So you care about programming your weekly youth group service? That’s a win… I LOVE programming!
I’m particularly enthusiastic about programming a considerate and interesting youth service in the fall. It’s been my expertise {that a} new college 12 months is the greatest time to actually put money into your weekly program – I like to capitalize on the momentum this season naturally brings!
Most youth teams use some form of “order of service” to plan their program. There’s a kajillion names for one of these course of, a “run sheet” a “flow” or perhaps a “program sheet” or some even use a software program program like Planning Center Online. There’s a number of methods to manage your ideas – no matter works for you to hold everybody on the similar web page.
Pre-service
Music
I like music enjoying and I’m at all times trying to find an excellent playlist. Jump on Facebook in the Download Youth Ministry community group and ask youth employees to share their Spotify playlists and also you’ll immediately have a TON of completely curated playlists. Or simply open the app and search youth ministry and also you’ll be flooded with strategies from youth employees (who may be 10% cooler than you) and have given a while and thought into track picks that can work for simply this second.
On the display screen
If you have got a projector or TV, I like placing one thing on the screens for college kids to have a look at once they arrive. It provides to the room vibe and it permits guests one thing fascinating to have a look at. You can rotate totally different slides to both 1) promote upcoming occasions, 2) share a few of your values, or 3) simply to have some enjoyable footage of different youngsters connecting and having enjoyable inside your youth ministry. It’s enticing when youngsters can see youngsters smiling, laughing and having enjoyable. Don’t be afraid to cycle via a bunch of youth group pictures from the earlier week.
Countdown Video
My choice is for the pre-service time to finish with a countdown video that clearly signifies the service is about to start. I prefer it as a result of it’s the official begin of the service in addition to a reminder for everybody to “turn the corner” or seize a seat.
Filling Your Programming “Buckets”
I might encourage your programming efforts to start by defining what you need your service components to embrace. Think of a programming ingredient as a bucket—every one in all the following components is a bucket you may fill with totally different concepts.
For instance:
- a recreation bucket
- an affidavit bucket
- a video bucket
- a instructing bucket
- a mixer bucket
- a track bucket, so on… there will be many several types of buckets.
Once I do know what my programming buckets are I can throw concepts in them as I discover them. There are a whole lot of various video games and recreation sorts that I may throw in the Game Bucket, hundreds of various songs in the track bucket, in the testimony bucket there may very well be video testimony, grownup testimony, Christian testimony, a non-Christian testimony about why they don’t consider, a YouTube testimony of a well-known athlete or film star… you get the thought. I’m continually throwing concepts into these buckets. I can’t get to all these concepts each week, however I’ve a program EVERY week so I want to hold including to these buckets.
Then, since I’ve a ton of concepts to select from my programming buckets, now I’ve to be selective primarily based on my time-restrictions. How a lot time is my given program? The time-block is essential and serves as my filter. I dwell by a easy time precept in that I’d fairly go away college students wanting extra of an excellent program ingredient than drained or bored of it… which suggests, I’ll minimize issues shorter and go away them wanting to get on to the subsequent programming ingredient. Youth tradition is quick-paced, and it’s onerous to maintain the consideration of youngsters for very lengthy. Asking them to be a part of a program that runs longer than an hour is asking quite a bit, so hold that in thoughts as you place your program collectively!
NOTE: If your buckets are on low or empty I’d encourage you to head on Download Youth Ministry to seize a recreation or a countdown. Truth be informed, I largely fill my programming buckets from downloadyouthministry.com since a membership is cheap and permits me to purchase so many alternative objects. I may even purchase messages there for reasonable. I like writing my very own messages however I’ll positively use another person’s message as a set off or place to begin for my message. The manner I give it some thought is that your ministry with college students is exclusive to what solely you are able to do, however programming concepts can come from the minds and experiences of youth employees throughout the world. I need extra time with my college students and utilizing different individuals’s stuff for programming saves me a lot time.
Service Flow
Now that we have now our concepts and our time-frame, the subsequent step is to take a while to develop a service move. I like to use a number of easy templates for a way the service ought to go.
- Countdown
- Opening Song
- Welcome
- Game
- 2 Min Connect Time
- 2 Songs
- Prayer
- Bumper Video
- Message
- Song/Response
- Dismiss.
Something like that will work. There’s no a technique to do it, do what’s best for you!
It could also be greatest to slowly develop 3 variations of your service move and blend it up each collection or so. The secret’s that college students and volunteers really feel like the service is “safe” in that it’s one thing that they will invite their mates to, but in addition recent sufficient that it’s not predictable—I like surprises to hold them guessing. Getting caught in a rut is not any enjoyable for anybody and being predictable is simply wanting being boring.
Remember, you’re on this for the lengthy haul—you’re not simply doing one service and that’s it. You’ve received this gig each week… each week! So, be determined for good concepts. Beg, borrow and steal them… once more, Download Youth Ministry is your treasure chest for wonderful concepts that can fill each bucket.
The weekly program is the centerpiece of loads of onerous work and as quickly as this week is completed there’s one other one proper behind it. But you’ve received it!
Want to get a hand in your programming for this week and plenty of weeks after? Check out the Gold Membership Deal happening proper now! Click the pic under to learn how to get the enable you want in your weekly program!
Josh Griffin is a 25 12 months youth pastor veteran and co-founding father of DYM. He’s the Junior High Pastor at Mariner’s Church and at all times 10 minutes late.