The lights are dim. The crowd is hushed.And a dozen teens start laughing hysterically, piling into a human "boat" that helps set up the mind-blowing miracle of Jesus walking on the stormy Sea of Galilee.Maybe you’re after a booster shot for midweek youth group meetings that feel "same old, same old." Or you’ve just been asked (last minute, of course) to run the service at the shelter during your mission trip, and you need a jolt of energy that’ll draw kids into your lesson. Whatever your creative need, Spontaneous Melodramas 2 will fill the bill. Continuing where its predecessor--Spontaneous Melodramas--left off, this volume offers another two dozen tales from the Old and New Testaments that bring the biblical accounts to life . . . with distinctive, contemporary twists!Although these no-rehearsal skits will leave your students in stitches, the humor never buries the message of Scripture. So you can be confident when bringing your kids--whether or not they’re familiar with the Bible--into sketches like:The Sumptuous Spare Rib (Adam and Eve)Touched by an Angel (Jacob’s wrestling match)Love on a Threshing Floor (Ruth and Boaz)The Wizard of Eyes (Jesus heals the blind man)The Great Pool Party (Healing at the pool)Dead Man Walking (Jesus raises Lazarus)Spontaneous Melodramas 2 is full of flexible skits that youth workers, Sunday school teachers, camp counselors, and retreat directors can use for discussion starters, icebreakers, or talk intros. And they’re natural fits for Bible study programming, all-nighters, mission trips, camps, retreats, parent meetings, and many other events.More than a year’s worth of slapstick, pratfalls, and fun, Spontaneous Melodramas 2 will make the Bible--and its unforgettable characters and adventures--extra memorable for your students.

You know them as hilarious, boisterous skits that get kids involved, whether they're hamming up front, or in the audience cheering for the good guys, hissing the bad guys, and getting nearly as animated as the onstage actors. Better yet, these no-rehearsal skits are comic takes on 24 classic Bible stories, from Babel to Zacchaeus. Use these skits to take your students into or out of your Bible lesson -- for the humor never buries the central message of the Bible passage. Inside you'll find 12 Old Testament and 12 New Testament stories -- like these: - The First Tongue Twister (the Tower of Babel) - Josephine's Dream (Joseph and his brothers) - The Young and the Hairless (Samson and Delilah) - Dave, the Wave, and the Giant Kahuna (David and Goliath) - Dances with Lions (Daniel) - World Serious: The Empire Strikes Out (the temptation of Jesus) - Good Sam, the Levis, and Judas Priest (parable of the Good Samaritan) - Showdown at Tombstone (Jesus and the demon-possessed man) Unchurched teenagers who can't tell Samson from Solomon, or long-time youth group kids -- everyone will love not merely hearing or reading Bible stories, but doing them. Welcome to more than a year's worth of slapstick, pratfalls, and melodrama. These Bible-story skits are anything but solemn, but they'll make Bible stories memorable for your students.

80 sure-fire scripts and other onstage fun to illustrate your lessons and enliven your events! - Just for Fun . . . Short stunts, funny skits, sight gags, easy prep -- we've got 'em all. If you have even one or two students who love hamming it up and making spectacles of themselves, you'll find plenty of funny fodder here. - Spontaneous Melodramas . . . Fueled by groans, catcalls, cheers, and boos from your small or large audience, student actors in these no-rehearsal melodramatic spoofs will bring down the house. Don't know what spontaneous melodramas are? Plunge into an entertaining and instructive explanation of what they are and how to use them for the most effect, beginning on page 51. - Sketches with a Point . . . Drama is an ideal medium for grabbing people's attention and priming them for a meeting, a talk, or a Bible study. Have a particular topic in mind? Find your topic (in the topical index, page 7), and you're on your way to just the right script. Whether you're a youth worker or recreation director in a church, school, club, or camp -- Drama, Skits, & Sketches is your storehouse of proven, youth-group tested ideas.

We may think of them as the leaders of tomorrow, but the kids you minister to are already leaders—they’re the leaders of today. In hallways, on playing fields, and in their own homes, students are influencing the lives that surround them.Nehemiah is one of the Bible’s most powerful examples of what a godly leader looks like. This newest collection of Creative Bible Lessons helps your students connect with this ancient figure in a way that is both engaging and relevant.Each session focuses on one chapter of the Old Testament book by using activities that emphasize four different learning styles—thereby ensuring that your students hear what they need to hear in ways they need to hear it. The session titles include:A Leader Passionately PraysA Leader Teaches TruthA Leader Walks the WalkA Leader Instills IntegrityA Leader Hungers for HolinessEach session also offers an overview, a list of things you’ll need, background information on the Nehemiah chapter, openers, plenty of questions, and application options such as games, discussion starters, and small group activities that help the meaning of Nehemiah stick in your students’ heads.Creative Bible Lessons in Nehemiah will get your students thinking about the kinds of leaders God is calling them to be and provide them with the tools to be that leader...today.

Get ready for a crash course in effective communication. More than just a book on how to "do talks," Speaking to Teenagers combines the experience and wisdom of two veteran youth ministry speakers, along with insightful research and practical tools, to help you develop messages that engage students with the love of Christ and the power of his Word.Whether you1re crafting a five-minute devotional or a 30-minute sermon, Speaking to Teenagers is essential to understanding and preparing great messages.Together, Doug Fields and Duffy Robbins show you how they craft their own messages and give you the tools to do it yourself. They'll guide you, step-by-step, through the process of preparing and delivering meaningful messages that effectively communicate to your students.Fields and Robbins walk you through three dimensions of a message - the speaker, the listener, and the message itself‹and introduce you to the concept and principles of inductive communication. You1ll also get helpful tips on finding illustrations for your talk and using them for maximum impact, as well as insights on reading your audience and effective body language.As Speaking to Teenagers guides you toward becoming a more effective communicator, you'll find that this book's practical principles will positively impact the way you view, treat, and communicate to teenagers.

Weekly studies to reinforce what junior highers are learning from their Wild Truth JournalThese Bible lessons send students straight to the words of Jesus to discover the truth, then dare them to live that truth today. Includes games, activities, sketches, handouts, and reproducible worksheets.

Sure you can! Even if you can't hook up your VCR, a few minutes here and there with Just Shoot Me!--and its bite-sized, easy-to-digest principles--and you'll be off and running. The co-authors (one a professional videographer, the other a veteran video idea guy, and both in the thick of fast-forward youth ministry) distill their years of technical, street-level experience into such areas as-- Gettin' in Gear. What's out there? What equipment do you need? If you're on a budget, what should be your first purchases? If you can't buy right now, what are your options? There are enough tips and succinct advice here to turn you into the most savvy of video-gear shoppers. Hookin' Up. How do you get your gizmos, gadgets, and black boxes to talk to each other? Simple diagrams show you how to wire your gear for simple playback, editing, duplication, and much more. Editing. Why every video needs editing, and how you can do it easily ... what makes videos "watchable" ... linear and nonlinear editing methods ... tons of basic editing techniques.

Provides those in small church ministry--including volunteer, part-time, and full-time youth workers--with a process and procedure that enables them to address their particular needs as a small church.

Ask away . . . and get your students talking with these provocative questions. Would You Rather . . .? gives you 465 stimulating either-or questions that will get your students talking, laughing, debating, and thinking. Questions like Would You Rather . . . watch a soap opera or make fun of one? . . . be gossiped about or lied to? . . .get shot from a cannon or walk a high wire? . . . make a child cry or kick a puppy? . . . attend the Last Supper or discover Jesus' empty tomb? You can use these questions anywhere, anytime -- when you want to break the ice, spark a discussion, build community, get kids to wrestle with spiritual issues, or just have fun. And the convenient size makes it easy to stick in your pocket or in the glove compartment of your car. This is one resource you'll want for every member of your ministry team!

Just what small group leaders need to get their youth started in a meaningful discussion. This flexible and adaptable resource for youth workers contains 600 questions including 50 complete Bible studies specifically designed to help groups get acquainted, get deep, get spiritual, get into topics, and get into the Word. Leader’s hints, exercise options, and fun, helpful tips are included.Features include: * 600 ready-to-go small group questions for equipping small group leaders* Perfect for youth workers, camp counselors, Sunday school teachers, student leaders, or volunteers* Leader’s hints, exercise options, fun and helpful tips* Flexible and adaptable--ideal for both junior high and high school groups