{"id":1345,"date":"2015-03-31T19:51:58","date_gmt":"2015-03-31T19:51:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/?p=1345"},"modified":"2015-03-31T19:51:58","modified_gmt":"2015-03-31T19:51:58","slug":"set-the-tone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/2015\/03\/31\/set-the-tone\/","title":{"rendered":"Set the Tone"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/03\/set-hte-tone-copy.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full-slider wp-image-1346\" src=\"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/03\/set-hte-tone-copy-727x380.jpg\" alt=\"set hte tone copy\" width=\"727\" height=\"380\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>I have found that one of the hardest things to do in youth ministry is to keep the students engaged in whatever we\u2019re doing at the time. Whether it\u2019s playing a game, listening to a sermon, or having a group discussion, it has been a constant struggle to get and keep their attention throughout the entire time we\u2019re together. As much as I would love to think that every message I preach challenges their minds, captivates their hearts and brings them back wanting more, I have to face the reality that my preaching is not always the main reason they come to youth events.<\/p>\n<p>That realization has actually brought me a lot of comfort; it takes the responsibility off of my shoulders to try and perform well or act in a way that will make my youth like me. I simply have to listen for and follow the voice of God and trust Him with the results. I am not responsible for the outcome; I am responsible for the obedience. I have had many services that produced a smaller turnout than I had hoped for, but the Lord spoke to my heart to be faithful to Him and His commands no matter what the situation looked like from my perspective. If I had focused on the fact that we were down ten kids from the past week, I would not have poured my heart out to the ones that were there, which would have been a disservice both to them and to God. It has been in those times that I have learned to make the conscious choice to set the tone for every event.<\/p>\n<p>Through my experiences, it has been proven over and over again that the leader is the primary individual who sets the tone, the attitude, for the entire experience. If I get excited about what is happening, there is a much better chance that <em>some <\/em>of the youth will get excited about it, too. If I have a dull, non expectant attitude, it is almost a guarantee that most of the youth will share in my infectiously negative point of view. I respect those who have a calmer demeanor when preaching the Gospel, but I celebrate our difference in that respect. I get pumped when I preach, and it is usually somewhat entertaining to those who are there to see it (no church property has been damaged yet, don\u2019t worry). I accept the fact that some people think I\u2019m crazy, as long as they know I\u2019m crazy about Jesus and the love He continually shows to me. I am passionate about the message God has assigned me to deliver, and I believe that passion and excitement is contagious.<\/p>\n<p>The best and most important way to set the tone for every ministry event\u2014from Wednesday night service to playing basketball with students on weekends\u2014is to begin with prayer, to surrender all of myself to the power and dominion of the Holy Spirit to move how He wants to in every moment. I fix my eyes on Him and pursue Him relentlessly. I have to constantly remind myself of the fact that I do not save, heal, or purify anyone. Only God does that. I cannot fix any person, but I can guide them to the One who fixes them. I need Him every second of my life, and I must start every day and event in ministry by reflecting on that truth. If God is not the center of it, I want no part in it.<\/p>\n<p>After prayer, the biggest thing I can control is my attitude. I can make the choice to get excited about something when I know I don\u2019t feel like it. A positive attitude is contagious and a negative attitude is infectious. A positive, excited attitude can turn an otherwise boring work day into a fun competition between the guys and girls. A pessimistic attitude might not even guarantee that anyone will show up to work. Just think, if we can turn a work day into something fun, who knows what we could do with other events like scavenger hunts, trips to amusement parks, or summer camps?<\/p>\n<p>Fighting to keep the youth\u2019s attention is an ongoing battle, but I rely on setting a<\/p>\n<p>tone with two essential elements: passion and love. I am passionate about what God has called me to do, and I do my best to love Him and to love my youth with all of my heart.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/03\/trey.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-1347\" src=\"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/03\/trey-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"trey\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>Trey Wideman is a graduate of Oral Roberts University and the Youth Pastor at SpiritLife church in Tulsa, Oklahoma. <\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"excerpt","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","slim_seo":{"title":"Set the Tone - IPHC Discipleship Ministries","description":"I have found that one of the hardest things to do in youth ministry is to keep the students engaged in whatever we\u2019re doing at the time. Whether it\u2019s playing a"},"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"_slim_seo_primary_term_category":0,"_slim_seo_primary_term_post_tag":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4,171,3],"tags":[275,272,276],"class_list":["post-1345","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-discipleship-ministries","category-leadership-2","category-youth-ministries","tag-attitude","tag-trey-wideman","tag-youth","entry"],"title_es":"","content_es":"","author_name":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4T9u2-lH","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1214,"url":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/2015\/03\/05\/charles-boyd-takes-new-position\/","url_meta":{"origin":1345,"position":0},"title":"Charles Boyd takes New Position","author":"Kaleigh","date":"March 5, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The Discipleship Ministries team would like to say a big thank you to Charles Boyd for his years of service and dedication to the youth of the IPHC. Charles served as Youth Pastor at the Capital Pentecostal Holiness Church, in Raleigh, North Carolina for ten years before being elected to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Discipleship Ministries&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Discipleship Ministries","link":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/category\/discipleship-ministries\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"1st pick.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/02\/1st-pick.-440x550.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":17,"url":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/2014\/07\/02\/youth-quest-2014\/","url_meta":{"origin":1345,"position":1},"title":"Youth Quest 2014","author":"Garrett","date":"July 2, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Youth Quest\u00a0is a teen focused, annual event that takes place every July. Hosted by Youth Ministries and the\u00a0Discipleship Ministries Department, Youth Quest gives teens from across the nation the opportunity to build relationships, grow in their faith, and win scholarships for college. This year Youth Quest will take place in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Youth Ministries&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Youth Ministries","link":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/category\/youth-ministries\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":7260,"url":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/2020\/09\/24\/iphc-discipleship-ministries-announces-vigilant-iphc-child-and-youth-safety-resource\/","url_meta":{"origin":1345,"position":2},"title":"IPHC Discipleship Ministries Announces Vigilant: IPHC Child and Youth Safety Resource","author":"jbland","date":"September 24, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Over the past year, child and youth safety has been a growing concern for Discipleship Ministries. Nothing destroys a child the way abuse does, and unfortunately, the rates of sexual abuse against children continue to grow. Conservative statistics say that 1 in 10 children will be sexually abused, usually by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Children's Ministries&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Children's Ministries","link":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/category\/childrens-ministries\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/09\/Horizontal-Vigilant-Logo-1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/09\/Horizontal-Vigilant-Logo-1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/09\/Horizontal-Vigilant-Logo-1.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/09\/Horizontal-Vigilant-Logo-1.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/09\/Horizontal-Vigilant-Logo-1.png?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/09\/Horizontal-Vigilant-Logo-1.png?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1435,"url":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/2015\/05\/11\/discipleship-ministries-announces-smat-team-members\/","url_meta":{"origin":1345,"position":3},"title":"Discipleship Ministries announces SMAT team members","author":"Kaleigh","date":"May 11, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"the Student Ministries Advisory Team (from left to right): Stephen Jones, Kaleigh Bishop, Josh Lafferty, and Brittany Galavin. In April Discipleship Ministries announced the launch of their new Student Ministries Advisory Team (SMAT), along with Team Leader Stephen Jones. Discipleship Ministries is pleased to announce the following members of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Discipleship Ministries&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Discipleship Ministries","link":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/category\/discipleship-ministries\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"group 1","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/05\/group-1-1024x717.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/05\/group-1-1024x717.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/05\/group-1-1024x717.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/05\/group-1-1024x717.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1529,"url":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/2015\/07\/16\/forums-focus-groups-and-fun-oh-my\/","url_meta":{"origin":1345,"position":4},"title":"Forums, Focus Groups, and Fun! Oh my!","author":"Kaleigh","date":"July 16, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"by Skye Hakes Liles Last year, some of our most popular activities at Youth Quest were our forums. We presented on practical topics that church members, leaders, and everyone in between could learn from. So we are bring them back this year. Not only are forums returning, but we are\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Discipleship Ministries&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Discipleship Ministries","link":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/category\/discipleship-ministries\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"forums low res","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/06\/forums-low-res-e1435069917581-1024x411.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/06\/forums-low-res-e1435069917581-1024x411.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/06\/forums-low-res-e1435069917581-1024x411.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/06\/forums-low-res-e1435069917581-1024x411.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3240,"url":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/2017\/08\/08\/state-ministry-student-ministries\/","url_meta":{"origin":1345,"position":5},"title":"State of the Ministry- Student Ministries","author":"Lindsey","date":"August 8, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"A lot has changed since the last General Conference in 2013. \u00a0 In December of 2014, after a long tenure of service to National Student Ministries and the IPHC, Pastor Charles Boyd accepted a position as the Director of Student Ministries at First Pentecostal Holiness Church in Goldsboro, NC, and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Youth Quest&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Youth Quest","link":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/category\/youth-quest\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2017\/08\/Student-Ministry-STATE-OF-THE-MIN.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2017\/08\/Student-Ministry-STATE-OF-THE-MIN.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2017\/08\/Student-Ministry-STATE-OF-THE-MIN.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2017\/08\/Student-Ministry-STATE-OF-THE-MIN.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1345","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1345"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1345\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1345"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1345"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/discipleship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1345"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}