Youth Worker On Fire Podcast

"It's later than you think" is a line in the movie "The Adam Project", which is repeated several times. The movie is Sci-Fi, but even though it mentions time travel, the real story was about loving the people we are responsible for. God sees loving those we are responsible for as more important than the ministry he has called us too. In many cases, the ministry we have called ourselves to, may not...

3 things that will change how others receive you and your ministry… Be Heard. Be Seen. Be Gone. I don't know about you, but I spend a lot of time making sure to set a good impression with people. Is it that maybe in certain enviornments we spend too much time attempting to do so? I was a Campus Life director for an area in Central Florida for 6 years. One of the many valuable things Youth for Chri...

Wish you could change the outcome of a meeting or conversation before it even gets started? What if someone could teach you how to position yourself in order to positively enhance your interactions with others? Seems like we all should know these kinds of things. Well… someone does! This person has influenced me and many others. Even though this person has not been a guest on this podcast (...yet)...

Kevin is a former Fire Chief and trumpet student of mine back in my hometown. I was just out of college and he was a high schooler at that time. We have stayed in touch all these years later and he is now one of my go to prayer warriors. When Kevin prays, God moves into action. While on the job as a Firefighter he had encountered many miracles. In this episode, Kevin talks about a few of these mir...

In our adolescents, we believe we can do anything! Then one day someone or somebody starts telling us to "be realistic". They say we are not funny, not creative, not smart, not pretty, not likable, or not strong enough… and the list goes on and on. It grows on us and forms us into people who settle in all areas of life. We start believing the lies that we are not... And yet God has always told us...

If I had known about these certain key word changes in the beginning of my ministry, many of the conflicts I experienced would have had a much different outcome! Negotiate… seems like such a mean spirited word. Many people avoid it at any cost and for good reason. It used to mean that you could argue better than someone else or at least until you could wear them down enough to give you what you wa...

As long as I can remember there being a Mission Discovery (student missions organization), I remember Jimmy Rivera being there. He was at every missions trip I took my students on with Mission Discovery along with Mission Discovery founder, Maury Buchanan. Jimmy is the guy you traveled with if you wanted to go to Tecate, Mexico. If you wanted to go to Kenya, Africa, you went with Jimmy. Among many...

Student missions trips change students lives, their families lives, and will change your life forever! They give students a broader and better world view very quickly. They see the person of Jesus Christ's teachings in action! It becomes real to them while building shelter for the poor, feeding them, clothing them, praying with them, and sharing the Love of God with them.   Student Missions can se...

Justin Cox is a brilliant musician, songwriter, and former youth student of mine. The band he is in, Fireflight, performed for student ministries in our area churches and later would become a worldwide name in the music industry.   He volunteered in our student ministry program, went on mission trips, and many of our other student retreats. All of this after he graduated from college. His story ke...

Warning: This episode contains movie spoilers. You might need to know this. If you do, it most probably will take you by surprise. When a student dies it's unnatural… It's unexpected… It's unsettling… It shakes a community. It will shake you up as well, but you are who many will look to for comfort, answers, and strength. What do you say? What's right to say? More importantly what are the wrong th...

Not what I expected! We should never be surprised at how God shows up and shows off but I still get surprised. Margot looked like any churched student and she hung out with those who were. But at one breakfast meeting I got more than I expected. God doesn't wait for us to be ready. He inserts Himself and His miracles at the right time and at the best we should expect a Holy Surprise at any moment...

Billy and Ashley are a boy and a girl that do not know each other. They are more than a decade apart in age, lived in 2 different cities, and from 2 separate ministries I was in charge of. They both had encounters with God in different ways, but the results were similar. The way they came to know Christ was more of an encounter with Jesus Christ and less about a conventional church experience. Jes...

Chad stands 6 foot 3 inches and is built like a pro wrestler. When he walks in a room you know it! He is no nonsense and unconventional for a student ministry volunteer. He didn't usually smile or just say hi to new students. He stood tall looked down at them and asked, "What's your name?"… still no smile. The middle school boys would try to take him down every week without success. He was their d...

To our listeners, you are the reason this podcast exists. We appreciate each person who listens and shares these episodes with others who need to know what they can do to love, coach, teach, disciple, encourage, lead, and volunteer to help teenagers grow in spirit and truth through Jesus Christ. Thank you for never giving up and always showing up when those in need of guidance are present. We hope...

Top Pilot, "Vader One" Captain Chuck Mingonet considers himself a small town Florida boy, but if you know this Florida boy he is all Man. He entered into pilot training in 1984 with the United States Navy and was the distinguished graduate for his class. He received his Navy wings in 1985 and began a 25-year career with the navy, which included Commander of a combat carrier squadron 2004-2005, Ele...

Ryan is my first born of 3 children, married to his wife Brittney of 10 years, and lives in Charlotte, North Carolina. He is a singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, music producer specializing in the TV/Film industry, multi-business owner, and avid adventurer. His entire life from birth through his high school years were lived within the environment of a youth pastor's home. Our family was bas...

"Love makes the World go round!" is a saying I heard growing up. At least in Lisa and Chase's case it does make their world go round  along with their now teenage girl. God's Love for us created a world and a Universe whether it, "technically", made the world go round or not, Love has certainly been a main theme through out the Bible. Love was why God sent His only Son to earth to live a humble bu...

This Part 2 of my interview with Jim and Pat is very short and to the point. If you want to be in the right place, make God decisions and stay where God puts you then 1. Pray 2. Pray 3. Pray. If you need to change that habit that has followed you all of your life, then get a personal coach or trainer. the most successful people in the world use personal coaches to navigate what they cannot see. Th...

Jim and Pat met in South Florida. She was a cheerleader, he was a football player. Sounds like an all American love story and it was. But there were a lot of twists and turns through out the years. They would later be some of my wife's volunteer youth workers all before I met her in Lake County Florida, the back door to Disney World. Their 2 children Matt and Kim would be a part of our student min...

Jim and Pat met in South Florida. She was a cheerleader, he was a football player. Sounds like an all American love story and it was. But there were a lot of twists and turns through out the years. They would later be some of my wife's volunteer youth workers all before I met her in Lake County Florida, the back door to Disney World. Their 2 children Matt and Kim would be a part of our student min...

This Part 2 about Chase McAllister Retired United States Air Force but NOW working full time as a Campus Life Director from the same military base he spent his last years at as a soldier. This is a closer look at how he followed God's calling on him to ministry. How can his story help you? How can Youth Worker On Fire help you? Included are several ways you can get in touch with Chase in Honolulu,...

This Part 2 about Chase McAllister RetiredUnited States Air Force but now working full time as a Campus Life Director from the same military base he spent his last years as a soldier. This is a closer look at how he followed God's calling on him to ministry. How can his story help you? How can Youth Worker On Fire help you? Included are several ways you can get in touch with Chase in Honolulu, Haw...

Chase is 20 years retired military with the US Air Force. 2 years of his military career he was working with Campus Life on base. Now he is a full time Campus Life Director for the Military Base ministry. @chazzymacirl on Instagram and @yfcclmilitaryhi will lead you to YFC Campus Life-Military Hawaii on Facebook. You can communicate with Chase and support his ministry that reaches countless teenag...

Hurricanes, murder, betrayal, and acceptance. It's all in this interview! Pepe's story will inspire you to keep moving forward even in the worst of moments. Pepe Mesa was born in Cuba then family left and moved to Miami. He became a Campus Life Director in Miami Youth For Christ under great leadership Jim Green and later Andy McDaniel. Pepe was my room mate in intern School at Wheaton College in I...

B.U.R.N. UP! BELIEVE UNDERSTAND RECONCILE NURTURE! When others burn out and quit, you can keep running. That's what my book is about. How to never give up until you have finished running, walking or climbing... maybe even crawling the race that God has designed for You and Only You to do according to Ephesians 2:10. Order this book on Amazon or Kindle today if you are working with teenagers or hav...