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The Simply Youth Ministry Conference: Why I Love This Conference!

October 28, 2011 in Conferences with 3 Comments

Oct 31st is Halloween, but it’s also the early bird deadline for the Simply Youth Ministry Conference. Here’s some information and reasons I love this community of youth workers who come together yearly to do more than get training. It’s a family!

*Early Bird Deadline expires 10.31.2011 (A $40 SAVINGS!)

When: March 2-5, 2011

Where: Louisville, KY

Here’s Where to Register: http://conference.youthministry.com/

Here’s What Phil Bell Loves About SYMC:

They have deeper learning tracks that help you dig deeper into certain ministry areas. You can spend 4-8 hours focused on one area of ministry and come away with a wealth of knowledge as well as highly practical steps and ideas.
The community there is incredible. Everything they do is geared to helping youth workers connect with each other and build lasting relationships. I have been to SYMC for 4 years now, and I have some incredible friendships with people I call and Skype regularly. I know I am not alone in ministry…
The Speakers are accessible and easy to talk to. It does not matter who you are, every speaker is available to talk to. There is no “them and us” at this conference.
It’s Super fun! It’s a great place to let your hair down and be yourself. It’s a great place to laugh and forget about ministry struggles.
They care about your soul at SYMC: The Simply Youth Ministry Soul Care Team are always available to talk, pray, and encourage us for the whole conference. This year the theme for the conference is “Breathe”.

Full Disclosure: I am a member of the SYMC IT3 team and help brainstorm this conference. But, I became a part of this team because I believe in this conference and all that it stands for. When they say, “It’s a conference for youth workers by youth workers”, they really mean it. I am one of 100 people who were part of the brainstorming the state of youth ministry and brainstorming how to help the conference reflect real needs for real youth workers like me and you…

Don’t just take my word for it. Take Kami’s word for it! Kami Gilmour is the director of SYMC and recently did an interview with Tim Schmoyer from Life in Student Ministry.

Winner of FREE SYMC Registration Announced!

October 20, 2011 in Conferences with 1 Comment

Congratulations to Greg Simmons of First Baptist of Greenville, MS. Greg wins a registration to The Simply Youth Ministry Conference in Louisville KY, in March 2012. Greg got to enter twice since he commented and tweeted! His tweet won him the deal though! Well done Greg! We’ll see you in Kentucky!

If you are interested in going to SYMC 2012 you can get in on the early bird registration before Oct 31st. Go to the conference site for details at: http://conference.youthministry.com/

Balancing Family & Ministry Part 1: SYMC Giveaway

October 4, 2011 in Balance, Conferences, Family, healthy ministry, Marriage with 32 Comments

Today I begin a series focused on balancing family and ministry. In addition, if you comment on this post AND tweet this out, you could win a FREE registration to The Simply Youth Ministry Conference in Louisville, KY next March. (See details at the bottom of this post on how you could win).

The team at Simply Youth Ministry have created a conference that does so much more than equip youth workers with the tools to do ministry effectively. Right from the beginning, their vision has been to invest in the whole person of the youth worker. SYMC 2012 is a place for youth workers to not only gain incredible skills for ministry, but also discover a place of authenticity where they can refuel and breathe. With this in mind, today I want to encourage you take time to breathe and refuel as you consider how you balance family and ministry…

David’s Story:

David took his first ministry position straight from college. He got married the following year, changed churches a year after, and had twins with his wife Kim the year after that. David would agree it’s been a busy and sometimes frustrating time as he has tried to deal with the constant changes that family and ministry brings. His job is mostly stressful and a growing church has often become a burden instead of a blessing it once was… If you were to take time to speak to his wife Kim, the exhaustion is evident on her face. The last two years have been sometimes miserable as Kim has watched David get pulled in many directions in a ministry that looks great from the outside…

On the inside of David’s family however, Kim is feeling over burdened with greater responsibility at home and is often feeling alone as David works an unhealthy hours. David too, is at breaking point… He is running on empty and it is only a matter of time before he falls apart… The cracks are starting to appear… These days he feels like he barely has time to breathe…

Does this story sound familiar? Are there cracks appearing for you? If someone could peek on the inside and could look at your alone time with God, your family time, your days off, and the authenticity of your friendships, what would they see? If you are like me, there are some areas that I need to work on…

Help David! Comment, Tweet, and YOU could WIN!

Tomorrow I will post some things I have been doing to balance family and ministry. But for now, I would love to hear from you! Here’s what you can do to help David, and possibly win a registration to SYMC 2012!

1) Comment and Help David: What advice would you give David? What can he do to make the neccesary changes? What needs to happen in his family and ministry?

2) Comment and Share Your Story: In what ways do you relate to David’s story? What have you done to make the changes? What changes could you make personally?

3) Tweet To Win! Tweet the following text and your name can be entered a SECOND time to win!

I just entered to win a FREE conference registration for SYMC 2012 from @PhilBell http://wp.me/ppcai-xn #stumin

For more information on the Simply Youth Ministry Conference go to: http://conference.youthministry.com/ or call Matty McCage at 615-349-7111 to register.

WINNER ANNOUNCED Oct 20th!

Simple But Effective Training for Volunteers – Part 1: Time

March 21, 2011 in Conferences, healthy ministry, Leadership, Relational Youth Ministry, Review what we do, Training, Volunteers with 5 Comments

I love my volunteer youth leaders! They give up their evening and weekends for some of the most craziest stuff in youth ministry. Recently, I was able to spend a weekend at The Simply Youth Ministry Conference with some of them. The conference was a great opportunity to get feedback and evaluate how they were growing. Ultimately, it was a wonderful opportunity for me to consider how I was helping them to grow into their leadership and effectiveness as youth leaders.

The big takeaway for me was this: Effective training is better when it is simple, memorable, and practical. Volunteers are busy and have many to plates to spin. It’s better to give them small steps or give them small bites to chew on. Over time, I am finding the small steps add up to significant impact!

As we consider the simple, memorable and practical principle, here are some training I will be giving my volunteers about how best to use their time to impact students lives. (This is something a learned a while back from one of Doug Fields books): Continue Reading…

Great Conference! Looking forward to 2012

March 7, 2011 in Conferences with 0 Comments

SYMC (The Simply Youth Ministry Conference), was brilliant for all the reasons mentioned in my previous post. I took a team of adult volunteers who had an incredible time and grew in some great ways!

I am excited for next year! Here is a quick video promo for the conference for next year. Check it out:

SYMC Louisville Promo from Matthew Wheatley on Vimeo.

5 Reason I am Excited for SYMC 2011

March 2, 2011 in Conferences with 2 Comments

On Friday I head to The Simply Youth Ministry Conference with a group of my friends, (and some of the most incredible volunteer youth workers I could ask for). I am super excited for this conference and it has come at a crucial time for me. Recently I took an emergency trip back to the U.K to support my family there. I returned tired, drained, and emotionally spent. This conference could not come at a more valuable time.

Here are 5 good reasons I am excited for this conference:

1) SYMC is AUTHENTIC: I have been to this conference over the last few years and I always find the people, atmosphere, and speakers to be so real and authentic. At some conferences you can get the idea that certain people have “arrived” as youth ministry “rock stars”. At this conference, the speakers actually sign an agreement that requires them to be “on the floor” with everyone. No green room, no hiding, no “them and us”. It’s about speakers meeting with “in the trenches” youth workers like you and me…

2) SYMC is JESUS CENTERED: You would hope that would be the case (and it is)! For me, what makes the difference for this conference are the worship times. Rick Lawrence and his team do an incredible job of helping create some wonderful times to reflect, refuel, and focus on Jesus.

3) SYMC is IN DEPTH: SYMC has been intentional about creating environments where youth workers can have greater discussion, greater access to the speakers, and greater focus on specific areas of ministry. This is perhaps best displayed in the tracks and half-tracks they offer. The tracks are two day / 8 hour workshops focused on one area of ministry. While that might seem too much for some people, I prefer this over a smorgasbord of workshops that give me a great deal of information and ideas, yet leave me walking away with very little concrete application… With that said, they also many great stand alone workshops to choose from that have a discussional atmosphere and invite questions that truly apply to our contexts. It’s more of a conversation than a presentation… This, I believe, creates greater depth…

4) SYMC is ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS: From the hundreds of sack chairs all over the place to the seminars being set up with tables for discussion, the whole conference points towards connection and relationships. Again, the speakers are available to talk to and every youth worker can be a part of a “connect group” that focuses in on their stage of ministry, or a particular area they wish to work through. From the previous few years at this conference, I have many good friends in ministry who know me well and connect with me continuously throughout the year. It’s about ongoing relationships…

5) SYMC is INNOVATIVE: The people behind this conference are not content to continue with the norm of what has gone before. The conference in many ways stands for the shift that we are all seeing in youth ministry. As SYMC has developed over the years it has led the shifts and patterns of youth ministry and has led the way in tackling the newest and best ways to reach the next generation of students…

Finally, the conference is sold-out… Enough said!

Phil <><

Why I am Going to SYMC!

January 19, 2010 in Conferences, Video Blog with 0 Comments

At the end of February I am headed to the Simply Youth Ministry Conference in Chicago. As someone who is in full-time student ministry I believe in the importance of not only incredible training, but also the opportunity to grow individually. This conference allows me to get both. At SYMC I am able to gain some great skills as well as build community with all kinds of youth workers in an authentic and intentionally conversation way. Check it out for yourself and watch the video from Doug Fields to capture the heart of SYMC…

Below is a video that captures the heart and message of SYMC 2010.

Loving Your Wife throughout Ministry…

March 18, 2009 in Balance, Conferences, Marriage, Video Blog with 0 Comments

A few weeks ago my wife and I were at the National Youth Ministry Conference in Columbus Ohio. While I was there, I got the opportunity to ‘hijack’ Tim Schmoyer’s Life In Student Ministry camera… Me and my new buddy ‘Julio’ decided to talk about how we love our wives well in Ministry. Check it out and watch for the out takes at the end… funny stuff.

Tim Schmoyer hosts a GREAT blog! He has great insights and has lots of resources, tips, video blogs, and hosts a weekly Youth Ministry phone in… check it out!

CLICK HERE FOR THE VIDEO BLOG

Hilarious Video from NYMC 2009

March 3, 2009 in Conferences, Just for Laughs with 0 Comments

Check out this video that Josh Griffin just posted over morethandodgeball.com - It is hilarious and captures what youth ministry is often about!!! I will post another one tomorrow… Stay tuned! Thanks to the guys over at Group and Simply youth ministry we had an incredibly deep and amazingly fun time. This conference keeps me going strong in ministry. Check it out for yourself next year: The Simply Youth Ministry CONFERENCE 2010

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Conversation from MY Couch – NYMC 2009

March 1, 2009 in Conferences with 1 Comment

This blog is titled “Conversation from MY Couch” for two reasons: First, one of the taglines I have heard for NYMC is “Conversations from the Couch”, with the idea being that the conference is conversational and connectional. Second, I had to call it “Convesration from MY Couch” since I am now home from the conference. (Myself and Lisa came back early to pick up the little one from Lisa’s parents – I was bummed to leave, but excited to see our little girl).

Here’s why I loved the conference:

Authentic and Connectional: Thanks to all the guys and gals at Group/Simplyyouthministry.com I had an awesome conference. I have to say, it was my most impactful conference yet! The atomasphere there is personal and connectional and it feels like you are there to hang out and grow with friends. There is no ‘them and us’ with the speakers, and for the most part you get a chance to interact with them and ask lots questions. Other conferences seem a little impersonal these days… Simple ideas like the ‘sack chairs’ all over the place for people to hang out and talk and take time to dig deeper. The affinity groups are not just a good idea, but I saw guys and gals talking and discovering answers together in real authentic community. The final thing that made this conference very connectional and conversational was the way in which they did the ‘brown bag’ workshops. Many of these happened during the lunch time and were set up in relaxed discussion format with lots of interaction from everyone.

Deep: I spent 8 hours (in two days) in a deep learning track with Dan Webster from Authentic Leadership Inc. The track was called: ‘The Path to Long-Term Youth Ministry’. The content was not only insightful, it was transformational. Sometimes, us youthworkers spend a lot of time working on our skills and tools of youth ministry yet fail to realize that our heart and soul are so inextricably linked to our success as youthworkers. This track helped individuals to see how our effectiveness and longevity requires us to understand the patterns of leadership, (and what to expect), while also being able to take an honest and introspective assessment of who we are and what makes us tick. If we are honest with ourselves and God, so much of what we do can come from negative influences ‘below the surface’ of our lives. Whether it is past hurts, insecurity, a moral struggle, or a dry walk with God, it is these things that will often alter the direction of our ministry effectiveness. Dan Webster took us on an effective journey of personal introspection, but also a journey of hope, healing, and excitement for future. Awesome stuff.

Fun: As I would have hoped, there were a lot of elements of fun to be able to relax and forget about ministry too. From the hilarious ‘music videos’ to the crazy and funny ‘video announcements’, they really captured the wacky minds of youthworkers. Take a look below to see a copy of examples…

All in all, a great conference. It gets an ‘A’ from me and I plan on attending next year. Thanks Group and SYM!

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