We are in the process of planning youth ministry training opportunities for 2011-2012 now, but in that process found the opportunity to bring Duffy Robbins to Indiana for a training session.  If you haven’t heard him, he is an outstanding presenter with a broad knowledge of youth ministry.  The day-long training session will be at Carmel UMC on May 7 from 10am to 4pm.  You can see more information and register here.

As we are planning, we’d also like to know what would help you in your ministry with youth.  If you have presenters, or topics, or areas of ministry where you could use continuing education, please let us know.  You can email me here, leave a comment to this post, or visit our FB page.

There is a great Chinese proverb that says, “Learning is like rowing upstream; not to advance is to drop back.”  How true I’ve found that to be in my years in youth ministry.  Culture is changing, communication patterns are changing, methods are changing – as we seek to make disciples and communicate the Gospel there is always more to learn.  And if we stop learning we so quickly can watch the world go by and find not that the Gospel is irrelevant, but our means of communicating and sharing it are no longer effective.

In the next few weeks and months we are offering Youth Ministry Training (101: Basics), and while the target audience is those who volunteer or are new in youth ministry, we believe it will have something to offer for everyone.  We hope you will consider joining us and bringing others from your church who are interested in learning and growing in ministry with youth.  The training link here has more information, or you can click directly on the church names below to register.

January 29 – Mexico New Life UMC (near Peru)

February 12 – Seymour First UMC

April 2 – Bluegrass UMC, Evansville

“You all have something to share.”  ”You all have something to learn.”  A college professor once shared these two sentences to open his class, and what followed was a rich cooperative learning experience where all of us in the class experienced tremendous growth.

In youth ministry it is easy to feel isolated.  Many of us in ministry with youth are commissioned by our congregation to do youth ministry on our own and then receive little support, or at least little hands-on involvement, from the congregation.  Others of us are kept so busy in the essential and vital ministries we lead that to invest in the time it takes to network, or just to find a network of other youth leaders, seems to not be worth it.  Others of us have been involved in networks that have focused on planning events or discussing issues that don’t seem relevant to our context.  We’re left asking, is networking worth the investment?

I firmly believe the answer is yes.  Mark Dodrill in the book Starting Right says, “Networking is worth the effort (or the pain, as we say in Spanish) not only because it often works well, but also because it is very close to the essence of the gospel in which giving is more blessed than receiving.”  As we share God’s love with young people, we learn, and what we learn has value to the ministry of others, our to share. When we face obstacles and challenges, there are others who have experienced the same and can mentor us through the experience, ours to learn.

I’m excited to invite you to an opportunity to network with others in ministry with youth in your area/district this Fall.  This is not about planning events or adding something for you to do, but about building community and connection and taking a day for you and your ministry.  Below you’ll find the details, and know you are welcome to attend at the location closest to you, regardless of district lines.  The first four district dates are set, and others will be coming soon.

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The INUMC Ministry with Youth Roundtables

Connect * Share * Learn * Refresh

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Roundtables are happening on various schedules around the state.  Bookmark this post or watch the Connect newsletter for the latest locations and conversations.

Upcoming Roundtables:

To register for an upcoming roundtable, click on the church name below to RSVP via Facebook, or email Carla at the conference office with your name and which event you will be attending:

Dayton UMC (Northwest District), Thursday, September 29, 11am-1pm EDT

Brazil First UMC (West District), Thursday, October 6, 4:30-6:30pm EDT

Plainfield UMC (Central District), Tuesday, October 11, 11am-1pm EDT

Laporte First UMC (North District), Wednesday, October 19, 11am-1pm CDT

Hillside UMC, Princeton (Southwest District), Saturday, October 22, 11am-1pm CDT

Columbia City UMC (Northeast District), Tuesday, October 25, 11am-1pm EDT

Selma UMC (East District), Wednesday, November 2, 11:30am-1pm EDT

Castleton UMC (Central District), Thursday, November 10, 12-1:30pm EST

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Past Roundtables:

2011:

Jan. 18 - Central District, Old Bethel UMC

March 16 – North Central District,  Fishers UMC

March 22 – Southeast District,  Columbus First UMC

March 25 – North Central District, Kokomo Grace UMC

March 30 – North District, Valparaiso First UMC

April 13 – North Central District, Anderson First UMC

April 21 – Northeast District, First Wayne Street UMC, Fort Wayne

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2010:

Thurs. Aug. 26 – West District, Mount Pleasant UMC, Terre Haute

Sept. 9 – South District, Edwardsville UMC

Sept. 16 – Northeast District, Fort Wayne Aldersgate UMC

Sept. 21 – Northwest District, Monticello UMC

Oct 18 – North District, Lakeside UMC

Oct. 25 – Southwest District, Oakland City UMC

Nov. 16 – Southeast District, Greensburg UMC

Nov. 23 – East District, Asbury UMC: Portland, IN