Student ministry is about a lot more than preaching sermons and planning events. Student Ministry: What They Don’t Teach You is a practical and honest conversation about the side of ministry you usually have to learn the hard way. From parents and volunteers to budgets, broken church vans, tough conversations, and everything in between, we’re talking about the real-life lessons that help you survive, grow, and lead well in student ministry.

]]>https://riverside.comRiverside.fm (https://riverside.com)Thu, 22 Oct 2026 08:28:06 GMTMon, 21 Sep 2026 14:17:05 GMT60Blake Lewis & Brandon Allen<p>Student ministry is about a lot more than preaching sermons and planning events. Student Ministry: What They Don’t Teach You is a practical and honest conversation about the side of ministry you usually have to learn the hard way. From parents and volunteers to budgets, broken church vans, tough conversations, and everything in between, we’re talking about the real-life lessons that help you survive, grow, and lead well in student ministry.</p>episodicBlake Lewis & Brandon Allenblake@fbchaughton.orgnoIn Episode 6, Brandon and Blake tackle one of the hardest lessons in student ministry: you can't do everything well.They discuss the challenge of balancing ministry responsibilities, learning when to say no, and figuring out what actually deserves your time and attention. From managing expectations to setting priorities, this episode is an honest conversation about making tough decisions, avoiding burnout, and focusing on what matters most in student ministry.

]]>73a011a9-1405-4916-b2cf-f775d0ac7e12Wed, 21 Oct 2026 19:25:58 GMT<p>In Episode 6, Brandon and Blake tackle one of the hardest lessons in student ministry: <b><strong>you can't do everything well.</strong></b>They discuss the challenge of balancing ministry responsibilities, learning when to say no, and figuring out what actually deserves your time and attention. From managing expectations to setting priorities, this episode is an honest conversation about making tough decisions, avoiding burnout, and focusing on what matters most in student ministry.</p>no00:17:14Episode #6 - You Can’t Do Everything WellfullIn Episode 5, Brandon and Blake talk about what counts as a win in student ministry. They share what they’ve learned about looking beyond attendance, recognizing spiritual growth, and keeping discipleship at the center of what they do. Whether your Wednesday nights are packed or you’re wondering if anything is making a difference, this episode is an honest conversation about measuring what matters and helping students follow Jesus beyond the youth room.

]]>01b0f981-aee3-4ad8-a068-15959dac6513Sat, 17 Oct 2026 21:45:24 GMT<p>In Episode 5, Brandon and Blake talk about what counts as a win in student ministry. They share what they’ve learned about looking beyond attendance, recognizing spiritual growth, and keeping discipleship at the center of what they do. Whether your Wednesday nights are packed or you’re wondering if anything is making a difference, this episode is an honest conversation about measuring what matters and helping students follow Jesus beyond the youth room.</p>no00:17:1615Episode #5 - Wednesday Night Isn’t the WinfullIn Episode4, Brandon and Blake talk about turning parents into partners in student ministry. It’s easy to get frustrated when you and a parent don’t see things the same way, but how can you build a relationship that helps you work together? Whether you’re struggling to connect with parents or want to strengthen those relationships, this episode will help you think about how you can support the families you serve.

]]>b35f5454-00f5-4872-9e3d-9aa79c54c9b9Tue, 13 Oct 2026 20:18:00 GMT<p>In Episode4, Brandon and Blake talk about turning parents into partners in student ministry. It’s easy to get frustrated when you and a parent don’t see things the same way, but how can you build a relationship that helps you work together? Whether you’re struggling to connect with parents or want to strengthen those relationships, this episode will help you think about how you can support the families you serve.</p>no00:15:2114Episode #4 - Parents Aren’t the Problem fullIn Episode 3, Brandon and Blake talk about one of the never-ending challenges of student ministry: recruiting volunteers. They share what they’ve learned about finding the right people, making the ask, and helping people see that serving with students is worth their time. Whether you’re trying to build a volunteer team from scratch or just need a few more adults to jump in, this episode is full of practical lessons learned from years of recruiting leaders.

]]>cdb38844-1b89-4aad-99c5-c2924e9460f6Fri, 02 Oct 2026 02:35:52 GMT<p>In Episode 3, Brandon and Blake talk about one of the never-ending challenges of student ministry: recruiting volunteers. They share what they’ve learned about finding the right people, making the ask, and helping people see that serving with students is worth their time. Whether you’re trying to build a volunteer team from scratch or just need a few more adults to jump in, this episode is full of practical lessons learned from years of recruiting leaders.</p>no00:15:0913Episode #3 - Volunteers ARE Your MinistryfullIn Episode 2, Brandon and Blake talk about one of the biggest lessons you learn in student ministry: you can’t do it alone. They discuss why building a strong team of adult leaders matters, the mistake of trying to carry the ministry yourself, and what they’ve learned about recruiting, trusting, and empowering volunteers. From giving leaders real ownership to allowing them to lead in their own way, this episode is an honest conversation about building a ministry that’s bigger than one person.

]]>026526cc-f1f2-47d0-89b8-a2f0508efcc5Fri, 25 Sep 2026 20:53:59 GMT<p>In Episode 2, Brandon and Blake talk about one of the biggest lessons you learn in student ministry: <b><strong>you can’t do it alone.</strong></b> They discuss why building a strong team of adult leaders matters, the mistake of trying to carry the ministry yourself, and what they’ve learned about recruiting, trusting, and empowering volunteers. From giving leaders real ownership to allowing them to lead in their own way, this episode is an honest conversation about building a ministry that’s bigger than one person.</p>no00:17:5812Episode #2 - Your Ministry Will Eventually Outgrow You fullIn the first episode, Brandon and Blake introduce the heart behind Student Ministry: The Things They Don’t Teach You and begin pulling back the curtain on the realities of ministry. They share lessons learned through years of experience, discuss the challenges no classroom can fully prepare you for, and explain why honest conversations about the practical side of student ministry matter.

]]>c53f8d0f-f15a-40b3-b5cf-a1ce705c2279Mon, 21 Sep 2026 14:35:28 GMT<p>In the first episode, Brandon and Blake introduce the heart behind Student Ministry: The Things They Don’t Teach You and begin pulling back the curtain on the realities of ministry. They share lessons learned through years of experience, discuss the challenges no classroom can fully prepare you for, and explain why honest conversations about the practical side of student ministry matter.</p>no00:18:1211Episode #1 - Expectations vs Realityfull