Mark Oestreicher

In My Changes, you’ll discover the reasons behind a lot of your changes, and get tips on how to survive all of them. You’ll find valuable insights on changes happening in your body, your brain and thoughts, your identity, your emotions, your gender, and more. After reading the books in the Middle School Survival Series, you’ll be ready to take on the rest of middle school with the confidence and knowledge you need to survive (and thrive) as a young teen.

Over the past several decades there have been three significant shifts in youth culture; each new shift brought with it different values and priorities in the lives of teens. Youth ministries adapted and responded to the first two shifts, but we're missing the boat on the third. The result? Youth ministry isn't addressing the realities and needs of today's youth culture. After nearly three decades in youth ministry, Mark Oestreicher has lived through a lot of those shifts himself. In recent years, he's found himself wondering what needs to change, especially since so much of what we're doing in youth ministry today is not working. In Youth Ministry 3.0, youth workers will explore, along with Mark and the voices of other youth workers, why we need change in youth ministry, from a ministry moving away from a dependence on programs, to one that is focused on communion and mission. They'll get a quick history of youth ministry over the last fifty years. And they'll help dream about what changes need to take place in order to create the next phase of youth ministry--the future that needs to be created for effective ministry to students.

A lot of churches and youth ministries have given up on the idea of small groups, writing them off as too tedious, too difficult to manage, too hard to find volunteers for, too expensive to provide materials or curriculum for, or any other number of reasons. In A Volunteer Youth Worker's Guide to Leading a Small Group, Mark Oestreicher argues a different perspective. Marko insists that small groups promote safe spaces to grow, consistency in teenagers' emotionally tumultuous lives, and repetition that instills in them the importance of trust and tradition. The Guide to Leading a Small Group is perfect for anyone feeling disenchanted with the concept of small groups, and after Marko succeeds in changing your mind in the first few pages, he'll use the rest of the book to help you restructure and rethink your small-group programming so you don't get burned out again. Marko is leading the charge in reviving small groups, and you can join him today.

Every youth leader, volunteer, or pastor has failed at some point in their communication or interaction with their teenagers' parents. It's inevitable. We are human, most youth workers are still pretty young themselves, and most parents are guarded and protective of their kids. These factors combine to create a minefield, of sorts, for parents and youth workers to navigate. In fact, youth ministry mogul Mark Oestreicher starts off A Volunteer Youth Worker's Guide to Resourcing Parents by admitting some of his own failures in his interactions with students' parents. But then Marko uses the rest of the book to explore the importance and deep significance of being intentional with parent contact and interaction, and not letting family ministry slip through the cracks in favor of teenager-only ministry. If you've had some discouraging interactions with parents lately, this book might help provide a new perspective, allowing you to show some grace, both to yourself and the parents you're trying to minister to. Let Marko guide you in seeking the best balance in your ministry efforts in order to maximize and equip one of your greatest youth ministry resources

Many parents have taken a defeatist approach toward understanding their teens, and not without good reason; it does often seem hopeless, after all. But that's where you, the volunteer youth worker, come in. Mark Oestreicher shows that Understanding Today's Teenager is both possible and rewarding, if one has the right tools. Marko explores the dimensions of nature vs. nurture, brain activity, culture, biology, and emotional development, all of which lead teenagers to do the wacky things they do that adults don't understand and often can't remember having done themselves. Marko also reminds us that adolescent development doesn't end at the age of 18 just because United States law says it does. A Volunteer Youth Worker's Guide to Understanding Today's Teenager uses a combination of science, logic, and compassion to help bring us back from the cliff edge and remember why we started working with teens in the first place. Use this book as a jumping-off point to re-ignite your passion for teens.

In order to be a youth leader, you need to be a special kind of person because teenagers are a special group of people. No matter how difficult you think teenagers can be, they have the ability to have a genuine, deep understanding of spiritual things and a desire to grow. They just demonstrate this differently than adults. This book will help you understand teenagers so that you will be able to teach them using methods that apply to them.

Between the ages of 11-14, adolescents experience one of the most significant periods of change they’ll face during their lifetimes—physically, mentally, emotionally, relationally and spiritually. Mothers and fathers of young teens are presented with new challenges in understanding, communicating with and parenting their kids during this time in their lives. Understanding Your Young Teen offers insights on early adolescent development, new research and cultural changes, and practical applications for parenting and living with young teens. Mark Oestreicher has worked with young teens for nearly three decades, and is also the parent of two teenagers. Based on his research and experience, this book is presented to parents of young teens as a conversation from one parent to another. With transparency about his own experience parenting, and examples from his extensive involvement with thousands of other young teens and parents, Understanding Your Young Teen dives into the developmental realities of early adolescence. Oestreicher educates parents on the latest research and cultural shifts that affect their children, revealing opportunities for faith formation in the lives of young teens.

Don't worry, My Friends will give you all the tips and secrets you need to make the most of your friendships. In the pages of this book, you'll find helpful friendship tips like: * What you can learn about friendship from the Bible* Ways to be a good friend* How to deal with conflict and other tough stuff* How to make friends, and more. From piles of homework to understanding the variety of 'interesting' people working at your school to dealing with the new challenges of changing for gym class in front of everyone, it's normal to feel a little overwhelmed.

Many people run scared from the middle school youth room. But (thankfully!) there are people out there who are actually drawn to those young teens. Although often times they’re not equipped to deal with the unique challenges that middle school ministry presents, or they’re just not sure what to do when a room full of young teens (who are “part child, but not quite adult”) are running around the youth room. Finally, there’s a comprehensive guide to middle school ministry, from two veterans of this unchartered territory. Mark Oestreicher and Scott Rubin help youth workers understand the importance of middle school ministry, the development process for young teens and their implications for ministry, and how to best minister to these sometimes misunderstood students. They share their experiences (as middle school pastors and parents of middle schoolers), giving youth workers he encouragement, hope, and training they need to succeed in middle school ministry.

Over the past several decades there have been three significant shifts in youth culture; each new shift brought with it different values and priorities in the lives of teens. Youth ministries adapted and responded to the first two shifts, but we’re missing the boat on the third. The result? Youth ministry isn’t addressing the realities and needs of today’s youth culture. After nearly three decades in youth ministry, Mark Oestreicher has lived through a lot of those shifts himself. In recent years, he’s found himself wondering what needs to change, especially since so much of what we’re doing in youth ministry today is not working. In Youth Ministry 3.0, youth workers will explore, along with Marko and the voices of other youth workers, why we need change in youth ministry, from a ministry moving away from a dependence on programs, to one that is focused on communion and mission. They’ll get a quick history of youth ministry over the last fifty years. And they’ll help dream about what changes need to take place in order to create the next phase of youth ministry — the future that needs to be created for effective ministry to students.

Don’t worry, My Friends, from the Middle School Survival Series, will give you all the tips and secrets you need to make the most of your friendships. In the pages of this book, you’ll find helpful friendship tips like:• what you can learn about friendships from the Bible• ways to be a good friend• how to deal with conflict and other tough stuff• how to make friends, and moreFrom piles of homework to understanding the variety of “interesting” people working at your school to dealing with the new challenges of changing for gymclass in front of everyone, it’s normal to feel a little overwhelmed. That’s why in My School, from the Middle School Survival Series, we will tackle the things that weigh heavily on middle school students just like you. This book will address important middle school issues like:• Dealing with bullies, jocks, nerds, and every other category of student you encounter• Revealing the truth behind the urban legends of middle school• Pop quizzes, tardiness, and other survival tips

Middle school is like a roller coaster, filled with ups and downs, twists and turns; it’s exhilarating and scary all at the same time! From piles of homework, to understanding the variety of “interesting” people working at your school, and dealing with the new challenges of changing for gym class in front of everyone, it’s normal to feel a little overwhelmed. That’s why in My School, from the Middle School Survival Series, we will tackle the things that weigh heavily on middle school students just like you. This book will address important middle school issues like: dealing with bullies, jocks, nerds, and every other category of student you encounter revealing the truth behind the urban legends of middle school pop quizzes, tardiness, and other survival tips This book is filled with short and easy-to-read tips, along with funny stories from the authors (who, believe it or not, used to be middle school morons!), and quotes and questions from students just like you. After reading My School, you’ll be able to walk the halls like the confident student you want to be.

Deciding what you believe can be hard, especially when you’re not entirely sure what your faith is even all about. My Faith works as a reference guide to break down who God is, what the Bible says and why we believe it, how to handle doubts and questions, and what it actually means to be a Christian. With over seventy short chapters that cover twelve major topics, you’ll find honesty, understanding, advice, and wisdom to help you navigate your questions and make a decision on your own. Middle school comes with a lot of challenges, and one of the biggest can be figuring out what you believe—and why. After all, being a Christian is hard sometimes, and it’s even harder when you suddenly have questions and doubts you never had before. Thankfully, this book has answers on things like why God wants a relationship with us, what the Bible actually tells us (and exactly why people believe what it says), what to do when you have those doubts or make a “mistake,” and what exactly being a Christian means for your life. There are also some tips and ideas on finding your own connection with God and applying what you personally believe to your life—helping you navigate middle school more confidently. My Faith:is written by two youth specialists with over forty combined years of experience dealing with the issues today’s preteens and young adults face every daycontains stories from the authors that add honesty—and where appropriate, humor—to the topics being discussedcan be used as a reference guide on specific topics or read straight through for a wider experienceprovides a biblical yet candid approachis also ideal for anyone dealing with teenagers in a mentoring, teaching, or leadership environment

Families can be complicated, and this reference guide is here to help you get through whatever issue you might face—from frustrations with your parents to what to do if your family is breaking apart from divorce, or even if there’s been abuse in your home. With seventy-five short chapters that cover almost twenty major topics, there’s plenty of understanding, advice, and wisdom to help you navigate issues with your family AND strengthen the bonds that matter most. Middle school is tough, and figuring out who you are during this time can sometimes mean more issues with your family members—from not feeling understood to wondering why you can’t have a little more freedom and trust now that you’re not a little kid anymore. And maybe your family itself is changing in ways you never thought could happen. In this book, everything from dealing with small frustrations to dating, getting more privacy, handling issues with siblings, and what to do when a parent lets you down or even hurts you physically is discussed and explored, giving you advice and ideas on how to navigate the issues in your family today. My Family: is written by two youth specialists with over forty combined years of experience dealing with the issues today’s preteens and young adults face every daycontains stories from the authors that add honesty—and where appropriate, humor—to the topics being discussedcan be used as a reference guide on specific topics or read straight through for a wider experienceprovides a biblical yet candid approachis also ideal for anyone dealing with teenagers in a mentoring, teaching, or leadership environment

Ever Play “Truth and Dare”? The rules have changed! “You can’t handle the truth!!!” —Col. Jessup in the movie A Few Good Men “The Truth shall set you free…and I dare you to live it!” —Jesus Christ in the Bible (paraphrased) Inside this little book is some of the most radical, challenging, hilarious, serious, truthful, daring stuff you’ll meet in your entire life! After getting into Wild Truth Journal—Dares from Jesus, you will never read the worlds of Jesus the same again. “Nice story, “good examples,” and “great teaching” will leave your vocabulary. Jesus was not about begging or arguing or persuading: He spoke the Truth—and dares us, even today—to LIVE it! Scary? NO! Exciting!!! Wild Truth Journal—Dares from Jesus shows you, 50 times over, ways to let the beautiful, blazing light of Jesus’ words into your soul…and in each case a variety of ways to act on them, to exercise them, to profit from them, to bless by them…to change your life through them! Every encouraging devotion is like a silver platter, serving up the words of Jesus, and then breaking down Truth into “What Jesus Said” and “What Jesus Meant” sections; and presenting the challenging Dares into “He Was Talking to Me!” and “Take the Dare!” exercises. After Wild Truth Journal—Dares from Jesus, you’ll never see Jesus’ words the same again. You’ll never see yourself the same way again.

The Bible is a photo album, brimming with self-portraits of a God who wants to be known. God has put these pictures in the Bible to reveal his character. By examining them, we discover who God is and why he’s worth knowing better. And we discover something else: who he wants us to be. He wants us to copy his picture into our own character. Wild Truth Bible Lessons--Pictures of God 2 is a guide to 12 God-pictures taken straight from the Photo Album. They are active Bible lessons for junior high and middle school Sunday school classes or youth group meetings, each one based on one of the 50 pictures of God and presented energetically, relevantly, and scripturally in the companion student book Wild Truth Journal: Pictures of God. The lessons are loaded with off-the-wall and easy-to-do discussion starters, video ideas, scripts, games with a point. And, of course, Bible passages and studies that springboard junior highers from the abstract into the concrete as (open Bibles in hand) they explore the nature of God in a lively, relevant way, and then begin practicing in their own lives the traits of God. Here’s how the lessons are organized: * Picture Prep grabs your group’s attention to prepare them for what’s ahead.* Action Shot takes your students into the Bible to catch God in the act of revealing his character.* Self-Portrait explores the given aspect of God’s character…how it makes God just that much more awesome...and why it’s a very good trait for us to have, too.* Print It! challenges your students to print God’s picture into their own lives by living out his character in an immediately practical way.12 lessons

Here’s a devotional Bible-study journal for junior highers that uses metaphors--or "pictures"--taken straight from Scripture to reveal God’s nature. By picturing God as artist, baby, dad, eagle, jealous lover, lion, and so forth, students will discover who God is, what he does — and in the process, practice the habit of regular, open-book Bible study that leads to a change in thinking and behavior. Each of the 50 two-page journaling devotionals reveals a particular character trait of God in a picture junior highers can relate to, then challenges them to put it in motion in their own lives.

Wild Bible characters . . . wild activities, games, discussion starters, and video ideas . . . wild truths for living. Put them all together, blend well, and you’ve got Wild Truth Bible Lessons 2--12 more dynamite lessons for junior high youth groups by Mark Oestreicher. Like its fun, creative predecessor, Wild Truth Bible Lessons, this book invites kids to discover the adventure of faith through the events and responses of real Bible people who did wild things for God. Based on another 12 personalities from the list of characters in Wild Truth Journal: 50 Life Lessons from the Scriptures, each lesson reaches back into history to help junior highers learn about Bible people and principles--and then reaches forward to challenge students to make better decisions, better friends, and better lives. 12 lessons.

To Be a Junior High Youth Worker . . . takes a distinct kind of adult, just as junior highers are a distinct kind of people. Betwixt and between though they may be, early adolescents are as capable of a genuine spiritual understanding and growth as high schoolers. It’s just that junior highers absorb Bible teaching and demonstrate their spirituality—well, differently. Help! I’m a Junior High Youth Worker! is your primer for understanding young teenagers, then teaching them with a mind-set and with methods that fit them. First Things First. Three axioms that define your territory as a junior high youth worker. So Just What Is a Junior Higher, Anyway? The essence of early adolescence: the need for appropriate rules . . . the dilemma of throwing sixth graders and eighth graders together in the same program . . . small is good. Developmentally Speaking. Changes junior highers enjoy and endure cognitively, emotionally, socially, spiritually . . . their changing relationships with parents . . . individuation and hair under their arms. Time to Teach! Your required dose of pedagogy: the case for fun learning . . . ten top teaching topics for middle school ministry . . . how simulations, role plays, and storytelling can be your best teaching methods for early adolescents. Faith Outside the Youth Room. Spiritual discipleship for middle schoolers: they don’t have to be high schoolers to begin forming habits of prayers, service, and outreach. Help! I’m a Junior High Youth Worker! is help at hand surviving and thriving in ministry to early adolescents.