Does your church need some fresh energy? Starting a youth group or youth ministry might be the perfect way to get it. In this article, we’ll cover some youth ministry basics, including steps to start your youth group and some resources to help.
In most churches, children and teens make up around 10% of the congregation. While this may not seem like much, it’s a significant number if your church is doing nothing to reach them. That’s 10 kids out of 100 churchgoers who aren’t getting to enjoy personalized programming to help them build a life-long relationship with your church!
Youth ministries are a great way to connect with your younger churchgoers – and they can do a lot for your church in return. Read on to learn why youth groups are so vital to churches and how to start yours.
A youth group, or youth ministry, is an age-specific group that meets regularly to worship and discuss spirituality. Typically, this group includes members of your church ranging from 12 to 18 years old. The goal is to help them through their turbulent teen years with spiritual guidance – and plenty of fun, too!
The role of youth in church is an important one since youth members often bring their parents along to church and can inspire their peers to join your youth group. They serve as representatives of your church in your community, too, which helps you fulfill your mission and grow your church.
Aside from the obvious benefits of youth ministry for the kids involved, there are some real benefits for your church, too.
The current religious landscape is complicated. Surveys show that people don’t think church plays a big role in their lives anymore, and attending church is projected to become less popular as time goes on.
Youth ministry is so vital because it helps steward the next generation of churchgoers. A positive youth group experience will create lifelong bonds with the church.
We can’t always connect with each church member on a personal level through sermons alone. Youth ministry is a chance for a targeted approach to connect with young people.
This means providing them with conversations, thought-provoking bible readings, and more to address topics they’re most interested in.
Youth ministry often involves community service projects and outreach. This is important for young people! In a recent survey, 69% of Gen Z said they want a church that provides them with opportunities to do good in their communities.
Youth ministries build up your community outreach programs, which provide activities for the teens in your church while building your reputation in the community, too.
For outreach ideas, check out these 20 fun and meaningful community service ideas for high school students.
Focusing on youth ministry keeps your church fresh. While you should have separate goals and discussions in your youth group versus your regular service, don’t ignore any ideas young people in your church have!
Youth ministries are fantastic resources to use when updating your church and its programs, whether bringing in new technology or trying a creative event.
A solid youth ministry will boost your attendance by bringing in more interested teens – and their parents and siblings.
If your youth group is popular, your church members will also bring their friends to enjoy the experience – this will help your church grow.
If you don’t already have a youth presence at your church, it will be difficult – but not impossible – to build your youth ministry.
But chances are you have at least 5-6 regular youth attendees who might be interested in being the founding members of your youth group. Connect with them during your weekly service to gauge their interest and invite them to attend your first meeting.
Don’t have the youth population to find your founding members in your congregation? Check with other local churches to see if any of their members are interested in joining!
There’s no need to feel like you compete with other churches since you have similar missions. Other churches can help you fill your youth ministry – or possibly even create an interchurch youth group – which could bring in more attendance for all churches involved.
You’ll need one to two volunteers to make your youth ministry a success. They should be willing to host at least one meeting a month and commit to being spiritual guides for the young people in your group.
To train them, you’ll want to share –
These will be the people who shape your youth ministry program, so you must give them the tools they need to succeed.
If you need help starting up a solid church volunteer program, check out this church volunteering guide on our blog.
Chances are you’ll need extra funds to properly launch and sustain your youth ministry. These funds will cover expenses like advertising, refreshments at meetings, entertainment, and group outings.
Donorbox has you covered with these simple yet powerful church fundraising tools –
And more!
Pro tip: You can simply add a special youth ministry designation to your donation form to quickly collect donations allocated to support your youth group.
Here’s what it looks like on Calvary Baptist Church’s donation form –
Check out MinistryMatters, our dedicated pillar for church fundraising. In addition to our fundraising tools, we have tons of resources to help you with every minute of your fundraising journey!
Regularity is the key to successful youth ministries. The kids in your group should know exactly when and where you meet, whether you’re hosting in-person or online meetings.
Choose a day you can stick to and a time that will work for the kids in your youth ministry. To get started, consider surveying the kids and their parents to find a time that works best for them.
B.A.C.E. has its youth club meet at the same time every week, regardless of the activity. We love their welcoming message! This makes it so much easier for new members to join their youth ministry.
Your youth ministry should have its own “home” on your church’s website, with information about your meetings and programming. Here, share information about who leads your youth group sessions for curious parents.
Create social media accounts that are separate from your church with dedicated content for young people. Posting about your youth offerings on social media is a must to connect with teens.
Ready to revamp your website? Check out our list of the 11 best church websites to inspire you.
Your next step is to get the word out! You’ll want to invite youth through the following channels –
You can also post information about your youth ministry on bulletin boards in other churches and, if allowed, in schools around you.
Pro tip: Donorbox donor management makes it easy to create mailing and email lists to get the word out about youth groups. You can add supporters manually, or they’ll be added automatically after they donate.
A great way to increase your youth ministry numbers is to provide incentives for attending. Food, freebies like t-shirts and lanyards, and gift cards to cool stores or experiences in your area are all great options.
You should also demonstrate the value of attendance by posting about your fun activities on your youth ministry’s website and social media accounts.
Events are fun, low-pressure ways for new teens to try out your youth ministry.
Donorbox Events can help you track and manage your event attendance, whether you want to sell tickets or provide them for free. Simply build your event with as many ticket tiers as you want. You can also set a deadline for reserving tickets and even show how much of each ticket is tax deductible. When someone purchases a ticket (even if they’re free!), they automatically receive their receipt with tickets to your event.
Check out how this organization used Donorbox Events to manage sign-ups for their youth volunteering project –
This is also a great way to collect contact information for your event attendees so you can turn one-time attendees into long-term members of your youth ministry!
Need some help coming up with ideas for your event? We have a list of 15 engaging church fundraising events to get you started.
If you’re looking for youth ministry resources to help you start yours, we have you covered! Here are three websites with great and affordable youth ministry resources.
Group.com provides youth ministry curriculum, lessons and sermons, and books and bibles. They offer a lot of free samples and have affordable packages for their lessons and curriculum. Their student-led programming generates great conversations and growth for your youth ministry.
The Gospel Coalition blog has tons of posts covering the ins and outs of youth ministry. These free posts offer actionable tips for running your youth group from planning meetings to discussing tricky current events.
Ministry to Youth makes lesson plans, games, and sermons for youth ministries. They offer a variety of bundles, including several year-long bundles with materials covering an entire year. They also have topic-specific programs like their Summer Survival Guide.
Although not free, their high-quality materials are reasonably priced, at around $100 for a year-long bundle.
Building a youth ministry will help your church grow. It’s also a great way to connect with the younger members of your church and community.
Use these steps to start your youth group, and use Donorbox to help you fundraise along the way. Whether you need help with general fundraising, setting up an in-person donation kiosk, or selling tickets for your events, we have you covered.
MinistryMatters is our dedicated pillar for church fundraising. With tools and resources in our blog, Library, and Academy, we’re here to make your church fundraising a success.
Get started today and launch your first campaign in just a few minutes. For more church fundraising tips, check out the rest of our Nonprofit Blog. Subscribe to our newsletter for a monthly delivery of blog content straight to your inbox.
Lindsey spent years wearing many hats in the nonprofit world. Whether she was helping arts nonprofits with their messaging and content, planning a fundraising gala, writing an NEA grant proposal, or running a membership program with over 400 members, she learned how to navigate – and appreciate! – the fast-paced world of fundraising. Now, she loves sharing those hard-earned lessons with the Donorbox community.
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Lindsey Baker Bower