Youth Discipleship - It's Not About You

By Jamie Starrett

Youth discipleship is a vital component of both your ministry and the lives of your students. But in order for the process to be as effective as it can possibly be you have to remember one key idea. Discipleship is not about you. If you do not grasp and believe this then your discipleship ministry will never be successful. In this article I will help you understand this idea and show you who discipleship is in fact about.

Many student pastors make discipleship all about them. They have a model or a certain way that things should be done and they are determined that this is the way things are going to be. They also often think that all students should be just like them. Some of this is okay. You do want to have a plan. You do want to set an example for your students in the way that you live. But you have to always keep an eye on what the big picture is or instead your youth discipleship will become very self-centered. But what is the big picture? What is discipleship all about?

First of all it is about God. This process is about what God has for your students and what He wants for their lives. Your role is to seek Him and try to find out what this plan is. Then see what part you can play in that. If this plan goes in line with the way you like to do things then great. But if it does not then you must lay down your goals and plans and follow God.

Next, this process is about your students. Your students have many needs. Some of them need comfort. Some of them need direction. All of them need to grow spiritually. Your job is to meet those needs and to realize that each student is unique. They are not all in the same situations and do not all have the same struggles. You must listen intently and hear what your students are saying and discern what they are hiding from you. Then decide how you can most effectively minister to them.

Finally, a part of youth discipleship is about you. You do play a role. You are to be a humble servant and keep all the focus on God. You must not seek attention or acclaim. Instead you must just seek God and celebrate the fact that He is allowing you to be a part of someone experiencing life change and becoming a life-changer.

Discipleship is what we are called to and this needs to be taking place in your ministry. While you will need help from other people to disciple all of your students you must also disciple someone. But in that process do not make it about you. Make it about God, make it about your student, and make it about you clearly understanding your role in God's plan for this student's life so that you can fulfill that role faithfully and to the glory of God.

Discover other info about youth discipleship that student pastors use every day to reach students in their community.

Drop by our site http://www.disciplenowcurriculum.com/youth-discipleship-resources.html

Jamie Starrett is a student pastor and has been at the same church for over 12 years and He loves it! He has two boys that he loves going camping and riding bikes with and a beautiful wife that is his best friend and partner in life.

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Youth Sunday School Curriculum - Setting Norms

By Jamie Starrett

If you are a teacher of a youth Sunday school curriculum, especially if you teach in a small group format, the key to your group's success will be setting norms. Norms are basically rules that the members of your group agree on and then follow. Each group is unique and therefore will have its own norms. Therefore this article will not deal so much with specific norms as try to give you some specific categories that you need to keep in mind when setting your small groups norms.

    Confidentiality- In any small group made up of teens there will be serious issues going on. Many of your students will be dealing with the divorce of their parents, addictions, abuse, and other serious issues. The place to deal with these issues though and find comfort is in your small group. But this cannot happen unless your students feel like your groups is a safe place. Therefore one of the first things you must do as a leader is set a norm that what is said at the table or in the room stays there. But be wise in this. You must realize that you have a legal responsibility to report some things so let your students know that while your group is safe you cannot promise them that you will not let someone know what they share.

    Communication- Much of the time in your study of whatever youth Sunday school curriculum you choose will be spent in discussion. In order for this to be an effective time though you will need some norms concerning who can talk, when they can talk, what can be shared, and how it should be shared. These will change slightly depending on the lesson topic and the age and makeup of your group, but for the most part should remain very consistent.

    New Member norms- One of the goals of your group should be growth. You should always be actively looking for opportunities for growth and outreach. Plus, whether you like it or not, your group will have new members as new families join your church. This is why you need to set some norms that ensure that new students feel welcome and comfortable in your group. There are a lot of different strategies to going about this so just think about the personality and needs of your group and then go from there. But whatever you do make sure that your group is a place where people are drawn in and made a part of strong Christian community.

Norms are the key to any successful small group study of youth Sunday school curriculum. Without them you will have mass chaos and no learning will take place and your group will definitely not grow. Therefore take a few moments at the beginning of your next small group session and set the norms for your group of students. This little extra time invested will make a great difference in your small group and the lives of those students who are a part of it.

Discover other info about Youth Sunday School curriculum that student pastors use every day to reach students in their community.

Drop by our site http://www.youthsundayschoolcurriculum.com

Jamie Starrett is a student pastor and has been at the same church for over 12 years and He loves it! He has two boys that he loves going camping and riding bikes with and a beautiful wife that is his best friend and partner in life.

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Disciple Now - Finding Leaders For Your Disciple Now

By Jamie Starrett

One of the biggest keys to any successful Disciple now weekend is finding the correct leaders. These are the people whom you will entrust with much of your weekend. And if you want your vision to become reality, they are the ones who will make it happen. So how do you ensure that you find the right leaders that will make your event all that you hoped it would be? That is what we will address in this article so that you can make the right decision when it comes to who you will bring in as leaders for your event.

The first suggestion I have when it comes to finding leaders is to find people you already know. There are usually two ways to go about this. One is to allow the small group leaders in your ministry also lead the groups for your disciple now weekend. This has many benefits. For one they already have relationships with your students. But also they understand how you work and what you expect from them. The other option is to think through former students who are now in college or may be working but could come in for a weekend. This is a great option because you give them an opportunity to serve and lead and once again you know them well. This is honestly the most popular option.

The next thing you have to consider is setting high standards. Just because someone is available does not mean that they will be good. A lot of people have free time, which can be helpful but they may not have integrity or any biblical knowledge. You need to be careful when you choose leaders and set high expectations in making your decisions. Then you need to communicate those high expectations. Do not settle for second best. I am not going to give you a list of qualities and qualifications but do not fall into the trap of scrambling for leaders and thinking that no one will want to help so you must just choose who ever is near by. With that we come to our last point.

Keep an open mind about what makes a great leader. I am not cancelling out my last point, just simply offering some clarification to help you keep from making a drastic mistake. When I told you to set high standards you probably immediately got an idea of what type of person makes a great leader. But I have been amazed how people who I never would have thought of made the best leaders. They were not "cool" and they definitely were not young, but students loved them and they had a massive impact. So ask for God to lead you and give you wisdom so you can make the correct decision.

Choosing your leaders may be the most important decision you make in planning your Disciple Now weekend and should be taken very seriously. Hopefully these steps will help you make these decicions wisely and effectively.

Find more great information on Disciple Now.

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Jamie Starrett is a passionate youth pastor with years of experience reaching the students in his community. He is also a loving father and husband.

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Disciple Now - Finding Host Homes

By Jamie Starrett

Traditionally, one of the most important components of a successful disciple now weekend is finding host homes. In this article we will discuss what is a host home, what to look for in a good host home, and how to find people who are willing to be a host home.

A host home is a family that is willing to open up their house to a group of students for the entire weekend of your event. This is obviously a vital part of your event planning since if your students do not have a place to stay you basically have no event. This is also important though because other than your leaders, your host home parents will quite possibly spend the most time with your students.

Now that we know what a host home is we need to consider what to look for in a good host home. The primary thing is that the place where your students will be safe. I encourage you to have each host parent go through a background check. This should be done even if you have had a long relationship with the people who are volunteering. This way you make sure to not leave anything to chance and avoid any surprises. Plus the parents of your students can rest at ease that everything possible has been done to ensure the safety of their students. Another thing that I would consider is that the person have a growing relationship with God. If their faith is not important to them then you cannot be sure of what they might share with their students and what example they might set for your kids. The final thing that I might consider is their involvement in the church. This might be good just because it gives them a little more credibility and it may mean that they will be more able to answer questions about the events of the weekend and locations as they arise. Other than that, I would be pretty open to who wants to be a host home leader because you would be amazed about what type of people have been the best disciple now hosts. I am always pleasantly surprised, but surprised none the less, at the people who love the weekend, and want to come back for another year even after their home is nearly left in shambles by a group of middle schoolers.

The final thing to consider in this process is how to find the right people to open up their houses. The big thing is that you have to get the word out. Spread the news through word of mouth. Make announcements in your worship services. Tell your kids to ask their parents. Put a message in the bulletin. Use social media. Post something to the church website. Do whatever it takes to make sure that the word gets out and keep going until you have more than enough homes so that you do not have to worry about kids not having a place to stay.

Host homes are a vital part of your disciple now weekend and hopefully these tips will help you successfully find all the houses that you need for your event.

Find other great info about Disciple Now that student pastors use every day to reach their community.

Drop by our site http://disciplenowcurriculum.com

Jamie Starrett is a passionate student pastor with years of experience reaching the students in his community. He is also a loving husband and father.

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Disciple Now - Handling Scheduling Conflicts

By Jamie Starrett

In planning a Disciple Now weekend one of the first things that you will discover is that there is never a perfect weekend. No matter when you schedule your event some students will have a scheduling conflict and will want to use it as an excuse not to come. But when handled properly you can get around these scheduling conflicts so that as many students as possible attend in your weekend event. In this article I want to share three strategies with you that can help you to handle these conflicts so your event can be a great success.

The first strategy is prevention. In planning your event you need to do everything you can to try and choose the best weekend possible. Again, no weekend will ever be perfect but the fewer conflicts the better. One way to do this is to get access to the school event calendars in your area. This may be time consuming if you live in a large city with many schools, but even then most of these are available online and are very easy to access. This way you can look and plan when the least amount of students will be affected by the scheduling of your Disciple Now weekend.

The second strategy is to offer time away cards. This is simply a card that the student and their parent or guardian fill out where they give you the info of where the student will be and when. The parents or guardians can then sign acknowledging that they are aware of this and giving permission. You then give this card to the host home so that they know what to expect. The great thing about this is not only that it removes a lot of the administrative hassle since it is a very simple process, it also removes many of the excuses that students want to give. This way the second they say they cannot attend your event because of a conflict you remove the excuse by telling them they can do both.

The final strategy is to just be straight forward and stern with them and tell your students they need to make sure they have the right priorities. This is because some students may have legitimate excuses and conflicts but some students are just trying to get out of coming. This is often because they do not want to grow in their faith and hear what God wants to tell them. It is in these cases and even some others where you need to tell your students that they need to choose what is most important to them, their faith or their activities. These conversations may not be fun or easy but they are quite often necessary.

Disciple now is fun and important event so you want as many students as possible there. While you can never schedule your event perfectly to where all students can come, hopefully these strategies will help you deal with the scheduling conflicts that do arise.

Find other great info about Disciple Now that student pastors use to reach students everyday.

Drop by our site http://disciplenowcurriculum.com

Jamie Starrett is a passionate student pastor with reaching students in his community. He is also a loving husband and father.

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How To Teach Kids About Fire Safety And Prevention

By Nick Sylvester

It is very important to teach kids what to do to prevent fire accidents, but it's very difficult to keep them interested on the topic without scaring them off or without boring them. This article will help you, as a responsible adult to teach kids fire safety and prevention - the fun way.

Before starting a discussion about this topic, you should first know your objective or goal when teaching about fire prevention and safety. Usually, it's important we teach kids the fire hazards in the home and teach them the importance of correcting them.

Start by getting their attention, by asking them if they know what fire hazards are and if they can name things usually in their homes that might be considered as such. They will possibly identify smoking, child cooking alone, towel near the stove, and playing with a lighter or a match stick as fire hazards, but you must be ready with other scenarios or examples so they'd understand more. Also tell them that these dangerous things can be present in their homes so they would realize that they are not safe after all unless they learn what to do to prevent it. This realization will make them interested to you and will listen to what you have to say.

After creating interest, ask any of them if they know why it's important to identify and correct home fire hazards. The kids may think it's important to prevent their families from being hurt in the fire. Emphasize to them that these situations may not seem dangerous at first, like having a fireplace without mesh screen, but it could cause fire anytime. Remind the kids that they have to act and inform adults to correct fire hazards when they have time to do so. Also warn them that fire usually happens at night, when everyone is sleeping and everyone is unaware that fire has already started.

Provide illustrations if possible, like pictures of the kitchen, living room, and bedroom, or you can also play a game with them. For parents or relatives, involve going from room to room in your home. Ask them to identify fire hazards. It doesn't really need to show the hazard, simply ask them to use their imagination. You can also ask what the adults in their homes, or their parents did to correct the fire hazards. Tell them that they need not try to correct these hazards themselves unless they are the ones introducing it (like by playing with fire or playing with things that cause fire). Their duty is to inform us about fire hazards so we'd keep it checked and corrected. You can end the discussion by asking them to create a poster so it will serve as a reminder and to keep everyone in their home safe.

Whether you're a parent, an aunt, an uncle, a family friend, or a distant relative, it is your responsibility to remind and teach everyone around you, kids and adults, about fire safety and prevention. And, you will be surprised that by spreading the word and by teaching kids, you've saved hundreds of lives.

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Looking With the Eyes - Driving With The Mind

By Russell A Chaplin

It's time to move off from the side of the road. The learner driver goes through the procedure of a five point plan. She checks the left blind spot, all three driving mirrors and then the right hand blind spot. She takes off the handbrake and then tries to pull out in front of the bus coming down the road. The pupil has been under the impression that carrying out a visual procedure would be enough to keep her safe but clearly it was not. She did not focus her attention towards the danger area and take notice of what was there.

Much is made of eyesight when it comes to driving. Part of the driving test is to read a standard number plate from a prescribed distance and if this cannot be done then the test is cancelled. If glasses are needed then they must be worn at all times when driving and a code on the back of the driving licence shows this for insurance purposes.

Though we may look and receive information from the eyes we actually see with the mind, which constructs the picture and makes sense of it. Much of what the brain tells us is happening is made up from memories which fill in the blanks and speed up the process of using visual information. This can be observed at junctions where a pupil simply has no idea how far away moving objects are or how much time is available before they arrive. By constant practice with some trial and error a pupil builds up memories of previous junctions which enable them to emerge safely as judgement improves.

The sense of side to side motion in the brain is very strong though the sense of away and toward movement is quite weak. Car drivers tend to pull out in front of motorcycles after looking straight at them because there is nothing to tell the brain the motorcycle is moving towards them owing to it's smaller size in the visual field. The forward motion of a car is easier to detect as it is larger. It has been said by experts that motorcycles should weave in the road slightly near junctions so other motorists detect the movement and refrain from pulling out.

A pupil of mine continually drove too close to parked cars nearly hitting them. Upon observing him I noticed one of his eyes did not move. Upon asking him about this he finally got round to telling me that he did in fact have a glass eye. When this was established a few exercises in passing vehicles and building up positional memory solved the problem and he was able to drive safely from then on.

Differences in light for different times of day have an impact as the eyes take a while to adjust. Extreme differences in light in the same scene such as oncoming headlights can effect sense of position and make objects seem closer than they are. Learner drivers will always attempt to turn away from oncoming headlights until they have enough experience to trust in their own judgement. Drivers should always pay a high level of attention to what they see.

Hello there. My name is Russ Chaplin. I am a DSA approved driving instructor giving driving lessons Nottingham area. I hold the Diploma in Driving Instruction and have passed both the Diamond Advanced and Special driving tests, qualifying me as a Diamond advanced Instructor. I teach driving at all levels and also deliver the Pass Plus post-test training course. I am also a member of the Nottingham driving instructors group.

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Challenges Involved in Teaching Older Drivers

By Russell A Chaplin

According to statistics older drivers above the age of 80 have a higher risk factor per mile driven than any other age group. As we get older our reaction times grow longer and physical weakness makes controlling a vehicle all the more difficult. Older drivers tend to make short local runs infrequently to carry out basic things like shopping or visiting friends. As they have little practise in longer journeys or in heavy or fast moving traffic they are increasingly ill equipped to deal with the modern driving environment. Owing to the majority of their journeys being on quieter roads over short distances older drivers are more risk to themselves than to other road users. Owing to frail physical condition they are much less likely to survive even only a minor crash. The highest third party risk is to any passengers being carried in the vehicle at the time. The highest risk seems to be to younger passengers such as grandchildren.

Teaching older drivers can be one of the most inspiring and challenging things an instructor can do. Having taught people over the age of eighty I have found it to be a very rewarding experience. To meet such determined and friendly people can be a boost to the working day.

The statistics do match real life experience however. An elderly driver will handle the streets around their home reasonably well until something unexpected happens and then those slow reactions really begin to show. The overall attitude of elderly drivers is to blame the other person and then make up as many excuses as possible as to why the incident occurred. This must be handled diplomatically and respectfully as they do not like to feel condescended to by an instructor younger than themselves.

As the journey moves away from the home location the standard of drive deteriorates rapidly, showing that they are driving from memory. When the time comes to deal with new information vehicle control and road position become more haphazard and we really do begin to rely on luck to stay safe. Large multi lane roundabouts which require reading of signs and complex lane markings are well beyond the limits of the elderly driver. Add to that the high speed movement of other vehicles and the driver becomes overloaded and seeks to ignore their surroundings only looking at the section of road in front of the car. Elderly female drivers can become easily panicked which may require use of the dual controls to calm the situation down. The instructor must not hesitate to seize control of the vehicle to avoid an accident.

We must be compassionate when considering taking a licence from an elderly driver. When you take away a licence you take away everything that the licence allows then to do, cutting down their personal freedom and leaving them house bound in some cases. As they cannot provide for their basic needs without a vehicle they become reliant on outside service providers.

A form of graduated licence may be the answer with restrictions on the carrying of passengers and distance travelled from a home address. Instructors must do all they can to preserve the self sufficiency of older drivers whilst maintaining a high level of road safety.

Hello there. My name is Russ Chaplin. I am a DSA approved driving instructor giving driving lessons Nottingham area. I hold the Diploma in Driving Instruction and have passed both the Diamond Advanced and Special driving tests, qualifying me as a Diamond advanced Instructor. I teach driving at all levels and also deliver the Pass Plus post-test training course. I am also a member of the driving instructors Nottingham group.

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