Before You Hire A Youth Pastor: A Step-By-Step Guide to Finding The Right Fit

by Mark DeVries, Jeff Dunn-Rankin

Don't gamble on finding the right youth pastor for your church. Invest the time and energy in a deliberate, intentional plan for conducting the best search possible!

Finding the right youth pastor for your congregation can be a daunting task. Where do you find the best applicants? How should you structure the search process? Which people from your church should interview the candidates?

You'll find answers to those questions in Before You Hire a Youth Pastor, along with insights and strategies from Mark DeVries and Jeff Dunn-Rankin. These veteran youth workers and consultants know that the healthiest congregations take responsibility for their student ministries and hire youth pastors who can steward those ministries effectively.

Avoid a "normal" search that produces predictable, normal results-a youth worker who isn't aligned to the church's vision, a youth pastor who doesn't stay around long, or any number of other outcomes that limit the vitality of your youth ministry. Instead, use this book as a guide for conducting an "abnormal" search that leads you to the right person for your congregation.

This book is the ideal resource for senior pastors and church leaders responsible for hiring a new youth pastor. Before You Hire a Youth Pastor delivers advice and strategies on such topics as:

Preparing for an exceptional search Building and structuring your search team Screening and researching candidates Conducting effective interviews Communicating proactively Setting up your new youth pastor to succeed


Before You Hire a Youth Pastor offers a field-tested, step-by-step alternative to rolling the dice. You don't have to settle.

142 pages, Paperback

First published March 14, 2011

About the author

Mark DeVries (MDiv, Princeton Theological Seminary) is the founder of Ministry Architects, a consulting team that helps churches and ministry organizations build sustainable ministries for children, youth, young adults, and entire congregations. He served for twenty-eight years as associate pastor for youth and their families at First Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee. He has trained youth workers on five continents and has taught courses or been a guest lecturer at a number of colleges and seminaries. DeVries is the author of Sustainable Youth Ministry and Family-Based Youth Ministry, coauthor of The Most Important Year in a Woman's Life/The Most Important Year in a Man's Life, and he has been a contributing writer for Josh McDowell's Youth Ministry Handbook, Starting Right, and Reaching a Generation for Christ. In addition, his articles and reviews have been published in a variety of journals and magazines. He and his wife, Susan, have four grown children.

Reviews

[Janine Mccormick · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has been incredibly helpful to our Church Search Team as we endeavor to hire a new youth pastor. If you are beginning - or even in the midst of - a youth pastor search, I highly recommend this book and it's resource pack. The process is laid out in well-explained steps, communicating not only what to do, but also why to do it. I'm not sure we would have even known where to start without this resource.

[C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Practical! Fresh. Great ideas