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| Rebound: Living Where It Matters Most |
 At times, one of the wisest things we can do as a person in ministry is to intentionally withdraw from the tending to the souls of others in order to focus on the tending of our own soul. Your own health may just be one of the greatest gifts you give to those God has called you to serve.
This is one of the reasons for over 15 years the EFCA Student Ministries has hosted the Rebound Youthworkers Retreat. This year, Rebound is being held in Melbourne, Florida, November 13-16. It is a three night, four day rest and renewal retreat for youth workers and their spouses (if applicable). Our theme this year is Living Where it Matters Most. Our speaker, Bill Allison of Cadre Ministries, will focus our time together in the following direction: the Disciplemaker's Heart, Marriage as Disciplemaking, Parenting as Disciplemaking and Living in a Disciplemaking Community.
Registration is now open. For more details click here. |
| Mark Your Calendar - Challenge 2012 | |
This summer, we announced that Challenge 2012 will be held June 30 - July 6 in New Orleans. More details will be coming next spring, but mark your calendars now. |
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Praying on the Run |
 Thirteen students stood on a stage in front of thousands of their peers to open the EFCA 2010 Challenge Conference with one final prayer to add to the hundreds they lifted to the Lord over the 800 miles they ran from Minneapolis to Columbus, OH. (Read More)
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Challenge DVD and Devotional Now Available |
 DVD sets from Challenge are now available. Each set includes all eight sessions from the Beatitudes, all the dramas, as well as daily rewinds from the conference. Some have found the DVDs helpful in a teaching series or when they needed to give themselves a break from teaching. You can purchase the full Challenge DVD sets from Nextstep Resources.  50 Day Devotional: Also available from the Challenge Conference is the 50-day devotional guide through the book of Luke and Acts. This 50-day guide will help your students walk through Luke's account of the life of Jesus and the early church. Each day consists of four parts: 1) Who is God; 2) Observation; 3) Reflect; 4) Live it. When you purchase the journal for $20, you will be given a link that allows you to make up to 500 copies. Instructions and various formats are included for in-house or professional printing depending on your desire. Note: All references to Challenge 2010 have been removed so that you can use this in any context within your own ministry. To purchase the journal, click here. |
| Rebar and Mortar: Don't Build a Ministry Without Them |
When building a strong foundation you need both concrete and rebar. The two work together in an  incredible way to create a strong foundation below ground that is able to sustain the beauty and livability of what is being constructed above ground. Concrete without rebar is foolish. It will hold for a while, but by itself it will not be nearly strong enough to bear the weight of the architect's vision of what will rest upon it. At the same time, rebar without concrete is just plain stupid. Rebar is strong, but it is only useful as it rests within the grip of concrete. It's simply a structure that helps to hold together what is really important - the concrete foundation. The Mortar: Key Spiritual Priorities and Practices
As you prepare for the ministry this fall, it would be wise for all of us to do a little foundation inspection. The mortar of ministry, if you will, are the priorities that we find in Jesus' own earthly ministry. You can use all sorts of different phrases to articulate them but they basically boil down to: A dependence on the Holy Spirit, prayerfulness, the study of scripture to know and obey God, worship as way of life, intentional community (that flow from both nurture and mission) and what I'd call an extravagant love that unselfishly seeks what is best for others. |
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Three Book Recommendations |
 What is the Gospel? By Greg Gilbert
In a day and age when the definition of the gospel is often quite fuzzy, this short little book provides some great clarity. Gilbert does not attempt to present something fresh and hip, but instead to remind the reader of the crowning jewel of the Christian life and message. This is a great quick read for any ministry leader - vocation and/or volunteer. This may be a great discussion book for a small group or for seniors to dialogue and wrestle through before they graduate later this year. (Info)
 Season of Life: A Football Star, a Boy and a Journey to Manhood by Steven Marx This has been one of my favorite reads this summer. This book, written in story format, is a quick read, but is full of numerous gems that you'll carry with you for life. Several times I found myself either in tears or grabbing my pen again. It has challenged me to have a crystal clear definition of masculinity for myself, my own boys and those that I have a chance to mentor. I'm giving a copy to all the men in our extended family, to the young men I've married this summer and a few friends. It's not simply a book for men...but a good book on manhood. If you're working with young men in your ministry...this book is a gold mine! (Info)  Sticky Teams by Larry Osborne In Sticky Teams, Larry shares some of the lessons he's learned of leading teams over the last 30 plus years. Although most of his illustrations and several of the topics have to do with Senior pastor/board relationship, the principles on team development are useful for anyone seeking to develop a strong unified ministry team. I particularly enjoyed chapter 9 entitled "Equipped to Lead" with its insights on creating a culture of training as well as chapter 2 on "Why Boards Go Bad." Although there are some chapters that don't totally apply to a youth worker's role, they certainly will give you an opportunity to lead up. (Info) |
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What's Your Plan to Equip Your Team This Year? |
 A sign of a good leader is the desire to develop his/her ministry team. As you've put your annual calendar together, have you carved out any specific time to get away with your team for some intentional equipping? If you're like the average leader (which I'm sure you're not), then you probably haven't. If this is the case, then I encourage you to contact your Student Ministry Mobilizer in your district and find out when there is training coming to your area. It's one of our goals this year to bring training for whole teams to each of the 15 districts. |
| Can we be Friends? Join us on Facebook | |
 Let's build our ReachStudents facebook community. It is a wonderful way of sharing stories, interacting on questions and staying abreast of EFCA opportunities and resources that are available to you. Join us at www.facebook.com/ReachStudents. |
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Following Jesus, together,
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Shane Stacey
Director, EFCA ReachStudents
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