Student Ministry Connection

Episode 64 of The Student Ministry Podcast features a brief message of encouragement from Steve Cullum to you, the youth worker. As we head into a new year, we know that many of you have experienced some rough patches and have even thought about giving up at least once or twice, or maybe you know someone who has really struggled recently.   In this episode, Steve shares five encouragements adapted...

Episode 63 of The Student Ministry Podcast features a conversation with Greg Stier of Dare2Share Ministries . Greg has a reputation for knowing and relating to teens in unique and effective ways. Over the course of the last 20 years, Greg has spoken to over 1,000,000 teens in major venues across the nation and heard countless stories of their struggles and triumphs. Greg’s commitment to mobilizing...

Episode 62 of The Student Ministry Podcast features a discussion and recap of Youth Ministry Exchange 2020 with fellow ministry podcasters, Tom Bump and Tom Palmer.   Subscribe to Tom Bump's podcast: Kids Ministry Collective Podcast   Subscribe to Tom Pounder's podcast: YM Sidekick Podcast    Follow Steve on Twitter:  @stevecullum    Check out Steve's blog:  http://stevecullum.com    Follow The St...

Episode 61 of The Student Ministry Podcast features Billy McMahan, who is currently the student pastor at Rocky Mountain Christian Church in Niwot, CO. Billy shares his story of God's redemption and how God continues to use that to help him connect with his students and leaders. He also talks about their struggles surrounding the Covid pandemic and speaks about the importance of other leaders in o...

On episode 60 of The Student Ministry Podcast, Steve provides an update on how his student ministry programming has changed since last year and since the Covid-19 quarantine. He shares their church's experiences and what they learned that led to these recent changes. Register for Youth Ministry Exchange: www.bit.ly/ymx-2020    And be sure to use the offer code Steve for $25 off your ticket!   Foll...

Episode 59 of The Student Ministry Podcast features Crystal Chiang, who is the Executive Director of Student Strategy at Orange. Not only does she have a ton of experience as a small group leader, but she was also in public education for a while. She brings all of that expertise to the team at Orange, which is especially helpful this year, as they are launching a brand new event for youth workers...

Episode 58 of The Student Ministry Podcast features Cooper Miller, the brand new Online Youth Pastor at Mariners Church (Irvine, CA). Cooper has a great story, and it was really cool to hear what God has taught him over the years and set him up for this new role. And as one of the first people to ever have this title, we had to chat about it. Not only does he share some insight around what they ha...

Episode 57 of The Student Ministry Podcast features Tom Pounder. Not only has Tom been in student ministry for a number of years, he has also served as a digital/campus pastor at his church. He brings all of that to the table today as he discusses ministry moving forward during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Tom also has his own blog, podcast, and more, so be sure to continue following him using...

Episode 56 of The Student Ministry Podcast features Gerald Fadayomi, longtime youth worker and author. Gerald has an amazing story of how God has worked in His life. After a rough life at home and seeing friends murdered, he got plugged into a church, gave his life to Christ, and began serving in student ministry. Since 2019, he has been running a conference, is in the process of starting a monthl...

Episode 55 of The Student Ministry Podcast brings back Mike Haynes to talk about racial reconciliation. While racism has been a thing for a long time, recent events have increased our awareness of it. So how do we talk about it with our students? And how do we lead and shepherd them well through this? Mike speaks about his own experiences as an African American but also shares some amazing wisdom...

Episode 54 of The Student Ministry Podcast is all about Orange Conference 2020. This "special edition" episode will be a bit different, as it will not include an interview. Instead, Steve sits down with Tom Bump and David Maddron to discuss the changes Orange had to make for OC20, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They also share several things they learned from the main session speakers, as well as s...

Episode 53 of The Student Ministry Podcast features David Reed, who is currently the Minister of Youth at First Baptist Church in Nacogdoches, TX. David has been in ministry for over 26 years, and in his current (home) church for over 13 years. Not only does he share his story and some great wisdom from his many years in student ministry, but he also shares what God has been teaching him through t...

Episode 52 of The Student Ministry Podcast features Ansley Higginbotham, who served in traditional ministry settings for a number of years but is currently serving from home. As a stay-at-home mom, she has been writing blogs, speaking at youth events, writing curriculum, and coaching other youth workers. She also has a huge heart for other women in ministry. For those of you who are not currently...

Episode 51 of The Student Ministry Podcast features Marty Estes of The Youth Workers Guide to Video Games podcast. Marty is currently the director of children's and youth ministries at Sand Ridge Baptist Church in Lexington, TN, where he has served since 2012. With over 17 years of professional youth ministry experience, Marty has a wealth of wisdom, especially on how to connect with students. One...

Episode 50 of The Student Ministry Podcast is a little different. In December 2019, the world lost a great youth pastor named Tim Uhls. For those who have been longtime listeners, you may remember Tim from episode 36. Tim was also Steve's youth pastor. In an effort to honor Tim and also cope, Steve reached out to several other people who were in Tim's youth group. This episode is dedicated to the...

On episode 49 of The Student Ministry Podcast, Steve interviews Tom Bump. Tom has been in ministry over 30 years in various capacities, but mostly in children's and student ministry. Over the years, God has led him through some really great times and some difficult times. So in addition to hosting his kids ministry podcast, he also coaches others in ministry. So if you have been considering a coac...

On episode 48 of The Student Ministry Podcast, Steve interviews Jonny Radcliff, who is currently serving in student ministry in the Philadelphia area. Jonny is also a big proponent of networking with other youth workers. Sit back and get ready to hear what God has been doing in his life, but also make sure you have something handy to take notes!   Follow Jonny on Instagram: @jonnyrad5   Check out...

In episode 47 of The Student Ministry Podcast, Steve talks all about the National Youth Workers Convention 2019. As Youth Specialties celebrated their 50th year of conventions, they focused on the theme, TOGETHER. Steve had the opportunity to sit down with a few attendees and chat about their experience. He also walks through all the Big Room and workshop talks he attended. We hope you enjoy this...

In episode 46 of The Student Ministry Podcast, Steve interviews Jeff Bachman. Not only is Jeff a youth ministry veteran, but he also hosts his own podcast all about pop culture and youth ministry. Sit back and get ready to take some notes as Jeff talks about his story, his ministry, pop culture, and some amazing wisdom from his many years of experience.    Follow Jeff on Instagram: @jbachman   Che...

Episode 45 of The Student Ministry Podcast is a special one, where Steve has the opportunity to interview one of his former students and volunteers. Alycia Cone was 16 when she started attending youth group. She had Steve's wife as her small group leader, and after she graduated and completed a year with City Year, she joined the student ministry team to serve as a small group leader. On this epis...

In episode 44 of The Student Ministry Podcast, Steve interviews one of his co-workers and fellow pastors, Sean Badeer. Not only does Sean lead the Connections Ministry at Steve's church, but he also serves with an organization called Leadership Pathway. Their goal is to connects young leaders with churches for a residency program that helps them grow in various ways in preparation for a life in fu...

In episode 43 of The Student Ministry Podcast, Steve interviews Jeremy Nelson and Mike Eilers on how they go about co-leading their student ministry in Indianola, Iowa. Jeremy has been in paid ministry for a while, and Mike came into it recently after volunteering for quite some time. If you currently lead a ministry alongside a partner or a team, you'll want to take notes from these guys.    Emai...

Episode 42 of The Student Ministry Podcast is all about Steve's upcoming adjustments in his student ministry programming. Back in episode 20, Steve talked about his own story and a bit about what his current ministry looked like. Almost two years later, it's time to make several adjustments, and today, we're going to talk about them: what they are and why they are being made. Huge thanks to the Do...

Episode 41 of The Student Ministry Podcast is all about the Orange Conference 2019. Not only is the format a bit different, but it is also quite a bit longer (sorry about that). For this episode Steve sat down with Tom Bump, one of the other Orange Bloggers to unpack and process all they learned at OC19. Tom also appeared on episode 28 of the podcast for the OC18 recap. He is the host of the Kids...

On episode 40 of The Student Ministry Podcast, Steve speaks with Jason Scott. Not only is Jason the Minster to Students at his church in Roswell, GA, but he also leads The Worship Collective, a place online to find musicians, speakers, and production people for your next event. In this episode, Jason talks about how he got into ministry, how he creates encounters for his students, and how to get i...