TeuxDeux.com - A Few Thoughts

I started using TeuxDeux.com a few months back because I am constantly trying to find new ways to stay organized. Overall, I really like it and think it would benefit other youth workers. Here are some positives and negatives of TeuxDeux:

Positives:
1. Simple.
You see five days across the screen, with the ability to scroll forward or backward one day at a time. There is no extra clutter or ads on the page. <- I really like this aspect. 2. Easy to use.
When you want to add an item to your to-do list, simply type it in on the day you want to accomplish it. It will then be added to the list of items for that day. When you finish the task, you simply click on it and it gets crossed off.

3. Ability to add "someday" items.
At the bottom of the page, you can add items to a list of "someday" things you want to do. This is great for adding items that may not need to be done for months or for making a list of ideas or possibilities.

4. Mobile apps in the works.
According to the FAQ's, there is a mobile app in the works for iPhone and possibly Blackberry. This would make TeuxDeux a better solution for those who are not close to a computer throughout the day.


Negatives:
1. Recurring items.
There is no simple way to add recurring items without manually retyping them into each new day.

2. Only move one day at a time.
Right now, you can only move one day forward and backward, at a time. According to the FAQ's, there is supposed to be a forthcoming feature allowing the ability to jump to a farther off date more quickly. But until that release, you must simply live in the week or sluggishly click one day at a time.


If you need a way to track what needs to be done, I suggest you try out TeuxDeux.com. It's free and easy to use. But if you are still not sure, check out this video:

TeuxDeux Demo from TeuxDeux on Vimeo.

Every Youth Worker Needs: a receipt scanner

(Youth ministry is not an easy ministry. And in this series, Every Youth Worker Needs:..., I want to highlight a variety of things that might make your ministry a little easier. This ongoing series will include ministry tips, book suggestions, technology helps, and many other nuggets of advice.)

Every Youth Worker Needs: a receipt scanner
Unless you work in a very unique congregation, you have to turn in receipts in order to get reimbursed. This administrative task is always time consuming and boring. Not the reason you became a youth minister at all. But we all know that if we do not do this on a regular basis, monthly at least, then it becomes too overwhelming and then it does not get done. At the end of this train of thought is no reimbursements for items purchased (or what we ministers like to call "donations to the ministry").

I have recently come across a great little gadget that makes the process of organizing and totaling receipts much simpler. At least that is what the internet and "gift buying" news segment says. As I have watched this product in action and have seen the software to organize the items on the receipts, I have to say I am impressed.

All you have to do is slide the receipt through the scanner, if you have the travel version - which is cheaper and probably all a youth worker needs. Then after all of the receipts are scanned, you go into the program and determine which items go under which categories and which items do not need to be added to the report. Once this is done, you just print off the report and turn it in to the finance committee. (Who will probably be in amazement that a youth worker is so organized and uses spreadsheets.)

Go to this website to see the receipt scanner by neat

(I do not own one of these time saving devices, so consider it on the list of things you can get me if ever you want to get me something.)

Best of '09: Web Apps

The year 2009 A.D. is almost over. The past 12 months have brought with them many new things; some good, some bad, and some not worth mentioning. I would like to take some time and highlight some of my favorite parts of 2009. I will call this list the "best of '09" - which simply means that, in my opinion, these are the best items in a certain category. I fully expect you to disagree with some of my choices or to be upset I did not add other items to the list. If you feel this way, please add your "best of '09" ideas in the comments.

The sixth list will be web apps. This will be a list of my favorite web apps to use. These are the apps I use the most or find the most helpful. This list is in no particular order.


Remember the Milk - a great place to keep track of things you need to accomplish.

TeuxDeux - TeuxDeux is new to me (I've only been using it for a few weeks), but I think its going to replace RTM as my favorite "to do" list organizer.

Google Docs - the most used app of 2009 for me.

Evernote - like a giant internet file cabinet, with folders and paper clips.

Dropbox - a great way to share and store a large amount of files (music, movies, and just about any other file you have on your computer). A great backup system, too.


What were your favorite apps of 2009?


Other posts in this series:
Best of '09 - Music
Best of '09 - Youth Ministry Books
Best of '09 - Non-Ministry Books
Best of '09 - Websites
Best of '09 - Blog posts
Best of '09 - Web Apps
Best of '09 - Ministry Moments
Best of '09 - Random Favorites

Best of '09: Websites

The year 2009 A.D. is almost over. The past 12 months have brought with them many new things; some good, some bad, and some not worth mentioning. I would like to take some time and highlight some of my favorite parts of 2009. I will call this list the "best of '09" - which simply means that, in my opinion, these are the best items in a certain category. I fully expect you to disagree with some of my choices or to be upset I did not add other items to the list. If you feel this way, please add your "best of '09" ideas in the comments.

The fourth list will be websites. These are the sites I used the most this past year. This list is in no particular order.


Facebook - Now, if I have to explain why I use this site then you must not be involved with youth ministry or on the internet very much. A great site to connect with students, old high school and college friends and family.

Google - I use a lot of online Google applications. My two most used are Docs and gmail. I have a Wave account (I'd love to connect if you are on wave, too), but its fairly new and still in Beta, so I do not get too much use out of it.

Pandora - Simply a great site for listening to music. For me, its a much better alternative to buying a bunch of CD's or mp3's.

Twitter - A simple way to stay in touch with friends (and like minded people) all over the world. If you can't say it in 140 characters, then you don't need to say it on Twitter.

Blogger - I use Blogger for my blog. I know there are other alternatives, especially WordPress, but I just have not moved to anything yet. Blogger has everything I need. And to be honest, it probably helps me keep the blog fairly simple.

Youth Ministry Websites
YMToday - A great site for finding a wide assortment of youth ministry material. The site is filled with articles, tips, games, and much more. If you are in youth ministry, you need to check this site out. (disclosure - I do have a few articles published on the site)

YMX - Again, this is a great site with an assortment of useful material. The best part of YMX is the forums. The best youth ministry forums out there. A great place to connect and talk about youth ministry (or anything else) with other youth ministry people.

YouthMinBlog - Hear from a wide spectrum of youth ministry voices on a single topic. Each week, the authors discuss a single topic from their own personal perspectives. I was a fan of the site before I became a contributing author, so I'm not saying its a good site because I have articles on it - I'm saying its a good site despite my stuff.


What websites did you use the most in 2009?

Other posts in this series:
Best of '09 - Music
Best of '09 - Youth Ministry Books
Best of '09 - Non-Ministry Books
Best of '09 - Websites used
Best of '09 - Blog posts
Best of '09 - Web Apps
Best of '09 - Ministry Moments
Best of '09 - Random Favorites

Learned from Twitter: week ending Sept. 26, 2009

A few highlights from the last few weeks:

1. chadswanzy (Chad Swanzy) linked to a book on mentoring. If you are involved with teenagers, go check it out.

"The Be With Factor" Mentoring Students In Everyday Life is on Google Books http://tr.im/ywIk

2. Drun (David Runnels) offered some great advice, that we all could stand to hear.

We need people who will encourage us, strenghten us so we can learn from our limitations.

3. BtotheEtotheN (Ben Boles) shared a thought on not letting all of the "noise" around you become overwhelming.

I realized last night, it's not about the amount of noise in your life but how well you control the volume

4. gavoweb (Gavin Richardson) pointed us to an article on working with parents.

Youth Ministry Today - Parents Are Your Friends http://ff.im/-8a68o

and also this video from AT&T about "future" technology, from 1993.

RT @Alyssa_Milano See the #technology AT&T envisioned 4 our future in commercials done back in 1993 http://bit.ly/2jCzBt // i remember these

5. DougFields (Doug Fields) has officially stepped down as a pastor at Saddleback. This will mean he'll be spending more of his time training and encouraging youth workers - that's a good thing.

My resignation from Saddleback is public & all good. If you're interested see http://tinyurl.com/9sqpgo

6. pattigibbons (Patti Gibbons) reminded me of one of the reasons I love going to the National Youth Workers Convention - getting to meet online friends in person. It's going to be a great week.

@lilkup you mean I'm finally going to get to meet you?! :)

What did you learn from Twitter this week?

Learned from Twitter: week ending September 5, 2009

I took last week off from posting these updates, but this week's edition is jam packed with great information and resources. Enjoy :)



1. snavenel (Len Evans) shared a link that youth ministers need to read - the newest Youth Leader Only from Interlinc.

Savy Youth Ministry: Work Smarter Not Harder http://bit.ly/11PX8N by @interlinc

2. Psych_USA (Psych) shared a great picture from an upcoming episode. Looks hilarious.

RT @psychwrites: http://twitpic.com/flb0c -From L to R: Jaleel White, Kenan Thompson, Dule Hill, Demord Dann. THIS EPISODE IS AMAZING.

3. gavoweb (Gavin Richardson) shared a link to an article on how to turn your blog ramblings into a published book. And one about putting your youth newsletter on Twitter.

Blog to Book-12 Keys to Posting for Publishing http://ff.im/-7jBhe

How to make a Twitter Youth Group Newsletter http://ff.im/-7suNF

4. saraeden (Sara Eden Williams) reminds us that some chances are worth taking in youth ministry. (Especially if you really want to go to the amusement park) :)

70% chance of rain but we're still going to the amusement park. If I were I mom I'd probably say no. But I'm a youthworker and we're crazy.

5. Writepop (Writepop) thinks we all should know these great opening lines from great novels. I must not pay attention to the first line, because I did not know many of them.

Great list! 100 of the best first lines from novels http://u.nu/78m43 #writing #books

And he wants to inform us that laptops have been "around" for a long time, since 1937?

Is this the first appearance of a laptop in fiction, all the way back in 1937? - http://u.nu/3am43 #scifi #comics

6. SYMConference (Simply Youth Ministry Conference) is getting relationally ready for the upcoming conference in Chicago. If you haven't heard of this conference yet, you need to check it out.

lots of reconnection this week with a whole bunch of #symc volunteers who've become like family to us...I seriously love these people!

7. radarradio (Under the Radar) let us know about Amazon's free download. It only lasts until tomorrow, so hurry!

Here's link to the FREE DOWNLOAD (1 song your choice) on Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/ktvssj

What did you learn from Twitter this week?

Learned from Twitter: week ending August 1, 2009

A lot of interesting and fun stuff on Twitter this week, and I only see such a small portion of the entire thing.

1. BtotheEtotheN (Ben Boles) shares with us a great moment he was able to share with a former student. This is one of the things that makes a youth minister almost forget the tough days.

putting finishing touches on a wedding ceremony for tomorrow, the bride asked me to do her wedding 7 yrs ago, can't believe it's here!

2. wuske (Shawn Wuske) summed up his thoughts about an upcoming lock-in using percentages. The only problem is that we're left wondering about the 28%.

I'm about to leave for the lock-in. 40% of me puking, 30% chance of me crying, and 2% chance of me getting stabbed.

3. MarkMatlock (Mark Matlock) provided a link to a story that reminds us that some teenagers are really hurting. (The author of the article is not a fan of God, or so it seems)

Parent Of The Year Awards (sadly, not for great parenting) Mom drugs daughter to impregnate her ... so sad. http://tinyurl.com/luazd9

4. HolidayWorld (Holiday World) says that the announcement for their new addition for 2010 will come in 2 weeks. I'm hoping for the addition of a "Groundhog Day Village", but my gut tells me its going to be a ride in the Thanksgiving section.

Will is telling our staff of directors about our addition for 2010; we're all sworn to secrecy. Public announcement is August 13.

5. tspencer (Travis Spencer) linked to a story about a lady getting sued for a thoughtless comment on her twitter account. Be mindful of what you say about companies, make sure you aren't making stuff up.

be careful tweets: http://cbs2chicago.com/loca...

6. dbeckner (Dennis Beckner) experienced a little role reversal while eating lunch with a former student. This is a situation that youth ministers dream about. :)

Ordering lunch with a former student. Realized I forgot my wallet. That's a switch. Usually I get stuck w/ the bill.

What did you learn from Twitter this week?

An Open Letter to Youth Minister Search Teams

(Though this particular letter is written specifically for youth minister search teams, most of the content will work for any search team.)

Dear Search Team or Committee

I have applied to your open youth minister position and would like to pass on some information from my perspective of the search. Before I begin by giving you some advice to improve your communication with those of us who have applied for your position; allow me to share these thoughts. First off, thank you for being a part of the group who will determine the next minister to the students. I understand you have a big decision ahead of you and it should not be taken lightly. I appreciate all of the extra time, effort and energy you have put into the process (not to mention all of the meetings). One last thing you should know about me - I am praying for you as much as you are praying for me. I pray God gives you wisdom, strength and the ability to discern the right choice.

As a search team moving along in the search process, I would suggest you keep these few things in mind. (In no particular order) You will notice that throughout this list I will use the word "appreciate" often; because none of these ideas are requirements for you, they are just things I would appreciate.


1. Use Technology.
You do not have to waste a stamp. Since we are living in an age of technology, with email and text messaging being more prevalent than snail mail, you do not have to send me a letter. You can send me an email letting me know you are not pursuing me any longer. This is especially true if all of our communication has been done via email.

2. Communicate, communicate, communicate.
At the beginning of the process, I understand it might take months for you to make any sort of decision. I do not expect a weekly email letting me know what number I am on your list of potential youth workers, but I would appreciate notification when the process moves forward. As we move farther down the process, I would appreciate knowing what is going on. As the list of potential youth ministers is narrowed, and I'm still on it, I would expect to be informed on the progress. Even if the search team has not met for a month, I would appreciate knowing.

If I end up being the "chosen" youth minister, I am learning a lot about the way the leadership in the church works. If there is a pattern of poor communication during the search process, I will be more likely to decline your offer to be youth minister. Why would I willingly walk into a situation where communication is not a strength for the leadership? On the other hand, when a search team communicates well during the search process, I will willingly join that team.

3. Honesty is a must!
For me, this is a huge issue. In fact, this might be the biggest issue I consider. And as much as you are deciding if I am the right person for this position, I am deciding if you are the right congregation for me. I do not want to work with a group of people who are not completely honest. When it comes to the search process, do not lie to me. If you are interviewing two other people, tell me. If you are worried that I will not work well with the senior minister, let me know. The worst thing you can do is make me feel that I am the person for the job while I am visiting, when you know that I am not.

There is no reason to drag me along, just to keep me as a "back-up" if the real #1 choice doesn't work out. If you want to pursue one candidate at a time, then be honest and let me know that at the beginning of the process. I will not be offended if you want to be specific and strategic in your search, even if it means I am not going through the first round of the interview process. I would rather know from the beginning what the search teams intentions are, then to believe a lie about where I stand. Being honest is one of those qualities Christians are supposed to possess, so it needs to be a quality the search team possesses as well.

4. Silence conveys a message.
I have found that when a youth ministry search team is silent for an extended period of time, it usually is not a good sign. Silence from your team conveys one main thing - I (as a youth ministry candidate) am no longer being considered for the position. I understand this is not always the case, but it is the conclusion I will come to when I do not hear anything from a search team for an extended period of time. Silence also conveys the message that your team is not willing to honestly tell me what you think about my ability to minister to the students in your congregation.

As I am patiently waiting to hear back from your committee, I would appreciate an occasional (at the least) update. Even if the search team is hesitant to have a difficult discussion with one of the candidates that is no reason to avoid communication. Some conversations will be difficult, but you should have known that when you signed up to be on the team - even in the church the hiring process is difficult. You need to know that I am not going to talk/think negatively about you if you phone and tell me I am not the right person for the position. I will respect your team and appreciate the manner in which you handled the situation.

If you are silent after I have already interviewed, I believe one of two things is happening: you are calling another candidate back and you are hoping if that candidate says "no" then I'll still be willing to come for another interview. Or you do not know how to tell me that I am not the right candidate and hope I'll find another position before you have to tell me.

5. Respect my time.
This comment goes along with the silence one - as you are going through your process remember that the candidates are waiting to hear back from you. Just because you only want to meet once a month does not make it appropriate to only contact the applicants every other time you meet. Do not drag out the process for any candidate longer than necessary - as soon as you know a candidate is not going to be the right person for the ministry the best thing you can do is let them know.

We, the candidates, are not just waiting to hear back about a job. We are waiting to hear back about the city we will live in, the church our family will attend, and the people we will become friends with. Taking on a new youth ministry position entails all of our life and family. So, as you are considering your decision, please keep this in mind as you keep us abreast of the situation. And please try to meet as a group more than once a month.


Thank you for reading this letter. I hope it helps you have a better understanding of what the youth minister candidates are feeling and thinking during this search process. I pray God gives you wisdom and discernment in your search and you find the right minister for the students.

Sincerely,

A youth minister candidate



ps. I would like to suggest two books for you to read, if you have time. The first book is "Inside The Mind Of Youth Pastors" by Mark Riddle, published by Youth Specialties. The second book is "Sustainable Youth Ministry" by Mark DeVries, published by InterVarsity Press. Both of these books contain great insight into a better understanding what youth ministry is all about and how a congregation can help it succeed.

Learned from Twitter: week ending July 25, 2009

Today is a special day for me - its my little girl's 1st birthday! So, to help you celebrate my little girl's birthday, I thought I'd share some highlights from Twitter this past week. Oh, who am I kidding, I was going to share them anyway. :)

1. YS_Scoop (Youth Specialties) shared the link to Tic Long's new blog. If you have not checked it out, you need to. Tic is a great advocate of the youth worker and have great thoughts - plus he's just a good guy.

"Keep up with Tic and what is next in his life at http://ticlong.wordpress.com/"

2. snavenel (Len Evans) shared some news about a new stage of his life. Check out his blog to find out more about Len and see how you can be praying for him in this transition.

"Shared today, that I'm no longer the youth pastor at the church. Have applied to work with the http://nnym.com Gathering prayer supporters"

3. timschmoyer (Tim Schmoyer) shared two links for resources youth workers might be able to take advantage of in their ministries. Check out these links and see how they can benefit your ministry.

"FREE City cars time lapse video download in HD. Might be good as a title background for a YG video: http://bit.ly/2DoEc"

"RT @slickdeals: 20 5x7 Photo Prints $0.99 http://bit.ly/1ZHnf // Perfect for all your camp and missions trip pictures!"

4. StudentMinistry (John from Lifeway Student Ministry) linked to an article on helping your students after you get back from camp. If you took kids to camp, or know some who went, you'll want to read the article.

"Help Your Students Keep Their Camp Committments" now on LifeWay.com/Students - http://bit.ly/gQ7du

5. MikeFoster (Mike Foster) shared this little bit of wisdom (and truth). I agree wholeheartedly with his statement.

"true leaders take ownership of their contribution to a bad event."

6. rainnwilson (Rainn Wilson: aka Dwight) offered a little bit of hope for those Office fans who are tired of watching "summer television." The Office is back to work!

"Office table read today. Like first day of school. What to wear!? Make sure to ask for spoilers cause I will def. be revealing all!(um, no)"

7. theofficenbc (The Office on NBC) provided a little bit more information for Office fans - the first episode is entitled "Gossip" (oh, the possibilities).

"Scoop! Season 6 of "The Office" officially begins today, with a table read of Episode 1, entitled "Gossip." Welcome back everyone!"

What did you learn from Twitter this week?

Learned from Twitter: Week ending June 27, 2009

This is the first full week of summer and for the youth worker that means not being in the office. That was noticed this week on Twitter, as many days were low on the tweeting by friends. I can only hope this means a lot of ministry was done with teenagers. Anyway, here are a few things I learned this week...

1. jenhowver (Jen Howver) shared an article on conducting surveys.

"an ingenious way to conduct a survey (& probably get a good grade on your research project!): http://bit.ly/xtxfV"

2. ellerytheband (Ellery) has been sharing thoughts on what is going on in the studio. A new album is coming. If you do not know Ellery, check out their music - its good.

"Several times through "Christopher," and a new idea w/ each try. Finally have an arrangement we're living with; feels good."

3. MarkMatlock (Mark Matlock) passed along an article on teens and sex. If you work with teenagers, you'll want to check out this article.

"Teens Just as Likely to Have Sex, But Less Likely to Use Contraception Than They Were A Few Years Ago http://tinyurl.com/m5mp8o"

4. outsideallday (Andy Brazelton) announced a brand new small group curriculum from Simply Youth Ministry. The Live curriculum is a downloadable 4 year curriculum that is easily customizable to fit your group. (I am honored to have been able to contribute a few of the lessons for this curriculum and hope they challenge students to live for God)

"Drum roll please...after several years in development, check out our brand new 4 year small group curriculum plan. http://budurl.com/bwaf"

5. FlowerInTheRain (Janelle Painter) passed along some sad truth about Apple and the iTunes App store. They are now allowing porn in their apps, which means I am disappointed in Apple.

"RT @kcampos: Porn is now allowed on the iTunes App Store, because 3.0 has age restriction ability. http://is.gd/1daEV // such a shame Apple"

What did you learn from Twitter this week?

Learned from Twitter: week ending June 13, 2009

With VBS this week, I did not get to see as much Twitter goodness as some weeks. But there were still some great stuff that came across my twitterstream. Here are a few of the things I learned this week.

1. kentshaffer (Kent Shaffer) sent a link to a blog post about a family photo getting used to promote a foreign product. Could this happen to you and me?

"Your social network picture may end up advertising some foreign brand - http://bit.ly/KAiGi"

2. pattigibbons (Patti Gibbons) had a not-so-pleasant experience at a choir concert. As youth workers, haven't we all been to at least one concert/program like this?

"The lady behind me is singing along w the choir. Bonus - her kid is kicking my seat!"

3. ypadam (Adam Reed) shared his excitement about Vacation Bible School. Its always a joy to see the kids excited afterward - its like a mini version of summer camp.

"VBS celebration service was great and so was the ice cream! the kiddos are worn out and heading to bed"

What did you learn from Twitter this week?

RefTagger: a great Bible tool for your blog

Recently I ran across RefTagger when I was searching some information on www.carm.org. As soon as I saw it in action, I knew it was a feature I wanted to add to my blog.

What is RefTagger, you ask? Here is what the website says:

RefTagger is an amazing, free new web tool that instantly makes all the Bible references on your site come alive! Bare references turn into hyperlinks to the full text of the passage at Bible.Logos.com, making it easy for your readers to access the text of Scripture with just a click. Even better, RefTagger brings the text right to your readers by generating a tooltip window that pops up instantly when they hover over the reference. You can also have RefTagger add an icon that is hyperlinked to the passage in Libronix—ideal if many of your readers use Logos. So if your website says, “One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Romans 8:28,” RefTagger will instantly turn it into this: “One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Romans 8:28.”

RefTagger takes citing Bible references to a whole new level. All you need to do is copy the customizable code that we provide for you below and paste it into your website’s template file(s), and it will instantly be applied to your entire site—all past and future content! It doesn’t matter how big or small your site is. RefTagger does it all instantly—saving you hours of time linking verses manually! Because RefTagger uses JavaScript, it doesn’t actually change the code on the content of your site’s pages. If you decide to remove RefTagger from your site, it’s as simple as deleting the code from your template file(s).

If you ever reference Bible passages on your blog (and you probably should every once and awhile) this little plug-in is a great addition to your blog. It will be a welcome improvement for your visitors who will not always have each passage memorized.

Learned from Twitter: week ending May 30, 2009

Another fun week on Twitter. Here are a few things I gleaned while learning what people were doing in 140 characters or less.

1. mclanea (Adam McLane) shared a link to a pretty cool new tool for youth workers. If you haven't seen this iPhone app yet, you need to check it out. (Tough Topics discussion starters right on your iPhone or iPod Touch for only $1.99)
"Is happy about this: http://eepurl.com/bqWz Feels good to finally see a project hit shelves... long time coming."

2. saraeden (Sara Eden) was kind enough to help another minister celebrate his anniversary.
"kid-sitting for a few hours so a ministry colleague can take his wife out for their anniversary."

3. outsideallday (Andy Brazelton) is looking for some jr. high specific content for something at Group Magazine. If you have anything you can share, let me know and I'll get you the contact info.
"Need jr high-specific games, Bible studies, devotions. Also partnering with parents and building volunteer team. [let me know & I'll connect you]"

4. bgray (Ben Gray) unveiled his new design business. Earlier this week, I said that you should consider Ben when you had a design need, well this is how you do it.
"Shadeofgray Design is open for business. Tell your friends. http://shadeofgraydesign.com/"

5. billdawgcbc (Bill Nance) loves middle school lunch. But when its chicken nuggets, how can you not.
"Middle school lunch yay for chicken nugget day!"


What did you learn from Twitter this week?

Learned from Twitter: week ending May 16, 2009

Here are some of the things I learned from my friends on Twitter this week...


1. AdamLehman (Adam Lehman) shared a link to a post from his fiance, about marrying a youth pastor.
"quest blog post by my fiance, @alliepal : "i'm about to marry a youth pastor" http://tinyurl.com/or7ddc #stumin"

2. SITM (Stuck In the Middle) is gearing up for the next year of tour. If you work with middle school students and have not checked out this ministry, you need to right now.
"Stuck's jr. high event tour 2009-2010 dates are up http://twurl.nl/u62pi2 - coming to KS, MO, CA, FL, OH and the Pac NW. Check it out!"

3. ymgeek (Youth Ministry Geek) let us know about some free fonts. And who can't always use a new font for the newsletter?
"Free Fonts anyone? 15 Fresh High-Quality Free Fonts - http://is.gd/yRDB (via @smashingmag)"

4. WorshipRising (Kevin Richardson) shared some great news and an answer to prayer.
"As of June 1st I will be the full-time worship/arts pastor at The Journey Church in San Francisco... more details to follow soon."

5. YouthMinBlog (YouthMinBlog) wants to know if you would like to help get the word out by adding a badge to your blog.
"Would you be able to put a YMB badge on your blog? http://youthminblog.com/bad..."

6. foecuspastor (Clay Conry) clued us in on the twittering habits of one particular astronaut. (I'd hate to see the roaming charges on that call)
"Twitter continues to amaze! @astro_mike is in space right now and has promised to tweet from orbit! Social Media FTW!"

7. mattcleaver (Matt cleaver) was the first to inform me that tatango doesn't offer free text messaging anymore.
"bummed that tatango isn't doing free group text messages anymore. Any other free options out there anymore? #ym"

8. sandyhughes (Sandy Hughes) mentioned that the astronauts got to listen to a little Third Day as their alarm clock music - not a bad idea.
"they just played "God of Wonders" by third day for the astronauts wake up song this morning."


What did you learn from Twitter this week?

Youth Ministry Budgeting: Open Source Alternatives (addendum #1)

As an addendum to the youth ministry budgeting series, I want to look at some open source alternatives to many of the products a youth ministry needs on a regular basis. Before we get to the list, I think we need to start with a brief summary of the benefits of using open source software.

Benefits of using Open Source software:
The biggest benefit of using open source software is the money you save by not buying licensed software. In some cases you will be saving hundreds of dollars per computer that will run the software. Even getting a license to load the software on multiple computers will not be as cheap as getting the software for free. (but that's obvious, right?)

I have found that some open source software is easier to use than its licensed counterpart. In part, this has to do with not having as robust a selection of options. In other cases, its just a simple fact that the layout and tools are easier to find and manipulate.

Another benefit for some of the software is the ability to modify content on the internet without being tied to a specific computer. This means you do not have to be on your youth ministry computer to update your message for Sunday. If the software is internet-based, you can work on either a Mac or a PC, or both. Along with this feature, comes the ability to have multiple collaborators working on a project at the same time. You can add information to a document and any other collaborator will save the changes next time she opens the document. This cuts down on emailing updates and forgetting which file is the most recent edition.



Open Source (FREE!) Alternatives:
Here are a few places to start your search.

Word Processing:
Open Office
Google Docs - while not open source, it is a great free alternative

Presentation Software:
Impress (in Open Office)
Presentation (in Google Docs) - some limitations when using offline

Photo Editing:
Gimp - The best alternative to photoshop I have found.
(you will want to check out some of the available plug-ins , too)

Video Editing:
Kaltura - online video editing

Financial Software:
Buddi


You will also want to check out Open Source Living - a great site for finding more open source software.


Saving money by using open source software frees your ministry to use the money in other ways. There are some great ways to use this "extra" money that will make a bigger impact that just buying software. This topic will be my next addendum post for the youth ministry budgeting series.




What open source software would you add to this list? What open source software does every youth worker need to know about?

A few posts worth reading: May 11, 2009

Here are a few posts I think you should read. Go ahead and click the links...


1. Jeremy (over on Youth Ministry Geek) shares this link to finding the best fast food places during your road trips this summer.

2. Dennis shares 4 great tips on how to adapt lessons for your youth group as part of an ongoing discussion about using "freebie" lessons in youth ministry.

3. There is a great series of posts on evaluating success in youth ministry over at the YouthMinBlog. Posts like this one. Go check them out and join the conversation.

4. Here are some tips on Spring Cleaning - by Relevant Magazine


What have you been reading that you think needs to be shared?

Did Facebook kill the blog meme?

While talking with my wife recently about all those Facebook quizzes, I thought, "Did Facebook kill the blog meme?"

Not sure what a meme is...Go here to learn what a meme is. You can even go here and get a daily meme.


Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not sad to see them go.

There was a time where blog memes were being posted about every other week. It was becoming really annoying to have to filter through the multiple blog memes to get to actual blog content. But then I stopped seeing them. Maybe it was because the authors of blogs I read stopped participating or got bored with answering so many pointless questions. But I think the blog memes are still around, but now they are undercover as a "Facebook quiz."

With Facebook, you can share

• "25 random things about me"
  
• "Which ________ are you"
  
• "Your top 5 ________"

and the list could go on and on...

And let's be honest (well, I'll be honest with you), I am really sick of having to filter through all of this useless Facebook stuff to get to actual pictures, notes, or updates.

But, I'd rather see it on Facebook than on a person's blog. Let's leave room in the blogs for what they are intended to be and leave the spilling of useless personal information for your Facebook page.

ps. I'm just glad there have been no "twitter memes" going around. :)

Youth Ministry Budgeting: Tips for Saving Money (5b of 5)

(This is part 2 of the final post in a 5 part series on youth ministry budgeting. You can see the earlier posts here: 1 - stewardship. 2 - categories part a and part b. 3 - process. 4 - to buy or not to buy. 5 - tips on saving money part 1)

No youth ministry is immune to the economic hardship facing our country. And in order to be better stewards of our resources (and possibly stay afloat), we all need to learn to save a few bucks. Here is part 2 of my thoughts on how to save money. To see the first 5 tips, go here.


6. Involve more adults
Instead of doing things like ordering pizza or catering all of your meals, think about asking people to help cook and serve the food. It doesn't have to be food, it can be decorating for a special event, setting up, manning the tables.

This tip was shared by Sara Eden , so I'll just let her share some thoughts about it.

"The other thing we've done is moved away from the church providing dinner at youth group each week. Now what we do is ask people to sign up to provide dinner. The really cool thing is that it's giving people who don't feel led toward the traditional 'youth ministry volunteer' role an opportunity to serve the ministry and get to know the students (and allow the students to get to know them). The people who cook for us are invited/encouraged to stay and eat dinner with us and then students help with clean up. It's another step toward healthy inter-generational relations. God took something that was done as an economic measure and turned it into another awesome opportunity for ministry. He's so good like that!"

7. Donations
We all need items for the youth ministry: chairs, couches, lighting, sound equipment, electronics, transportation. Instead of going out and buying them, ask people to donate them. (Now, when you do this be prepared to get people's junk. So either you need to be very specific, simply say "no thanks," or just throw it away later.)

This is something a friend of mine, Bill Nance, said he has been able to do in his ministry, which has helped since he doesn't have a big budget and really needs to stretch it.

8. Think "in house."
When you are planning an event, the two biggest costs are always the speaker and the band. Next time you are planning an event, think about using someone from within your ministry to do the speaking or worship (concert). If that will not work, try to find someone local to cut down on travel costs.

9. Use Open Source software
Instead of paying full price for your software - you might want to look into some of the open source alternatives. Most of them are just as good as the expensive versions, and they are free.

More information about open source software will be in another post.

10. Stop spending money
This sounds simple enough, doesn't it? But there are more than a few youth ministries that simply refuse to stop buying stuff. You do not need that new Wii or flat screen TV. You may not really need new carpet right now, it could wait a year or two longer.

The best way to save money in your youth ministry is to simply spend your money wisely. Think twice before making purchases. Hold off on major purchases as long as you can.


Six more ideas on stretching your budget.

Youth Ministry Budgeting: Tips for Saving Money (5a of 5)

(This is part 1 of the final post in a 5 part series on youth ministry budgeting. You can see the earlier posts here: 1 - stewardship. 2 - categories part a and part b. 3 - process. 4 - to buy or not to buy.)


Everybody needs to save some money, including youth ministries. So what does it take? How can you save a few dollars here and a few dollars there? In this post, I want to share a few tips on how your youth ministry can save money. As you will see, a few dollars saved on a regular basis will add up to big savings over time.

I do not think I need to spend a lot of time convincing anyone that they need to save money. Well, I hope I do not need to. Youth ministries across the country are struggling just like any other organization, company or individual. People are making less; therefore, they are giving less to the church. When the overall church offering is down, each ministry has to reduce its expenses in order to help stay in the "black."

Here are a few areas to look at next time you are thinking about saving some cash.

Ways to save money:

1. Salaries
Allow me to start with the least popular thing I am going to write. The first place to look for ways to save money is in the salaries. Are you really being a good steward of your congregation's resources with your salary? Can you afford to live on less?

Let me share an example of what I mean. I know a congregation that was running a couple hundred people a few years ago. Now they are averaging maybe 80 each week. Yet, there are 3 staff members: sr. minister, associate minister, and secretary. I think the secretary is full-time, but I am not sure. I do not know what the associate minister is paid, but I know the sr. minister is being paid more than someone in this size of a congregation should be paid. The congregation is struggling to meet salary each week, and they are sending emails each week asking for more money to meet those salaries. Are those ministers being good stewards? In my opinion, no. Think about the impact the minister would have if he offered to take a paycut to help the congregation from having to close its doors.

2. text messaging
It seems as though every teen has a cell phone with text messaging. So, it makes sense that the youth staff would need the ability to text teens. But what option do you use? Here are a few choices:

MinistryTxt
This option starts at $5/mo.
(thanks Len Evans for the info)

Tatango
starts at free
has option to send text from computer or cell phone

SimplyTxt
starts at $10/mo.

I have not used any of these services, but many of my youth ministry friends have and talk very highly of each service.

3. Curriculum/Lesson Material
Many of the major publishing companies offer some great resources in this category. And if you want to just get everything in one bundle, this might be the way to go. You can check out Group, Standard, teamce to name a few (well, three to be exact).

But if you really want to save money (and not spend any, either), here are a few other suggestions.

*Online "Freebies"
There are a bunch of great freebies available on the internet. Check out this top 5 list, for examples. In fact, there are so many great freebies that a youth minister could simply use freebies and not do any work. I THINK THIS IS THE WORST THING YOU CAN DO - so be careful not to become dependent on using freebie lessons!

*curriculum swap with local churches
Take your old curriculum and find another congregation in the area that will be willing to swap their old stuff for your old stuff. You will each get new curriculum, plus you won't have to find a place to leave and forget about store your old stuff.

*reuse older stuff
Or you can just reuse the older stuff with a new group within your congregation.

*Rotate material
Take your material and rotate through the years. For example, use a 4 year scope/sequence for the high school and rotate through material every 4 years. If you have a 7/8 grade class; rotate every 2 years. Using this rotation model will help you save money and will help you be intentional about what you are teaching the students.

4. Prizes/Giveaways
Students like getting stuff and we like giving it away. But it can get expensive to have prizes on a regular basis. How do you save money on prizes? By taking one of these steps...

*Buy from thrift stores, garage sales or on clearance.
You cannot afford to have really cool (read, expensive) prizes every week. So do not try. Just get some fun, old or silly stuff to use and have a big box to keep it in. Then let the students grab one prize from the box.

*Ask for donations
For those bigger events, you might want a better prize to offer. In those cases, ask companies and individuals to donate prizes (or money to go toward buying prizes) for you to give away. This gets the community involved with the group, saves you money and promotes your group at the same time.

5. Buy online
All youth ministers have things to buy: books, supplies, classroom material, water guns, whoopee cushions. Why not look into buying those items online. A few onlines places to try - ebay, half.com, amazon, craigslist.

In part 2 of "Tips for saving money" we will look at 5 more ways that your youth ministry can save a few dollars.

Learned from Twitter: 2 weeks ending April 25, 2009

Here is what I have learned from Twitter over the past 2 weeks...

1. shawnmichael (Shawn Michael Shoup) reminds us that youth ministry doesn't stop when a student "gets saved." There must be discipleship and teaching.
"8 salvations so far this Easter wknd w/ a brand new discipleship life group starting Tuesday 2 help them start on their spiritual journey!!"

2. pastorbuhro (Bradley Buhro) shares a great moment in youth ministry. Is this the new "window flyer" form of advertising for your ministry?
"We tweet our sermon notes to teens every Tuesday. A couple of my teens went to the Verizon store & set the sample phones to recieve them."

3. YS_Scoop (Youth Specialties) offers a few free tools for your youth ministry. You need to check them out.
"3 Free Productivity Tools for YM. Guest post from @joeldiaz & @joshcook83. http://eepurl.com/Wt7"

4. CoffeeWithChris (Chris Szulwach) offers some advice to another youth worker, that I think we all can use. You might want to check out this game site.
"@saraeden just was you are looking for game sites? Is that right? I'll add http://www.ylplaybook.com/ to the mix for ya!"

5. AdamLehman (Adam Lehman) is interested in starting a ym teaching pool. You might want to check it out.
"anyone want to form a youth ministry teaching pool? http://twurl.nl/iivzk2 #stumin"

6. snavenel (Len Evans) shares a link to a free book with some great insight. Take the time to check out the book and see if it can benefit your ministry.
"Youth Ministry Tribe-Free book- Paul Turner's "The Cure For The Common Youth Ministry" @ http://thediscipleproject.net Great insight & FREE"

7. Drpoulette (Dennis Poulette) relaxed, something youth ministers need to do often. Might I recommend a hammock.
"Relaxing in the hammock swing on the back porch. It's beautiful out tonight in Mexico city. Q"


What did you learn from Twitter this week?