10 Mistakes I Made in Youth Ministry: And What You Can Learn from Them

Steve Eatmon offers a candid, insightful guide for youth leaders seeking to navigate the challenges of ministry to teenagers with wisdom and grace.   

Youth ministry is hard! Growing up in youth group and seminary training cannot prepare you for the real-life experience of being on the job. If you are feeling the weight of responsibility for the spiritual development of teenagers, take some time to learn from a veteran youth pastor. In 10 Mistakes I Made in Youth Ministry, Eatmon shares some of his mistakes in hopes of encouraging the next generation of youth pastors to learn from his missteps so they can lead young people with wisdom and grace. 

With honesty and vulnerability, Eatmon not only shares his philosophy, people, and process mistakes, but how he grew spiritually and learned from each one of them. If you learn, as the author did, from his mistakes and apply them to your own life, you can have a biblically-based, theologically-grounded, and gospel-centered youth ministry.  

• Offers practical tools for bringing Christ to teens through effective teaching, discipleship, and student engagement. 

• Gives real-world advice on managing relationships with parents, volunteers, and church leadership to build collaboration and trust.  

• Includes end-of-chapter questions suitable for personal reflection or group discussion. 

Steve Eatmon, MDiv, serves as an English pastor at the Chinese Bible Church of Maryland in the DC area, having previously served in youth ministry for over a decade. He has written articles for Rooted Ministry and The Gospel Coalition. He and his wife, Heather, have two children.