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The goal of "Welcome to Student Ministry" is to post interviews that help guide both new and experienced student pastors toward faithful ministry over many years. This 18th interview in this series is with Don Nagy. Don serves as the Pastor of Student Ministries at Centerline Church in Hunker, Pennsylvania!

1. Tell our readers some background information about how long you have been in student ministry, how you started, and anything else that you think would be useful. 

I arrived a little late to the pastor party as I didn’t enter the ministry until I was in my mid-thirties but, even so, I have now been doing this for over 20 years.  I had sensed God was calling me to something like this and when a position opened up at a friend’s church, I applied…not thinking that I would ever get the job (because I had zero experience).  I thought that by applying and going through the process, I would learn a little about what some of my next steps might be in terms of ministry preparation.  But I got the job and sort of learned youth ministry on the fly.

2. How has your view of youth ministry changed from when you started to now?

Instead of trying to ‘make spiritual things happen’ I am much more focused on creating environments where they are more likely to occur. You can’t control spiritual things, but you can develop environments that foster spiritual growth. Every student is different and has a different way of connecting with God and I need to program accordingly. Early on, I focused on the types of things that personally connect me to God, but I’ve come to realize that I need to broaden the experiences of my students so that they have a greater variety of opportunities to experience Jesus and grow in their faith.

3. Share one of your favorite student ministry moments. 

The longer I have been at this, the more my favorite moments have shifted from something that happened on a trip, or at an event, or at one of our student ministry meetings to moments where later down the road you reconnect with a student as a young adult and are blessed to see the growth and hear their testimony of what God is continuing to do in their life.  You don’t always get to see the fruit of your labor, but it is such a blessing when God allows you to catch a glimpse of it.

4. Share one of your least favorite ministry moments 

Having to preside over the funeral services for a student is one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do as a youth pastor. It was also during the chaos of COVID, so it was an incredibly complicated experience both emotionally and logistically. That being said, tremendous ministry moments occurred throughout the whole process and I’m thankful God used all of it to bring a message of hope and healing to other students. But it was definitely a moment and experience I would prefer not to ever have again.

5. What resources do you find helpful to use in student ministry? 

Any games website is a huge resource for me.  I believe well-chosen games can help build community and deepen relationships, so I’m very particular about what we play and what we don’t and I use a lot of web resources to help make that happen.  I rarely use curriculum material but prefer to create my own lessons and themes based on my passions and the current needs of my particular group.  Youth ministry podcasts are a great encouragement to me and regularly trigger a thought or an idea that I can implement in my group.

6. What is one or two things that you do to make sure that you do so that you don’t burn out as a youth pastor? 

Scheduled rest! As in, I actually write it into my calendar.  I mark off which full days that I will not work each month and I block off various portions of other days where I will not work on ministry. I try to cap my week at three nights out for church related events. Regular and consistent rest (meaning sleep, vacations, and days off) is essential for me.

I also find that connecting with other youth pastors in our area helps me refocus and refuel.  Being with like minded individuals seems to lighten the load as we pray for each other and share our wins and losses together.

If I am healthy (spiritually, emotionally, physically, mentally) I can bring so much more to my students and my church.

7. What advice would you give to yourself when you started as a youth pastor if you could go back to that time?

Focus your ministry on Jesus. Who He is, what He did, why He did it, and what He said. You can’t go wrong continually pointing students to Jesus.

Play the long game.  Don’t get so caught up in the short-term ups and downs or successes and failures.  One night does not make a ministry. Evaluate the overall ministry by months not by nights. It’s long, humble, consistent, patient, and faithful service that pays long term dividends.  There is just no real substitute for time. It’s easy to overestimate what you can accomplish short-term and easy to underestimate what can happen in the long-term. So be patient…great days are still ahead.

Thank you, Don, for taking time to answer these questions.  In coming weeks I will post our 19th edition of "Welcome to Student Ministry."