Wednesday 19 November 2008

Top Ten Tips for Youth Leaders


Tip 8: Become a thief

I am not very creative. I am not a 100-ideas-per-day youth worker; in fact I startle myself if I have one creative idea per month. However, I confess to being an expert “thief.” I see your good idea, I think it’ll work in my context, I steal & adapt it for my purposes (incidentally, I stole most of this top tips series from a youth worker colleague, although I did ask permission… cheers, Graeme).

Perhaps this is an inappropriate use of Scripture, but these words resonate with me, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say, ‘Look, there is something new’? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time.” Ecclesiastes 1:9-10

Some people are very possessive of good ideas. My response is to boo you & encourage you to get it copyrighted – then I will be willing to pay money to steal your ideas.

Can I encourage you to purchase & pinch ideas from a very helpful resource of recent years, “The Fabulous Reinvention of Sunday School” by Aaron Reynolds. Written for children’s leaders, but ideas that are very transferable to a youth ministry context. Go buy… read… steal… adapt.

Be brave and try something new today. And if you find anything in this blog remotely helpful… take it, nick it, own it, and use it.

2 comments:

Ruth Strong said...

I'm so guilty of this too..... in fact one of my talks/sermons/waffles on Sunday was pinched and adapted heehee!!!!

Anonymous said...

Ditto, why re-invent the wheel, keep it rolling!!