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Nehemiah

May 27
Love0

Empowering Students to share their story

By Nehemiah

You’ve reached the 4th week of tips. I hope these tips have been helpful for you.  I know that if you take the time, process through these tips, and begin to implement them in your ministry that you will deepen the lives of your core students that will change the culture of the entire group. Try it. Your student ministry will not be the same! AND, we are not done. Check out the video today from Wilson: 

 

All ministries lead somewhere. Have you ever asked yourself or people in your church the question: What is the goal of our student ministry for students who graduate high school? What is it that you want students to graduate with from being a part of the church? We think it is pretty simple:

  1. The number one thing you can do in the life of a student is to help him/her _______________ the Gospel.
  1. Equip them to share their __________________ Story.
  2. As they identify the God moments in their life, help students to __________ it out.

*** Our students are ___________________________ for Christ.

When you work and equip them to know the Gospel, their story of faith, and write it out, you will see them take ownership of their faith before they graduate high school.

Once you watch the video, download the homework sheet (it has the fill in words for these blanks).

See you tomorrow!  Get ready for the last day. it is a good one, no a GREAT one!

Wilson

Homework

May 20
Love0

One simple way to grow your student ministry: Have a Plan

By Nehemiah

Welcome to tip #3 of our journey to help prepare your student ministry to grow after the shelter at home order is lifted. We started with your call from God. Last week, we gave you a prayer tool to help get your church behind the student ministry. And now, we are going to empower those students to begin growing your ministry. It is a very simple concept that doesn’t get enough street cred: Talk to God about your friends before talking to your friends about God. And measure it. Check it out:

In all of life, you have to have something to measure. If you don’t, how can you get anyone to join you?  Everyone wants to be a part of something that is bigger than themselves!  The best way to help people see that this something is your student ministry is to show results. In todays tip I challenge you to set goals and build your ministry though prayer. After all, if we don’t have the air cover we will never win the ground war.

  1. If I do not measure it, I do not ________ about it.
  2. Know __________ how many resources are needed.
  3. Develop your __________ for student led prayer.

*** Give your students the _________ friend challenge.

Once you watch the video, download the homework sheet (it has the fill in words for these blanks). Be ready for Day 4!! Tomorrow we give you a tool that will help the words of Jesus come out of the mouths of your student leaders!

See you tomorrow!

Mark

Homework

May 13
Love0

The best way to get your Church involved in Student Ministry

By Nehemiah

Welcome to Tip #2. I hope Tip #1 last week was a fresh reminder of God’s love for you and HIS desire to use you to redeem His creation! If you haven’t seen Tip 1, go back in the blog and check that one out first. Today we continue our quest to help prepare your student ministry for after the shelter at home order is lifted.

In today’s tip, we look at the best thing you have going for you: students! What if you and your church started seeing your students in a slightly different way? Don Miller (StoryBrand.com) says there are 4 kinds of people in every story: Villains, Victims, Heroes and Guides.  So what does this have to do with student ministry? Watch the video to find out:

  1. See students as __________________ to school.
  2. Identify students who are already ___________ their faith (the heroes! aka Luke Skywalker).
  3. Equip the church to _____________ for the missionaries (the guides – but you are their master Yoda!).

*** People have a __________ for what they pray for.

Once you watch the video, download the homework sheet (it has the fill in words for these blanks) and take some time to list the hero’s in your student ministry (the students). Be ready for Tip 3 where we will give you a tool for your students to use to share their faith story.

Homework

May 06
Love0

How your call strengthens your student ministry

By Nehemiah

This is day 1 of a 5 part email series that we will be sending you entitled, “How to double the size of your student ministry once we are meeting again.” We want to help prepare your student ministry after the shelter at home order is lifted. Each week on Thursday you will get this email that links to the blog. Check out the 5 minute video and follow along with the blanks below. The answers to the blanks are on the homework sheet that is attached. So, let’s get started. We feel like a good foundation for that is to start with your call. It might seem fundamental, but all great athletes, writers, business leaders, or successful people in general, work on their fundamentals. Here we go!

  1. The call of God on your heart is not about __________________.
  2. The call of God on your heart is not about a _________________.
  3. The call of God is not always _________ before you begin.

*** The call of God is about what __________ your heart.

Be ready for next week, because part of the process God uses to fulfill your call is always about the people you are in relationship with.

Homework

Apr 29
Love0

5 Things you can do from home

By Nehemiah, Local FP Communities

It is hard to believe that we have lived this way for over a month now. We have heard so many times that these are unprecedented times and we wonder when or if things will ever be the same again. There are so many questions that only time can answer.

As we patiently wait, we realize the obvious; we are not in control. This is the lesson that the entire world can learn. As sure as we are not in control, we realize that God is in control. He is still on the throne, He is still at work and He still cares.

There are a lot of things we can’t do during this time but instead let’s focus on what we CAN do…

Our faith CAN increase at a time like this.
We CAN grow: study the Word and pray more.
We CAN look for God in all of this.
We CAN share the Hope we have in Christ.
We CAN make the most of the opportunity. (Ephesians 5: 15 – 17)
I want to encourage you. God is faithful and His promises are new each day. Rely on Him and draw your strength and help from Him.

First Priority has been challenged to be creative and innovative during these times and we are excited to see the Gospel continue to go forth via virtual clubs – Praise God!

Chris Lane
FP Executive Director South Florida

Apr 23
Love0

Your Students are Ready to do Something

By Nehemiah, Virtual Clubs

If you are a youth pastor or work with students, we, first of all, want to say thank you for investing in and caring for teenagers. We know you sure as heck don’t do it for the money. If you are like most Youth Pastors during this shut down in America, you have been racing to find out how to still do ministry. You know as well as anyone that today there are more people looking for answers than ever before. You also understand that the way we do ministry has to change, but it is a good thing. My son serves as a youth pastor in North Carolina. He said his online church services have been more attended, more people giving their lives to Christ and more money in the offering than when they met publicly. Not that we don’t need to meet physically, we do and are even told to in Hebrews 10:26. With the creation of the internet, the word and the gospel can go forth. It is almost as if God pushed the church out of the building. Acts chapter 8:1, after the death of Stephen, the Bible says, “At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.” We have an excellent opportunity for ministry since we got pushed out of our buildings.

Your students are ready to do something. Well, why not start a First Priority virtual club? A Clubwhere students can invite their friends to a zoom call and hear your students share their testimonies and give people an opportunity to give their life to Christ. I listened to a youth pastor the other day say he loved it when the salvation prayer was prayed, and the students who accepted Christ indicated it in the chat room. We have put together a free teaching platform where we walk you through a simple training on how to get these clubs going. To get started click here.

Apr 15
Love0

Naming Loss

By Nehemiah, Priority Parents

These unprecedented times we find ourselves living in right now have brought many mixed emotions. You hear stories of families connecting more, times of rest and relaxation, and less stress. People are reaching out more and helping their neighbors and even strangers in ways they have never done before. It has brought a thankfulness and gratitude towards nurses, doctors, teachers, grocery store workers, etc. that maybe we all took for granted.

On the other side, I know many people are struggling greatly. And the losses they are dealing with are heavy. And they don’t know how they are going to make it.

During this time of the unknown it is important that we can name those things we are grateful for but also those things we have lost. Many times we focus on only trying to be thankful and talk about the things that are good. Which is a great thing to do. But it is just as important to name and recognize our losses. Our students and kids especially need to recognize that naming their loss is ok. It’s not a bad thing to think about something we have lost and only name what we are grateful for. Naming it gives us a chance to mourn and move on.

We hung a paper on our refrigerator about a month ago and started this process of naming things we are grateful for and things that are losses. We haven’t been great about naming things every week but I think just having it up there reminds us that it’s okay to have these feelings of both loss and gratefulness side by side. It helps us recognize that there is both pain and joy in what we face not only during this time in our lives, but at any time. I used to shelter my kids from anything bad. I didn’t want them to know I was sad or angry or had a bad day. But kids need to see that part of us. They need to know that naming a loss is normal so that when it happens to them, they know how to mourn the loss and pick back up and move on.

So I would encourage you during this time, no matter where you find yourself, to be thankful and grateful for the things God is doing or has provided but that it is also okay and just as important to recognize those things that you have lost. And help those students around you to do the same.

Mar 18
Love0

There is no Fear in Love

By Nehemiah

The saying, March comes in like a Lion is an understatement. I know it usually refers to weather, but the entrance of the coronavirus this month has certainly affected our nation like never before. People are panicking, and some are very afraid. Some of the stuff I have seen on social media is nuts, people wearing trash bags, spraying each other down with Lysol. It is funny, but to people who do not know the Lord, I am sure very scary. Brad reminded me that Jesus referred to people as sheep. Well, there you go, if you don’t have a shepherd to protect and lead you, you get scared.

I was headed today to a board meeting and was shocked at all the people I saw at Walmart and Sams Club, it’s like a hurricane down here, and what is up with everyone stocking up on toilet paper? Is there something I missed about the symptoms?

While driving, I had this thought; God is a God who takes something bad and turns it into His good. It always fascinates me when there is a tragedy. People stop their busy lives and chasing their dreams and remember that they are mortal and will die one day. In America, I am always reminded of what Jesus said about the rich. Mark 10:25, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” Most of you know this, but the eye of the needle was a small gate where people could walk through. A camel could go through it, but it had to get on its knees. The rich can know God, and there are millions that do. It is just harder because sometimes, with money, you don’t have to trust God as much.

Maybe the entrance of coronavirus into our world is something that might make people think about God, life, purpose, meaning, not just money or fame or what the world usually thinks about. Maybe they will think of bigger more important things. I have told you before we are due for a revival, and wouldn’t it be fun to see that happen? When your neighbors, friends, and family are frightened, you and I need to be the rock to them. Timothy 1:7 “for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” We can have peace because we know the Great Shepherd and we know His voice. To a world that is lost, we can’t act surprised and criticize. We have to give them hope. We need to love them in the midst of the chaos.

“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” 1 John 4:18.

Feb 19
Love0

Are you ready to start club?

By Nehemiah, Local FP Communities

Exciting things are happening in FP Tri-county. They held a First Priority Training this week and expected about 50 people.

70 people showed up!!

 We explained First Priority and then trained them on our HOPE cycle.
 
At the end we split them up into schools and they filled out paperwork to turn into their schools. Out of the 8 potential schools, we had enough people to start 6 FP clubs!
 
The other 2 potential schools had students there, but were missing a faculty sponsor. They had commitments but the flu hit those 2 faculty. So we should be able to launch those 2 clubs in a couple of weeks.

Below is a picture of the students coming up and the rest of us praying for them to be sent out as missionaries. 

We gave each school 1 case of FP Bibles, 50 decision cards, and 3 copies of 8 weeks worth of curriculum to finish out the year.
 
Praise the Lord for the excitement and passion over there for the schools! Let’s keep praying especially now as their clubs launch.
 
Are you ready to start a club?