Helping Hurting Kids

Cyberbulling threatens anyone using technology, but especially young people. This Conversation Guide helps adult leaders to think through how to have a helpful, faithful talk with youth about preventing and minimizing the impact of cyberbullying.

Our doctrine of Original Sin might be something difficult or hard to explain. But understanding our broken human nature can help us understand the brokenness in this world. This article can help both all kinds of youth leaders better understand and explain it to youth.

It can be difficult when youth express how questions and struggles with belief or with the church. It is worth the time and energy to walk alongside these youth as they ask questions. This article talks about how we can be those people in times when you are struggling with faith and the church.

LCMS Youth Ministry’s Youth Poll showed that 33% of youth reported having struggled with mental health issues in the last year. Forty-nine percent of youth reported having a close friend or family member struggle with mental health in the last year. With statistics like these, it is essential that we equip students with the tools and guidance necessary to aid them in supporting loved ones in the grip of mental illness. This article helps us in encouraging youth and adults to support those around them struggling with mental health.

Chances are, if you’ve been working with you for any length of time, one of your youth has come to you asking to talk. As teens encounter struggles and crisis, as a youth leader, you may be someone they can trust in a difficult time. What a blessing and responsibility it is to walk alongside these teens as they navigate through life’s challenges! This article walks through some key things you need to keep in mind as teens come to you in their difficult moments.

We need to talk more openly and honestly about mental health, especially in the Church. Supportive adults can pause and educate ourselves and others about how to care for young people’s mental health in a Christ-centered way. Here are some practical ways to navigate & educate on mental health in your youth ministry.

Coronavirus has fundamentally changed nearly aspect of our daily lives. It’s worth exploring how this is affecting our children and youth, how we can attempt to reach them in the midst of this crisis, and how we can take care of ourselves right now as we attempt to serve others.

Mental health concerns are a prominent part of the conversation in the lives of many people, so as youth workers, it’s important for us to understand the big picture and how it affects us both personally and professionally in our own ministry areas.