This is not a book about youth ministry. Well, it's not entirely about youth ministry. This is a book about the church and her relationship with teenagers. And it's a book about leadership. These pages offer an invitation for anyone who loves teenagers. This is a story, a calling, a vision for the church to be more whole, more cohesive, and longer lasting than the six or seven years that make up most youth ministries. In part, this book is a case study about one church who became captivated by a bigger vision for their teenagers and decided things needed to be different. Quite different. And it's a stake in the ground that things must be different in our churches and cities for the sake of this generation and the ones to come. Birthed in the cauldron of frustration and possibility, youth worker and author April Diaz took a big risk when a staff position opened in youth ministry at her church. She led her church by asking some tough questions: What if we changed this position from a Youth Pastor to Student Integration Pastor? And what if this was more than a job title, but a change in the way our church views its relationship with teenagers? What if we don't just hire a youth ministry Pied Piper to isolate our teenagers, but hire a youth ministry champion who won't let the congregation forget about her responsibility for the spiritual formation of the teenagers in our midst? Equal parts intervention, idealism, memoir and guide, this tiny book packs a punch you'll be thinking about and wrestling with well beyond the final page.

Growing up, they didn't believe they had a future. Together, they are building forever. Alexis Black persevered through her mother's death and her father's imprisonment. And after escaping a long and abusive relationship, the college junior promised her foster parents not to date for at least a year. But when she meets an incoming freshman on the first day of their scholarship program, she feels the world melt away, as though it were only the two of them in the room. Justin Black lived in the poorest section of Detroit before his parents surrendered him to the foster care system at the age of nine. But when he grabs the chance for better opportunities by pursuing higher education, he can't help but be drawn to a beautiful third-year student. At first, their past traumas--and their age difference--conspired to complicate their attraction. But the joy each took in the other and eventually conquered those obstacles, and these two survivors journeyed together toward healing. In a stark and wholehearted true story that shares how two individuals on separate paths found each other, Alexis and Justin merge their course into one full of hope and purpose. And hand-in-hand, with a desire to help others, they learned to reject the abusive patterns of their past, thereby intentionally breaking the cycle of generational violence and unhealthy behaviors. Written in an engaging novelistic style, the authors put forward a thoughtful exchange of ideas and personal experiences illustrating how anybody, no matter their backgrounds, can have a life of self-empowerment and joy. Broken down into four sections that cover crucial topics such as "Worthiness" and "Mental Health," this compelling narrative will help any who are learning to love themselves and want to end the line of toxic relationships. Redefining Normal: How Two Foster Kids Beat The Odds and Discovered Healing, Happiness, and Love is a page-turning memoir that will open your eyes to possibilities and dreams. If you like honest tales of triumph, refreshing transparency, and resilient faith in God, then you'll adore Justin and Alexis' inspirational story. This story contains mentions of domestic violence, trauma, sexual assault, and other difficult issues faced on the road to healing. Buy Redefining Normal to claim victory over harmful pasts today!

Youth ministry succeeds because it directly reflects Jesus Christ’s approach. It’s not overvalued today; it’s undervalued. The hard work required for its success has been misunderstood and misrepresented. The first part of the book establishes that case and analyzes the pros and cons of current, varying philosophies and approaches, merging their best aspects into the holistic approach demonstrated by Christ. Part 2 introduces Attachment Relationship Ministry (ARM), a lens distinguishing four primary adolescent relational styles depending on how secure or insecure teens are with God and parents. Part 3 encourages strategic relational ministry sensitive to those styles, explaining why youth leader efforts succeed or fail. Chapters offer realistic discipleship and evangelism suggestions depending on attachment styles and practically empowering youth workers (volunteers, newbies, experts, and interns) to focus energy and time more wisely. These recommendations relate to spiritual formation, leadership selection, parental approach, and trending issues, such as ministry to LGBTQIA teens. For too many teens today, feeling insecure in crisis is a way of life. Learn how to take what you’ve done well and make it better. All church leaders should read this book, logging the critical importance of providing ministry specifically targeting teenagers today.

Youth Work in the Commonwealth: A Growth Profession establishes a baseline to inform the planning and implementation of initiatives to professionalise youth work in Commonwealth member countries. The study was conducted in 35 countries in the Africa, Asia, the Caribbean/Americas, Europe and Pacific regions. It catalogues the extent to which the youth work profession is formally recognised in these countries and examines the qualities and rights-based ethos of the various forms of youth work promoted and practised in the Commonwealth. The report aims to help countries learn from good practices, and assess gaps in establishing youth work as a recognised profession in diverse contexts.

Kids desperately need healthy, committed adults who can help them thrive in their faith and become active participants in the life of the church. This requires the efforts of the whole faith community. Chap Clark, one of the leading voices in youth ministry today, brings together twenty-four experts from a variety of denominations and traditions to offer a comprehensive introduction to adoptive youth ministry, a theologically driven, academically grounded, and practical youth ministry model. The book shows readers how to integrate emerging generations into the family of faith, helping young adults become active participants in God's redemptive community.

A unique text to the field, Doing Ethics in Child and Youth Care serves as an essential introductory guide to ethical practice across a range of child and youth care settings within North America. In addition to providing an overview of the Standards for Practice of North American Child and Youth Care Professionals, with the full version included in an appendix, the text offers a practical and engaging introduction and explores the theoretical under-pinnings and field-specific application of ethics. Organized into three parts, this volume begins by introducing the code of ethics for child and youth care professionals in North America as well as the ethical theories and the foundational skills to “do ethics,” including cultural humility, reflexivity, and ethical problem solving. The second part moves on to orient readers to a broad range of considerations for adopting an ethical stance, such as boundary management, responsibilities to the profession, community development and youth participation, and Indigenous perspectives on child and youth care ethics. Part three features some of the different settings in which child and youth care is practised in North America, such as substitute care, family work, intervention in schools, social media, research, and ethics training and supervision, and examines the unique ethical challenges in each of these settings. With contributions from leading child and youth care scholars in Canada and the United States, this is a must-read for students and professional training programs in child and youth care, child and youth studies, and youth work across North America. FEATURES: - Contributions from researchers, practitioners, and scholars from Canada and the United States - Practice examples and reflective exercises to engage readers in developing an approach to ethical practice across a range of child and youth care settings - Appendices containing the full Standards for Practice of North American Child and Youth Care Professionals and a list of resources for ethical dilemmas and case studies to practise doing ethics