It’s that time of year, again. Graduation season is upon us, and for youth workers, this season will be spent at multiple graduations, graduation parties, and preparing for the “graduation” from youth group. There is no doubt that this is an exciting time of the year. As you look back at the countless hours invested in each student, you pray that he/she will continue in church, seek the Lord, and mature in the faith.

Most of us are regulars and our order is known before we have time to speak it. As we sat there enjoying both the ministry of small talk and pondering some of God’s goodness, Bailey began to notice something about the people I was exchanging hellos with— they were all older than me. She asked, “Who was that? How do you know him?” I responded, “That is my friend Dave. We go to church together. And that’s Hamilton, we see each other here at least once a week if not more. Oh, and that’s my friend Anna, she stops in on her way to work down the street.”

We asked two youth pastors the question, “How has the Pray for Me Campaign impacted your youth ministry?” Their responses were powerful. So we thought we’d share them in their entirety with you.

The Pray for Me Campaign is the Secret Sauce of Intergenerational Ministry! When I first heard about the Pray for Me Campaign, I was intrigued by both the simplicity and the power of the idea of connecting generations through prayer.

God has a plan for your life. I believe Scripture offers overwhelming support for this statement, both in individual verses and in specific narratives of individuals. Discovering when it the right time to move or to wait is no easy task. Now, we can have some fun theological conversations about how this actually fleshes out in the life of a believer. But I wanted to take a quick moment and offer some insight into one aspect of God's plan for our lives. How do we know when to take action and when to wait?

Your graduating seniors may represent a chance to evaluate your youth ministry strategy. While it's by no means cut and dry, by looking at your graduating seniors, you might just get a glimpse into what students look like having come through your youth ministry. It could be an invaluable way of thinking about your strategy and approach. Here's what I mean . . .

Who’s waiting for your kids? In a few short years, they will leave the safety of your home and church and head off to college. Who will they meet? What ideas will they encounter? What moral choices will they face? For most adults, it’s been quite a few years since they’ve set foot on a college campus. Let us bring you up-to-speed on what’s waiting for your kids:

Parent meetings are an essential part of a successful youth ministry. As a youth worker, you need to be able to effectively run a parent meeting. Here are 10 Tips For An Incredible Parent Meeting.

YM360's J. Roger Davis interviews Mitch Grainger about his youth group' experience with Cardfunder. CardFunder is an innovative approach which converts new, unused or partially used gift cards into cash to help children around the world.

It's become one of our favorite traditions: bringing in the new year on the YM360 Blog by remembering the highlights of the year that was. As we looked at our analytics from the past year and drilled down to find the most-read posts, we saw that one thing these articles have in common. They deal with the area of Discipleship. This is super encouraging for us, as it shows the amazing passion the YM360 Community has for seeing teenagers draw closer to Christ.

YM360's Creative Director, Erin Moon, gives an in-depth view at the the theme for this Summer's GENERATE Camp.

Andy Blanks introduces YM360's newest Christmas/Advent Devotion, "HARK!" I'm really excited to introduce you to our newest Christmas/Advent devotional, "HARK!" I had a blast writing HARK! and I know you and your students will find it to be a really meaningful resource this Christmas. Let me give you a little insight into the "why" behind it.

Opening this week, “I’m Not Ashamed” is the powerful, true story of Columbine High School student Rachel Joy Scott. Growing up, Rachel knew the love of God, but she wasn’t always ready to receive it. At times her faith was on fire, and at other times it was at odds with her everyday life. But after praying, “Father, use my life to touch the world and let your light shine through me,” her renewed commitment to Jesus played out compassionately and powerfully at her high school, and around the world.

On behalf of YM360, Andy Blanks celebrates Youth Pastors as part of National Pastor Appreciation Day.

J. Roger Davis, President of YM360, shares about an exciting way for you and your youth ministry to have a global impact. Watch the short video, below, then visit CARDFUNDER.ORG right now!

At YM360, we love our College Football. On Fridays in the Fall, you’ll see all sorts of team spirit represented. Auburn, Tennessee, Baylor, Auburn, Arizona, Mississippi State, Troy . . . Did we mention Auburn? And while we (mostly) keep it civil, Mondays in the Fall are full of hallway chatter about the weekend’s games. (Especially from our Creative Director, Erin Moon, a veritable tsunami of football passion.)

What would you say is the main thing that keeps your students from living out their faith? Andy Blanks asks this question and offers an answer.

YM360 is excited to introduce our new 52-week Bible study curriculum, "The Rescue: Discovering How the Gospel Rescues and Redeems Us."

Andy Blanks shares some thoughts about the importance of discipline in all areas of our lives

Andy Blanks shares the way in which his message to teenagers about reading their Bibles has changed over the years.

Andy Blanks passes along a short checklist of things youth ministers might forget to do when getting ready for the new youth ministry year.

YM360 Publisher Andy Blanks takes a few moments to discuss what “Gospel-centered” means to YM360 and potentially even your ministry.

YM360 is excited to launch Facing Your Fears, a 40-day devotional all about allowing the Lord to reveal where fear has taken hold of students’ lives and putting an end to these strongholds.

YM360 is looking for an Associate Editor to join the YM360 Team.

Andy Blanks questions whether there is a "new compartmentalization" (the tendency for teenagers to compartmentalize their faith . . . and to not see a problem with it) emerging in young people.

Andy Blanks passes along a few tips on how to deal with the doubts and questions our teenagers have about their faith and about God.

Andy Blanks looks to the "1984" Apple Super Bowl commercial as a parallel to taking chances in your youth ministry.

Andy Blanks reminds youth workers that spiritual growth happens most often outside your weekly gathering times.

Andy Blanks talks about the many different points of tension he feels in ministry . . . and how it's a wonderful, awful part of the territory.

Have you tried YM360's Event Resources? Here's an awesome review from a youth worker who DID try them and had a great experience.

Andy Blanks asks if we're guilty of thinking (and teaching teenagers) about spiritual habits all wrong.

YM360 Co-Founder and Publisher, Andy Blanks, shares the process and the results of a recent exercise YM360 underwent to put our values into writing.

Andy Blanks shares the most effective principle to recruiting and keeping adult volunteers for your youth ministry.

Andy Blanks looks at how we can help teenagers in your youth ministry own a faith that is important.

YM360 President, J. Roger Davis, interviews Lindsey Tillman about what makes the missions option at YM360's GENERATE Camp so meaningful.

Andy Blanks interviews Chris Trent, author of the new book, Consider This: A Youth Minister's Guide To Longevity

Paul Sheneman passes along some very valuable tips on what NOT to do when we find ourselves being criticized.

YM360's newest book, "CONSIDER THIS: A Youth Minister's Guide To Longevity" is perfect for both anyone starting out in youth ministry, or those experienced youth workers looking to mentor someone.

Do you teach Bible study in a small group? You'll want to read Andy Blanks' take on some of the challenges and opportunities of teaching God's Word in small groups.

Andy Blanks passes along 7 characteristics of Christian Community and what your youth group can do to become one.

Andy Blanks looks at the many ways Jesus embraced relational ministry, and how we can embrace His model.

Andy Blanks passes along a word about our purpose as youth ministers from Paul's words to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:1-2.

YM360 is pumped to announce our newest Event Resource, RELENTLESS, by Ed Newton. Perfect for your DNow or Retreat Weekend!

J. Roger Davis shares 5 reasons Camp is vital to your youth ministry.

Andy Blanks talks about what it actually means to be Gospel-centered, and how you can apply this in your own youth ministry.

Andy Blanks makes the case for the importance of our students knowing God and being transformed by this knowledge.

Andy Blanks talks about the important of embracing the element of imitation in discipleship.

YM360 Creative Director, Erin Moon, writes about why Camp is such a meaningful experience for her, and for your teenagers.

J. Roger Davis announces The CLEAR Conference, an exciting new training initiative between YM360 and Ed Newton that will equip leaders to communicate God's Word more powerfully, and more clearly.

Introducing GENERATE camp by ym360, a brand new summer camp experience for you and your students.

Andy Blanks passes along a FREE discipleship framework to help you think about how effective your youth ministry is at making disciples.

Andy Blanks looks at some of the possible outcomes of not intentionally leading students in discipleship.

Andy Blanks looks at Paul's words in Colossians 1:9-10 as a pretty good purpose statement for our youth ministries.

Andy Blanks shares some points he recently made to graduating seniors.

Andy Blanks challenges youth workers to think differently about reaching students who don't know Christ

Another great FREEBIE from youthministry360. Help your students understand how life-changing God's love is.

The YM360 Easter "Vault" offers FREE Bible study lessons and student devotions, perfect for leading up to your Easter services!

Andy Blanks asks a challenging question in this most recent edition of Youth Worker Sound Off.

Experts say the most stressful work environment is one in which the worker has low control over his/her situation (in other words, a lot of bosses to answer to), low pay, and high expectations. Welcome to the modern day world of student ministry! The highly stressful atmosphere surrounding some youth ministers can lead to a variety of physical and emotional problems, including anxiety and depression.