Youth Ministry Scenarios

Scenarios are a safe way to test your response to a given event or circumstance.  Below are scenarios that you can use. 

Scenario 1

You have been giving constant challenges to your students.  You were even able to get a nationally recognized speaker to come in to motivate them for Christ’s causes.  Which of the following course of action should you take next?

A.          A. You have done your job.  Watch and see what God does next.

 B.   You need to schedule another motivation series to keep the fires going in a few months.

 C.  You need to have some equipping times ready to immediately follow the challenges.

 D.   You need to have some planned opportunities for the students to participate in that enables them to fulfill the commitments that they made to all the motivation they received.

 E.     You need to stand aside and let God work out the leadership among the youth and not get involved in that delicate process.

Answers C&D

Scenario 2

            In your youth group there are fifteen students (on a good day).  Almost half of them are junior high age and most of them do want to come to what is offered at the church.  Which of the following statements should guide you in your work with them?

A.  Don’t plan events that will seem impossible to them to achieve (distribute a thousand door hangers, collect food for twenty families, or raise a thousand dollars for one of Christ’s causes).

B.  Plan events that will seem impossible to them to achieve (distribute a thousand door hangers, collect food for twenty families, or raise a thousand dollars for one of Christ’s causes).

 C.  Motivate them by telling how big the youth group will be by a specific time.

D.  Feel free to schedule other personal ministry opportunities because fifteen students don’t require much time or attention from you.

 E.   Treat them all like family and just let them know when things are going to happen the week beforehand.

Answer B

Scenario 3

            Your students have just had a great camp experience and seem more motivated than ever before to be at church and be involved in spiritual things.  Which of the following things should you consider in the immediate future?

A.             A.   Don’t schedule anything for a while so they can get down off their camp “high” and be who they really are.

 B.    Take your vacation right after camp.  You deserve the break!

 C.     Have part of your staff ready to equip and involve the students in a fresh surge of activity.

 D.      Be ready to work with the new converts and their network of friends and family.

 E.      Carefully watch the new converts to see if it sticks … did they really accept Christ?  Otherwise you may be wasting your time investing in them if you do it too soon.

Answers C & D

 Scenario 4

            You are the new volunteer youth leader at First Church .  You have helped with the group for three years and the church has decided to hold off hiring another youth pastor because the last one left after some financial and moral issues were discovered about him.  What are the key factors you need to consider?

A.            A.  Begin casting a new vision full of the great things that will happen now that you are the youth leader.

 B.   Preach a series about the evil kings of the Old Testament and make comparisons to them and the former youth pastor.  That way the students will understand what happened with him.

C.             C.  Help the students understand how to use the First Aid Kit from the scriptures and do a short series on painful lessons versus a pain-filled life.

.                D.   Do an anonymous survey where students can express themselves about the events of the recent past and their hopes for the future.

 E.   Fulfill all the events that are already calendared (at least the ones that you can).

Answers C, D, & E

Scenario 5

Your group consists of seventy-percent girls and thirty- percent boys.  Most of the boys are there because they have to be, and most of the girls are fairly mature and spiritually motivated.  Which of the following should you do?

A.             A.  Pour most of your and your staff's time into your girls, you don’t get many chances like this.

 B.  Do a challenge series calling the young men to stand up and take their place of leadership.

 C.   Do a guys-only retreat where you build relationships and show them they can succeed in the Kingdom of God .

 D.     Do a girls- only retreat and take them to their next level.

E.             E.  Don’t separate the boys and girls at all, the girls may rub off on the boys .

Answers C & D

Scenario 6

            As you get to know your group you realize that there is a lot of division within the group.  You see that the dating (and consequential break-ups) of the couples has contributed to the problem.  Prioritize what you think you should do first, second and so on with the following activities.  Don’t include any activities that you think you shouldn’t provide.

1. ___ Set up a series of “couples” opportunities so they can spend time together under your supervision.

 2. ___ Start a series on basic relationship issues ending with a big couple’s banquet/event.

3. ___  Start a series on basic personal strengths.  Emphasize how each person’s physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional strength contribute to a healthy life, family, youth group, church, and society.

4. ___  Publicly condemn dating and relationships for those still in High School.

 5. ___  Start a series on boundaries and how to apply that to the dating world.

Answers 1-no, 2-no, 3-1, 4-no, 5-2

Scenario 7

            Your group all comes from one school system and they have known each other most of their lives.  They are very involved in the schools activities.  You see the need to break them out of the mold that their surroundings have created.  Which of the following events should you do?

A.            A.  Put some events on your calendar that directly conflict with some school events so that they have to make a stand for Christ and come to your event.

 B.    Approach the school system and ask them to avoid scheduling on certain days so it won’t conflict with your events.

 C.  Equip your students to share their faith and then plan some events where they are the key ministers, make sure those events don’t compete with the school events on the calendar.

 D.  Piggyback your events (hold them after school events or before) on school events, so that you’re on their campus to support them in their faith walk.

Answers C & D

Scenario 8

            First Church youth group is a buzz of noise and talking.  The trouble is it continues on through any kind of an attempt at teaching or preaching.  It’s amazing how much noise twenty-five teenage girls can make.  The latest talk is about Alisha who is supposed to be pregnant and due at Christmas time (she always has the lead in the plays because of her talented voice).  All the girls have grown up together and can’t believe it but they expected it all at the same time.  There is no getting control of the time tonight so you decide to … .  Pick some options that are probably the best given the situation you are facing.

A.            A.  Yell at them loud enough for them to finally hear you and then ream them out for gossip and call to the altar for a cleansing prayer and time of prayer for themselves and Alisha’s child.

B.            B.    Get their attention and have them look up scriptures that point them to the dangers of premarital sex.

 C.     Sit among them and start asking questions.

    1-How do the know Alisha is pregnant?

    2-If she is what should they do about it?

    3-They have a lot of verbal energy, how could it best be used in this kind of a situation (prayer)?

    4-Ask them if they understand the principle of “reaping and sowing” and “treating others the way you would like to be treated.”

 D.   Send the female staff into the mix and break them down into small groups and discuss the same questions that “C” discussed.

 E.    Take the action described in “D” but also plan an girls-only retreat where you can cover the gossip area much better.

 F.      Figure out a way to start reaching some “ Adams ” so they have some potentially healthy relationships in the future.

Answers D, E, & F

Scenario 9

            Many youth workers seem to take their students on Short Term Mission trips.  You look at your group and only see about five out of the twenty-five that are ready to go right now.  Five more will be ready in a while and five more might be ready some day.  The other ten have a long way to go.  Pick from the following options as your next plan of action.

A.           A.   Don’t plan anything for a year or two so you can get more of the students ready.

 B.    Plan something as soon as is reasonably possible (a year or so away) so you can take those who are ready and those who could be ready given a motivation and an opportunity.

 C.     Arrange for some ministry opportunities for your students in your local church and area so that when you do finally go they will be ready.

D.             D.   Start a series on missions and culminate the series with training and a planned trip.

 E.     Ignore the Short Term Missions idea.  Your area is economically depressed and the students could never earn the money anyway.

 F.    Find someone else who is going this next summer and help your students go with them.

Answers C, D, & F

Scenario 10

            You share your youth room with several other ministries in the church.  It is a large enough room but more like a classroom at the local High School.  You’ve been there for two months as the Youth Leader.  Pick any of these that you think will benefit your students.

A.            A.  Begin lobbying for a room where you can be as creative as you want to be and only the youth will use.

 B.    Arrange the furniture different every time you meet to fit your theme of that event.  For example; you set the chairs up like a courtroom scene because you are teaching about the righteousness that Jesus made possible for us.  Or set the chairs up like an airline because you are taking a look at missions.

 C.     Have the students create backdrops every three months that cover most of one of the walls (two large sheets sewn together).  Make sure it goes up and down fairly easily.

 D.    Change your youth time so you can use another room.

 E.   Suggest that each group that uses the room gets one wall to call their own and decorate.

Answers B, C, D, & E

Scenario 11

            Many of your students are loud and rowdy.  It is very difficult to try and preach to them for the full forty-five minutes you have scheduled during the Sunday School and mid-week meetings.  Pick the actions that would be best to adopt for this setting.

A.            A.   Do a series on respect and being a life-long learner.

B.             B.   Cut your sermon time in half and use the extra time to build relationships and discuss the message and its application.

 C.    Visit the homes of the rowdies and see if there is a correlation with their attitude at church and at home.

 D.   If the rowdies are Christians (they may be bored and under-challenged) have them team teach something with your help.

Answers B, C, & D

Scenario 12

            You have fourteen visitors in the last two months.  They seem to come once or twice but you don’t see them after that.  Your group runs about forty in number and it seems to be a good service.  Pick any that apply to your situation.

A.            A.  Don’t worry about them.  If they were serious they would stay.

B.             B.   Visit all your visitors (you, student or staff teams, etc.) within a week and put them on your mailing list (immediately mail them your most recent calendars) and keep them on it for at least a year.

 C.    Put them on your intercessor prayer lists.

 D.     Write them a short note that is mailed the next day.

 E.    Develop a team of staff and students that is devoted to visitors and their families and friends.

Answers B, C, D, & E

Scenario 13

            It usually takes about two years to get established in a youth ministry before you have full support of the church, youth group, and community.  With this in mind how should you spend the first two years?  Pick any of the following that area appropriate for this kind of situation.

A.           A.   Take the first two years and do just the minimum to keep people happy so when your dues are paid you can finally get busy.

 B.     Pay the two year dues off earlier by communicating well to the church, community, and parents about  your events and opportunities for your students and their parents.

 C.    Pay the two year dues off earlier by asking for input regularly from the church, community, parents, and students of how you can best help them.

 D.     Ignore the two year dues and do what you can because you will only be there eighteen months anyway.

 E.     Challenge the students and church to run with you for Christ and if they won’t then dust off your feet and go elsewhere.

 Answers B & C

 Scenario 14

You have a full year’s calendar planned in advance.  It includes retreats, camps and all your major events as well as your weekly and monthly events.  How should you handle this information?  Pick any that apply.

A.   Publish the information every two months (always with a year in advance from that point included).  Have extra copies to hand out to new people.  Mail the parents as often as you mail to the students.

 B.   Have all the information on a web site wit links to your personal site and all the church information.

C.  Make individual flyers, posters, power point presentations, and drama skits for each event.

D.   Have an information part of each gathering where you have a team that gets the word out anyway they can.

 E.    Have an answering machine they can call with an event menu on it.

 F.     Have a phone call, email team that contacts everyone before an event as a reminder.

Answers are all of the above

Scenario 15

            As you begin working in your new youth ministry position you find that the parents are calling you more often than the students do.  Some of their calls are just questions about events while others seem to be questioning what you are doing and why.  Pick the action plan(s) that you should take.

A.  Ignore them as best as you can and let your actions and results do the talking.

B.   Start a monthly mailer that goes to the students and parents with all the upcoming information that you can give.

 C.   Have a quarterly parent information meeting with food (they seem to like food).

 D.   Bring in a speaker for them that can address some of the relevant parenting issues that they are facing.

 E.   Find a key parent and make them a liaison to the others so that you can concentrate on the students.

 F.    Find helpful ways they can get involved in the ministry and then be ready to train them when they begin to help.

Answers B, C, D & F

Scenario 16

            Your students attend five different junior highs and three different high schools.  You need eight different campus clubs to have a ministry for each of your students on campus.  What should you do?  You are committed to campus ministry as a way to reach your community and equip your students.  Pick the strategies(s) that you think you should adopt.

A.   Contact the other youth ministries in the area and see what they are doing so what you do doesn’t conflict with them.  Make sure you pick other days and times for your club.

 B.     Contact the other youth ministries in the area and see where you can partner with them on campus ministry.

C.     Avoid campus ministry all together because of the separation of church and state issue.

 D.    Motivate the students to do something and then see who rises to the top in leadership and skills.

 E.     Equip the students for campus ministry and help them develop plans and strategies that take into account the existing clubs, their personal gifts, and the needs of that school.

Answers B & E

Scenario 17

            Most of the students you see every week have been raised in the church.  They all seem to have the “been there, heard that” attitude when you do Sunday School with them.  What could you do to help this situation?  Pick any that might apply.

A.   Cancel Sunday School and pour your energy into an outreach service so you can reach new students to begin working with them.

 B.   Change your format and turn it into a participation learning model time.

 C.    Give them a mini Bible quiz just to see how much Bible they really know and have already applied to their lives.

D.     Have a Bible knowledge bowl.  Students against the deacons/elders and see who really knows their Bible. Take a few Sundays before the event to coach your students.

 E.     Involve them in the planning and teaching of the class in the next quarter.

 F.     Have an outreach event for this time period and use several class times to prepare them and then execute the plan.  For example; an outreach to a prison, retirement home, or to help feed street people.

Answers B, C, E & F

Scenario 18

            Some of your students (opposite gender of you) have some serious problems that need some extra attention.  What should you do?  Pick any that apply.

A.     Set up counseling times with them in their home for undisturbed time and privacy.

 B.    Set up counseling times with them in the church.

 C.     Build a network of local professionals, staff, parents, spouse, and young adults (who have conquered the problems) that you can refer the students too after a joint meeting with all parties involved.

 D.     Deal with some of the issues with the whole group (if appropriate-suicide, anger, etc.) because more of them may be dealing with it than you know.

E.    Calendar twenty-percent of your time to help these students.

Answers C & D

Scenario 19

            It is December first and you realize you have a lot of new Christians.  They have all received Christ in the last few months from a variety of different sources (campus club, Halloween event, Sunday morning and your midweek event, and your work as an assistant coach at the school).  Pick any of the following activities that could be helpful in your situation.

A.   Organize them into four small groups (two boys and two girls) and have staff take them through an eight week basics course.

 B.    Organize a retreat for them (President's weekend) and focus on new believer needs and equip them in the basics of a growing Christians’ faith.

C.     Give them some great literature and have them ask you any questions they run across.

D.     Spend the next two months going over the basics again in Sunday School and in your midweek events.

 E.     You recognize that this is just the tip of the iceberg and begin to plan quarterly new convert retreats and how all these new converts can be involved in an appropriate ministry within the next six months.

Answers A, B & E 

Scenario 20

            One of the cheerleaders and three of the football starters are killed in a car accident after the loss at the homecoming game.  Alcohol is implicated as the cause of the crash.  There are no survivors.  All four of them had visited the youth ministry at one time or another.  Pick any of these actions that are appropriate.

A.    Begin a series on grief and mourning for your midweek service.

B.     Attend as many of the funerals as possible.

C.     Preach on the wrath of God towards those who participate in the evils of sin.

 D.     Deal with the “why issues”, why do people drink, why does some much happen when people do drink, why did this happen to them?

 E.      Bring in professionals, if needed, to deal with the students who knew them best.

 F.     Ignore it and go on with your series from Revelation.  This kinds of things always happen and if acknowledged will slow the work of the Kingdom of God .

Answers A, B, D & E

Scenario 21

            Several families in your church are on the verge of getting a divorce.  It will impact at least three of your twenty students.  Pick the following steps that would be helpful in your setting.

A.    Do an anger series and set up some staff to work with any students who need some extra help.

 B.     Have a retreat as soon as possible to help everyone because it affects more than just the three.  Eight more are related to at least one person in the couples and everyone else knows them.

 C.     Preach against divorce while it is a current issue.

 D.     Do a relationship series.

 E.      Offer a special course for your student leaders and staff on crisis times so that they can help deal with this issue.

Answers A, B, D & E

   When you first arrive at your new Youth Pastor position there are three couples that have been holding the youth ministry together since the last Youth Pastor left (eight months before).  The church runs about one hundred and twenty-five on a Sunday morning with about twenty students in the ministry pool.  Which of the following actions should you take?

A.   Thank them profusely and then let them take the next few months off while you get things going the way they should be.  Then you can see where they might fit in after that.

 B.     Meet with them individually and have them tell you what they think the status of the students is and how they would like to help in the future. 

 C.    Spend a month investigating  the community, church, school, and denominational calendars.

 D.    Check and see what events are planned and what is left to do to fulfill those plans.  Do that and then as you see specific needs plan more for the coming calendar.

 E.     Have the students and the staff evaluate what they have done in the last two years and it’s effectiveness.

 F.      Meet with the parents and get their evaluation of the last few years of youth ministry and their students.

Answers B, C, D, E & F

Scenario 23

    In your situation you have grown from fifteen students to fifty students in six months.  You have your spouse, two other couples, and one single grandmother helping as staff.  What of the following options should you pursue?  Pick as many as you think apply to your situation.

A.    You are looking pretty good right now.  That is only seven students per staff.  Don’t worry about the future, just keep doing what you are doing.  It must be working.

 B.     Begin to immediately take all and any helpers to get a better ratio and you are ready for more growth.

 C.     Establish a staff training process and put your existing staff through it while at the same time advertising for the next training session that will start when this one is over.

D.     Establish an application process that allows existing staff and potential staff to be evaluated legally, honestly, and realistically.

E.    Lobby the church to pay you full-time or get another paid staff on board.

Answers C & D

Scenario 24

            You begin to meet with your Youth Staff regularly for the purposes of training, fellowship, and personal growth.  Of the following actions, which ones should you take?

A.     You find out that some of them struggle with having consistent personal devotions.  You suspend them from ministry until they can get it right.

 B.     You should assume that their personal devotional lives, finances, and relationships are in order. You can concentrate on equipping them for youth ministry.

 C.      You should anonymously survey them and give them a chance to rate their personal devotions, ministry skills, finances, and relationships.

 D.       A key aspect in working with volunteer staff is to help them balance their schedules so you will have them for a long time in youth ministry.

 E.     A key aspect in working with volunteer staff is to work them as much as possible because you never know how long they will be there to help.

Answers C & D

Scenario 25

            You have fifteen students and four staff helping you in the current youth ministry.  You’ve all been there at least six months.  Which of the following actions should you do in the near future?

A.    Get your staff together and dream about what your group needs to do to disciple your existing students and all that will be reached by your evangelism dream as well.

B.      Accept the fact that you are in a small situation and make the most of the setting with the help that you have.

 C.     Begin to write short job descriptions to fulfill the dream ministry based on volunteers who have two to five hours a week to devote to the ministry.

D.      Begin to write short job descriptions to fulfill the dream ministry based on volunteers who have five to ten hours a week to devote to the ministry.

 E.       Announce a goal of having a hundred students and twenty staff in six months.

Answers A & C

Scenario 26

        Your denomination has a camping program in the summer.  You look at the price and you could probably do it for twenty dollars less per person for the thirty students you could probably get to camp.  Which of the following do you do?

A.    Take the six hundred dollars savings and do the camp yourself.

B.    Go to the camp anyway and use the time you would have spent on the camp  to reach out to new students or disciple the ones you have.

 C.     Get involved in the camping program and see if costs can be lowered.

 D.      Go together with several other youth groups and do your own camp.  Then the savings will be even greater.

 E.      Boycott camps and the bureaucratic overhead of your denomination.

Answers B & C 

Scenario 27

      Your denomination has a camping program in the summer but it is only October and already students and parents are asking for the dates for next summer.  How should you respond?

A.   Tell them to wait until February when the information normally comes out and then they can find out.

 B.   Call the denominational headquarters, get the dates and put the dates on a flyer for the students and parents.

 C.    Give them last years dates and assume that they will be fairly close to that.

 D.     Find one of the interested parents and see if they will help with camp for next year.  They can get the information, help with registrations, scholarships, and transportation.

E.      Tell them you think you might do your own because you think theirs is too expensive.

Answer D

Scenario 28

        Your group hasn’t had a visitor in two months.  You haven’t seen someone accept Christ since your last Winter Camp (seven months ago).  What are some things you could/should do?

A.   Have your students put together a list of lost people they know that you as a group can begin to pray for.

B.    Do an anonymous survey and find out why they think you haven’t had any visitors or conversions recently.

C.     Start a secret fast and don’t stop until you have some new visitors and converts.

D.    Schedule a “Visitors invite night” where the students do the entire ministry and you only act as the MC.

 E.    Schedule some more time on campus  so you can meet some of your students' friends on their turf.

 F.     Speak for the health teacher who has been asking your students to bring in outside guest speakers about marriage, death, premarital counseling, etc.

Answers A, B, D, E & F

Scenario 29

        You have your first major event coming up.  You have the key to the local high school gym and full use of the pool too.  What are some things you need to consider for this event?

A.    Make sure you get a good head count before you go in so you don’t leave anybody behind.

B.    Don’t let anyone in without a fully signed permission and medical slip from their parents or guardians.

 C.    Have the students print their name on a waiver and then sign it themselves for damages that may occur in this event.

 D.    Have at least one adult at all times in the gym and pool area.

E.    Have at least two adults at all times in the gym and pool area.

F.    Have at least three adults at all times in the gym and pool area and have one of them be certified as a lifeguard for the pool and one in basic first aid for the gym.

Answers A, B & F

Scenario 30

        There are four churches in small towns near your church.  They do what they can for their children and youth.  How should you relate to these churches?

A .  Contact them and let them know you will come in as a special speaker for a hundred dollars a time.

B.    Contact them and see how your students could help them with events, outreach, a project, or as a part of a weekly program.

C.    Contact them and volunteer to adopt (one or more) of them for your larger events (camps, retreats, etc.).

D.     Schedule a visit to them and tell them you will let their leadership know if any of their students ends up at your events and that you will send them back where they belong.

E.     Contact them and volunteer to utilize your students and staff to do some training for them in an aspect or children or youth ministry.

F.    Contact them and invite their staff to join yours for a training day with a speaker you are bringing in on family crisis issues.

Answers B, C, E & F

Scenario 31

        Some new girls have started to come to your midweek service.  They have reputations at school for immorality and they smell like smoke as they come in.  How should you handle this?

A.    Talk to the new girls about not coming back until they have cleaned up their act.  We serve a Holy God and they need to be that way in the house of God.

B.     Talk to your regular girls about helping the new girls feel welcome, spend time with them, at church and at school.

C.     Have a service soon where some of your regular girls share their testimonies and the Gospel with it, while the boys are doing something different.

D.      Have a key staff person ready to work with the new girls and the baggage they are carrying.

E.      Share some key teachings on the change we can have in Christ and how it happens.  Mary Magdalene, the Samaritan Woman, or the women caught in adultery are all good examples.

Answers B, C, D & E

Scenario 32

        Your community may have a difficult year financially.  One of the key employers in the community may be leaving town.  Unfortunately you were getting ready to announce a mission trip for next summer (it’s October).  You have a lot of juniors and seniors who have never been on a mission trip.  Which of the following courses of action should you take?

A.    Do your research and plan as much of it as you can but don’t announce the trip until the employment issue is settled.

B.     Do your research and plan as much of it as you can and announce it anyway.  Keep the costs down and announce it way in advance.

C.    Assume this is God’s way of saying “no don’t go.”

D.    Start fundraisers for upcoming events before the income dries up in the community and use them for the mission trip.

E.   Start seeking another youth ministry position because the church will probably have to let you go when the employer closes down.

Answers B & D

Scenario 33

        A Church member has donated three hundred dollars towards the youth fund.  You have to spend it before the end of the year (it’s October fifteenth) or it disappears.  What should you do?  Pick any that are appropriate.

A.    Break it into three pieces and do a Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas fun event free for the students.

B.    Reduce your Winter Camp fee by ten dollars per person.

C.    Offer four full scholarships to non-Christians for your Winter Camp

D.    Buy a cell phone and a yearly plan so students can find you anytime.

E.    Spend a few weeks praying and fasting to see how you should spend the money.

F.    But the scanner and printer you’ve needed for your office while they are still on the back to school sales.

G.   Get new letterhead and stationary designed

Answers B, C, D, E & F  are all appropriate

Scenario 34

     Your church only has one computer that the secretary and bookkeeper use all the time.  The senior pastor uses one at home and yours just died.  You don’t have any money to replace it, nor does the church.  What are the best options?

A.  Put an ad in the church bulletin, local Safeway wall, and talk up your need for a computer, in hopes of getting a donation.

B.   Submit a request for a full system to the church.

C.    Have a youth fundraiser towards the purchase of a computer for your office.