Dear youth leader, It’s an open secret that youth ministry has failed. The current strategies we use in the United States aren’t getting us to where we all long for our teenagers to be spiritually. According to The Great Opportunity—a heart-wrenching report by the Pinetops Foundation—around 1 million U.S. teenagers from an evangelical background walk away from the faith every year. That fact is worth lamenting, but if all we do is wring our hands and then continue doing ministry the same old way, nothing will change. It’s time to ask what can be done. THE WRONG YOUTH MINISTRY STRATEGIES The s ..read more

Thirty years ago, if you wanted to equip your teenagers to share their faith, Gospel tracts were key. Teens would load up on several fit-in-your-pocket, multi-fold Gospel pamphlets they could pass out to their friends or use as a leave-behind for strangers. Although tracts are still around today, for many faith-sharing young people, the best tracts are apps. That’s why we at Dare 2 Share are so excited about the Life in 6 Words app. We’ve seen it work powerfully across the United States—and around the world—as an effective, sharp, and easy-to-use faith-sharing tool for teenagers. Here are fiv ..read more

Like a scarecrow in a melon patch, their idols cannot speak; they must be carried because they cannot walk. Do not fear them; they can do no harm nor can they do any good. No one is like you, Lord; you are great, and your name is mighty in power. Jeremiah 10:5-6 A false god is like a scarecrow in a melon patch. It can’t see. It can’t talk. It can’t change your situation. All it can do is take up space and scare away birds. I’m not referring just to the types of idols that one sets up on a mantel and bows down to, as in ancient days. I’m also talking about the types of gods that are worshippe ..read more

But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.  2 Timothy 4:5 Toward the end of the apostle Paul’s final letter, he gave his protégé Timothy four challenges. I’ve come to nickname these challenges the “Timothy Test,” and they’re essential to effective ministry, especially youth ministry. As you answer each of these questions, give yourself a grade from 1 to 5 (1 being a hard no and 5 being an enthusiastic yes). 1. Are you calmly facing the stresses of your ministry? …keep your head in all situations ..read more

How amazing would it be if every soul in your community heard the Gospel, had a chance to respond in faith, and was able to get connected and grow with a Christ-centered body of believers? At Dare 2 Share, we call that a bold vision—a massive, Gospel Advancing goal that can be accomplished only through God’s strength and by partnering with other believers outside of your church or ministry. ASSEMBLE YOUR TEAM But how do you find and vet other churches and ministries to join you in striving toward that bold vision? What other leaders should you network with to reach your community for Jesus? S ..read more

After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. Acts 4:31 As believers, we long to see God move powerfully among us, reviving hearts and igniting passion. But what should revival look like? How can we tell if spiritual ignition is real and in line with Scripture? Here are three telltale signs of true, biblical revival: 1. The power of prayer shakes the building. After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. For the early believers in this passage, it was a literal shakin ..read more

There are many views of end-times theology. I’m in the “pre-everything” camp, but I’m friends with lots of people who hold to other views. One of the truths I love about the pre-tribulation view of the rapture—which is the belief that Jesus returns on a cloud to rescue His people before seven years of increasingly devastating judgment poured out by God on the earth—is the readiness that it demands of believers in Jesus. What the Bible Says About the Rapture Jesus put it this way in Matthew 25:13: ‘So always be ready, because you don’t know the day or the hour the Son of Man will come.’ Paul ..read more

Pastors and youth leaders: If you’re looking for an ideal sermon series or curriculum to inspire your congregation and teenagers to share the Gospel, I have great news: There’s one sermon series that’s free, easily accessible, and works every time. That sermon series is you. When you have compassion for the lost and a passion for Gospel Advancement that inspires you to consistently share the Good News of Jesus with those around you, it’s contagious. Your tears for the unreached will spill over onto your weekly sermon notes and your midweek program. And those tears will soften the hearts of th ..read more

I’ll never forget fishing with my grandfather deep in the majestic Rocky Mountains of Colorado. As a city kid, raised in the urban streets of Denver, I looked forward to this annual fishing and camping trip.  It was always the highlight of my year—just grandma, grandpa, and me for two whole weeks every summer. We’d stake out our camping spot, get everything set up, fish all day, and sleep all night—not in a tent, but in the camper shell on my grandpa’s bright-yellow Ford F-150 truck. Every night, grandpa would make a huge fire, and every day he and I would trek somewhere to go fishing. A ..read more

Whatever you’re going through, Jesus relates! Whenever you pray and you’re not sure that God can empathize with your situation, just remember that there’s now a human—Jesus!—who’s a member of the Trinity. Jesus is fully God and fully human (John 1:1,14; John 10:30). He didn’t stop being God when He became a man.  He didn’t stop being a man when He ascended to the right hand of God the Father, 40 days after His resurrection from the dead. The scars from the nails of His crucifixion will be on His holy hands forever (Zechariah 12:10, Revelation 5:6), as a visceral and eternal reminder of H ..read more