Today I trekked up the mountain again to Katoomba for another big afternoon of youth ministry training at KYLC.

As has been the pattern of my Januaries since 2001, I took the 200 plus first-time delegates through a 90 minute summary of my ‘Dual Action’ material, under the headings of Foundations, Fun, Focus and Fishing. And as always, I found it difficult to squeeze it down to 90 mins…but I came close!

It is exciting to know that the content of my material is now starting to stabilise. Although there have been a few tweaks, the heart of the training is very similar to that of last year, and to a large extent, the year before. Hopefully this means I should be able to finally start writing that book on youth ministry in 2007.

More training will happen next week with a repeat performance at KYLC, and then down to LiT the next day for more workshops on Youth Ministry.

As always, January and February are the biggest months for youth ministry training. Since the start of the year I have delivered training from Katoomba to Nowra, and everywhere in between!

The year began with two big Mondays at KYLC (Katoomba Youth Leadership Conference) where I trained all of the first year delegates on the Essentials of Youth Ministry. http://www.kylc.kcc.org.au This was followed by training at the Youthworks LiT (Leaders in Training) Conference in Nowra. http://www.lit.youthworks.net

As always, I have also spent two big weeks teaching the Australian College of Theology (A.C.T.) Diploma of Theology Course in youth ministry–Youth in the Churches (DM211) at Youthworks College. 30 hours of youth ministry for youth ministers. Details at http://www.college.youthworks.net

In addition, I have spoken at the Youthworks Scripture in Schools Conference at Dapto, plus delivered training in at the annual Salvation Army youth and children’s ministry training conference.

Thanks to God for the opportunity to train around 800 people throughout Sydney!

Kyckstart 2005 has raised the standard in evangelical youth conferences. With a combined attendance of over 4000 teenagers, the two weekends provided youth of NSW and the ACT with a great weekend of Bible teaching, music, and fellowship in the gospel of Christ.

The theme ‘The Christ Factor’ expressed the main thrust of Philippians, the focus of the six talks.

My role over the two weekends was to coordinate the sessions, especially the two evening events. I also MC’d the Saturday night session.

For more details visit http://kyck.kcc.org.au

Over two weeks in January I again had the privilege of training around 500 people in the foundations of youth ministry. This training took place during two fine conferences, KYLC (Katoomba Youth Leadership Conference) and LIT (Leaders in Training).

At KYLC I delivered two training sessions to the Strand One delegates, on the topic “Essentials of Evangelical Youth Ministry”, which covered the basics of ministry, and a presentation of my ‘Dual Action’ youth ministry strategy.

At LIT I delivered similar material in two different sessions, the first at the first timers, and a longer two-hour session for those coming for the second year.

I can think of no better way to train up your future and current church leaders than these two great conferences. LIT is aimed especially at upper-high school aged students (years 10 to 12), and KYLC is aimed more at students who have completed their years at school.

Further details of these great conferences can be found at http://kylc.kcc.org.au and http://www.conferences.youthworks.net

The last two weekends of April were a great highlight. I was privileged to be a part of the committee that put together Kyckstart, the annual Katoomba Christian Convention event, attended by nearly 4000 youth.

It was a special joy to lead the Saturday night ‘Kycking to the Core’ event. This two-hour event showcased what God has been doing in the lives of many of the youth groups and young people from throughout Sydney and beyond.

Some of the stories brought us joy. Others brought us sadness. But in all cases we were able to rejoice that through our sufferings God is producing perseverance, character and hope… which does not disappoint us (Romans 5:3-5).

Over the past two weeks I have had the opportunity to train over 500 people in youth ministry. This occurred at KYLC (The Katoomba Youth Leadership Convention) and LIT (The Leaders in Training Camp).

The main training happened for the first-time KYLC delegates, who attended ‘Essentials of Youth Ministry’. This three-hour session was held over two afternoons, and provided both a theoretical foundation and practical steps in youth ministry.

In addition, I also taught the third-year KYLC delegates in the workshop ‘Dealing with Trouble’, as well as conducting a seminar for the main KYLC leaders.

At LIT I ran a one-hour session on youth ministry essentials for the high-school aged campers, as well as providing feedback on youth activities.

Over the past week I’ve spent five days at the Katoomba Youth Leadership Conference (KYLC). This event provides excellent training for people in ministry and Bible teaching.

Mandy and I led a strand group, which consists of around ten students who receive personal training in how to prepare a Bible study. Ours was for third-time delegates, and covered Systematic Theology.

In addition, I ran four afternoon workshops, each of an hour and half’s duration. On Monday and Tuesday I took the 200 Stand One students through a 3 hour introduction to youth ministry. On Wednesday I conducted a session for strand leaders explaining the course changes. Finally on Thursday I took some of the Strand Three students through the topic ‘dealing with trouble’.

Next week I will be repeating the four afternoon sessions for the second week group.

If you want to find out more about this great conference visit www.kcc.org.au/kylc.