Ready, Set, Goals…

Rev. Robert Sturdivant Robert is the Minister of Students at Trinity United Methodist Church in Birmingham, AL. Robert has been working with middle school and high school students for over 14 years, 13 of which at Trinity UMC. Robert grew up in Birmingham and graduated from Birmingham-Southern College in 2012 with a degree in Religious […]

Under the Microscope: Getting Buy-in for Your Ministry

by Meghan Hatcher I’m currently a member of the healthiest church I’ve ever attended or served as a staff member, and we haven’t had a senior pastor since January 2023. So naturally, as a former pastor myself, I’ve been racking my brain as to how this is all transpiring. Every Sunday during the worship service […]

5 Questions to Ask When Determining Goals

Stephen Ingram Stephen is a 25+ year youth ministry veteran. His books include Hollow Faith: How Andy Griffith, Facebook, and the American Dream Neutered the Gospel, ExtraOrdinary Time: 365 Ordinary Moments with an Anything But Ordinary God; and Organic Student Ministry. Stephen serves as the Sr. Director of Resource Development for CYMT. Before we can lead […]

Two Steps to Develop New Metrics for Your Ministry

I stumbled upon a prayer this week called, “For when you’re tired of broken systems,” and this excerpt remains lodged in my mind: Oh God, how blessed are we who cry out to you: Empower us to see and name what is broken, what is ours to restore. Guide us to find coherent and beautiful […]

Young people are not the future of the church.  They are the church.  At CYMT, we equip leaders to develop effective ministries with young people and empower them to set an example for ALL believers.  The average youth minister impacts the lives of over 400 youth and their families. We invite you to invest in youth […]

Is your ministry saying, “YES,” to the wrong things?

Saying, “no,” can be a really hard thing to do. I experienced this firsthand while serving on my church’s missions team for many years. The requests that came to our committee seemed never-ending.  Members of the church brought us information about community organizations that needed assistance. Fellow committee members had their own passions and advocated […]

The Problem with Problem-Solving in Ministry

The first step in product thinking, as Nikkel Blaase writes in an article for the Interaction Design Foundation, is to “determine the problem that your users are looking to solve.” When done well, determining a user’s problem begins with researching the user’s lived experience. From there, a product is developed and tested that intends to […]

Why AI in Ministry is Not Innovation

Artificial intelligence, or AI, is all over the news lately. From healthcare to finance to education, industries around the globe are investing billions of dollars to develop apps and programs run by AI that will solve problems, answer questions, and streamline systems.  Even a Catholic non-profit recently joined the trend by creating an AI priest […]

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