by John Park, UYWI No matter what, it’s hard to do youth ministry on your own. There’s a lot you can do but at some point you either realize you need to get some help in the form of volunteers or you end up burning out from all the demands you find yourself under. Really…

written by, John Park Each year the fall brings a new school year for students and for youth ministries the Back to School season offers a perfect launching pad to engage students who are adjusting to new schools, classes, stages of life and activities.  Here are 5 strategic things you can do to get your…

by John Park, UYWI In youth ministry, the start of a new school year brings lots of excitement to re-engage students with new program launches like small groups and leadership development or just starting up the weekly hang out time with youth.  But in the busy-ness of running youth ministry have you ever paused to…

by John Park, UYWI In today’s culture of TXTs, DMs, Snaps and Messenger apps, it’s pretty normal to expect immediate answers.  In fact, many people when asked about this told me, ‘if I don’t get a response immediately (typically within 5 minutes), I just drop the convo and move on.’ So when it comes to…

by John Park, UYWI Repeat after me, Love the Lord your God Love your neighbor as yourself Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples Love your enemy God is love The greatest of these is love Love never fails Love shouldn’t be a new concept for youth…

by John Park, UYWI The Christmas season is a time for celebration and cheer, eagerly awaiting the arrival of Jesus Christ’s birth into the world. We sing in celebration and listen to the story of Jesus’ birth, but some times can forget how much struggle surrounds Christ’s arrival into the world. The Jesus birth story…

Key Relationships to Nurture in Your Youth Ministry by John Park, UYWI The relational component of youth ministry should never be overlooked. The fact is with programs, calendaring, preparing for teaching and activity planning the thing that gets lost are the deep relationships built to help point people to Christ and those that point us…

Empowering students to be part of something bigger than themselves by Mike DeVito, National Network of Youth Ministries Jimmy headed to the school flagpole one September morning remembering his youth pastor’s challenge. He was on his way to meet other high students who were coming to pray at the flagpole. “Just wait,” he remembered. “Others are…

Hello Family, For over 20 years, UYWI has been identifying and developing next gen urban leaders to reach urban youth in the hardest parts of our cities and to lead the Church into the future. The future is now and the world is young, urban and multiethnic. Never has the need for bold visionary urban…