“When are you going to be a real pastor?” As a student pastor, have you ever been asked that or something similar that made you feel like youth ministry was just a stepping stone to something greater? Our guest on the podcast this week is Kent Gregory. Kent has been the Student Ministries Pastor at Heritage Baptist Church in Lynchburg, VA for 20 years. Brian asks Kent questions about how he has not just survived for this long but how he continues to thrive and what he sees as success in youth ministry.
Takeaways from this episode:
Keys to longevity:
- Have a mindset that you’re here to stay
- You will endure hardships and tragedies
- Don’t take yourself so seriously
- Make it your goal to bring God the glory
- Remember that it’s His ministry
- The parents of your students are your greatest resource
- There is no one more invested in your students than their parents
- Never forget the influence of the parents
- Help parents serve in the youth group – utilize their gifts and delegate to them
- Remain teachable
- Read more
- Look for progress, not perfection
Success in youth ministry = spiritual growth in your students (discipleship)
Resources:
Word of Life curriculum: https://lcm.wol.org/curriculum/
Our email: multiply@wol.org
Our website: https://lcm.wol.org/