What if the pathway to effective youth ministry isn't about chasing every good idea, but focusing on clear targets that produce lasting disciples? Tim Smith, Next Gen Director at Faith Church in South Carolina, reveals how establishing five core "vitals" transformed his approach to youth ministry after years of measuring success by numbers alone.
Drawing from over a decade of ministry experience, Tim shares how biblical truth, spiritual transformation, healthy community, missional living, and leadership development create both targets for aiming and guardrails for keeping ministry focused. These vitals function like a GPS system, providing not just the destination but the path to get there amid the countless distractions that youth pastors face.
Tim's transparency regarding his early ministry years reliance on evangelistic numbers as validation for his ministry calling is refreshing and challenging. "I would live off of endorphin hit to endorphin hit and use those things to validate why I was sitting in the seat I'm sitting in," he reveals. This pursuit of attendance and altar call responses left him wondering if he was actually "asking lost people to reach the lost" rather than developing genuine disciples.
Tim offers practical guidance for restructuring youth ministry, from ensuring alignment with your lead pastor to organizing your teaching calendar around four powerful questions: Who is God? Who am I? What do I believe? What do I do? He also unpacks his leadership training system built on the four C's: celebrate, communicate, cultivate, and collaborate.
Whether you're a full-time youth pastor at a large church or a volunteer in a small ministry, this episode provides both the philosophical framework and practical tools to build a youth ministry that produces disciples who thrive long after graduation. The days of spiritual whiplash between youth group and adult church can end when we focus on ministry vitals that truly matter.

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