickly that change often meets resistance in church. Even small changes can be hard to make when...

OverviewChurch members look to pastors to guide them in their faith and help them merge theology with real life. Of course, that's just the tip of the iceberg. Arguments among church members, conflicts between couples, and tension over unexpected matters...

OverviewPreach a sermon? No problem. Choose a theologically-sound Sunday school curriculum? No trouble. Conduct annual performance reviews with your ministry staff? Not so simple. Managing People provides pastors with tips for inspiring and leading staff...

OverviewBy Rick Chromey People today want to connect to God; they crave spirituality. But inside the walls of the church they are getting a 30- to 50-minute spiritual monologue. Simply put, sermons do not communicate effectively in a YouTube, Twitter,...

OverviewBy Thom and Joani Schultz "They judge me.""They're just a bunch of hypocrites." "If they're an example of who God is, I don't want anything to do with God." According to the research behind Why Nobody Wants to Be Around Christians Anymore, this...

OverviewBy Steven Tighe and Syler Thomas Real ministry happens when volunteers/small-group youth leaders are equipped and empowered to reach and develop relationships that make a difference in the lives of the teenagers. But so many don't feel like...

OverviewBy Rick Rusaw and Eric Swanson Can ordinary people live extraordinary lives? Yes—when those lives are externally focused! That's the message Pastor Rick Rusaw and Eric Swanson deliver in this timely, Bible-based book. Using a memorable acrostic...

OverviewBy Rick Lawrence There's a surging hunger among teenagers for Jesus. New research shows that they want a clearer understanding of what Jesus really said and did, and how faith in God matters in their lives. In fact, that desire is so deep, it's...

OverviewBy Rick Lawrence If you're a volunteer in youth ministry, you've likely wondered: "How did I get here?" No matter how you'd normally answer, one thing's for sure: You're "here" because Jesus nudged or maybe even dragged you here. That's because...

OverviewAccording to Doug Fields, the number one question people ask him is "How do I start an effective small group program?"; This resource is his answer. Everything Doug and his ministry partner Matt McGill know about launching small groups has been...

OverviewBy Doug Fields Six Reproducible Student Leader Audio Trainings (15 Minutes Each) Helping develop spiritually mature, ministry-focused student leaders is one of the most effective ways you can spend your leadership energy. There are big payoffs...

OverviewBy Doug Fields Leaders are, by their nature, often busy and don't have a lot of time. Because of this, Doug Fields records training sessions and puts them on CDs for the volunteers at Saddleback Church. They are able to easily listen to these...

OverviewBy Joshua Griffin with Doug Fields When you use the right youth ministry leadership training, your small group undergoes a transformation. Lives are changed. Important decisions are made. Spiritual growth is enhanced. Jokes are shared. Lifelong...

OverviewBy Jeanne Mayo If a youth group fails the "friendliness test," teenagers won't come back. Yet building a friendship culture is easier than you think—especially with this in-depth and amazingly practical youth ministry leadership...

Overview Make your church both safe and welcoming with the Safe and Secure Church kit. Your church doesn’t need to seem like an armored fortress to be safe. This comprehensive, ministry-focused church security kit helps you recruit, train, and equip a...

OverviewThis bundle features a quick-start guide plus 3 informational manuals developed by Botherhood Mutual offering real-life church security examples, expert advice, and practical instructions you can use in your church today. Set includes: Welcome...

OverviewWhether your church is considering establishing a safety and security presence or has already started the process and is just not sure what to do next, this DVD will help get your leadership on the same page. In this video, ministry leaders share...

OverviewYou walk around your church every day, and everything seems safe and secure: Doors and windows are locked, fire extinguishers are in place, and cleaning supplies are locked up. But what about hidden risks? In this video, a risk-assessment expert...

OverviewIt's often hard to define a reasonable response to threats to your congregation's safety. Are you doing enough, or are you falling short and putting your congregation and your church's future at risk? In this video, legal experts from Brotherhood...

OverviewRegardless of the ministry, finding enough of the right volunteers is a challenge every church faces. This is especially true when staffing a safety and security team. Maybe even more important than finding people with the right skillset is...

OverviewParents and guardians trust your church to protect their children and youth. But how safe are they really? Because nothing is more important than the safety of the children in your care, it's essential to be vigilant and uncompromising in your...

OverviewWhile preparing to respond to threats to your congregation's security, don't overlook the most common risk: a medical incident. Someone slips and falls in the parking lot. A child falls and hits her head on the playground. A member experiences...

OverviewTo cement your church security team's training, it's imperative to walk through the "what ifs"—What if a child is lost? What if domestic violence spills over in to the sanctuary? What if a shooter opens fire?—as if they were going to happen...