Training the Trainers
Equipping Leaders Who Can Train Others.
Christianity would have died a long time ago if leadership development had not occurred. If the apostles had not trained others to take the reins of Christianity, it may never have made it past the first century.
This principle holds true to the present day. New generations continue to need new leaders.
Youth Ministry International believes that youth are capable of not only being trained to be leaders, and thereby replicate Jesus Christ in others, but that youth are actually the most important part of developing a new generation of Christian leaders within the People Groups of the world.
At Youth Ministry International we often quote 2 Timothy 2:2:
“And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.”
This is perhaps most clearly seen in Youth Ministry International’s desire to send Youth Leadership Trainers, whose task it is to equip national youth workers with the vision and skills necessary to carry out the work of youth evangelism and discipleship through their own local churches.
Youth Ministry International believes that the best strategy to reach young people is to train youth workers who will then train others. We call it “Training the Trainers.”
The effectiveness of this approach was evident when a YMI trainer was teaching alongside an individual in Mexico he had the privilege to train.
While teaching the Youth and Family Ministry class at the Mexican Baptist Theological Seminary a former student, Josue Lara, who had taken the course previously was able to add his ministry experience to the discussion and share with the students how he had implemented these principles in his local church in Mexico.
It was exciting to see how God has worked in Josue’s life since the time he was a freshman in the youth ministry class. He is now an experienced youth worker who speaks with authority. He is more than qualified and gifted to “teach others also.”
Another former student who graduated from our Center for Youth Ministry in Cuba led a workshop on youth ministry to Spanish speaking church youth leaders in Miami. Darwin taught the second half of the workshop, and he, too, demonstrated the ability to effectively teach others about the process of discipleship in youth ministry.
These are just two of over 2,000 graduates that Youth Ministry International has trained over the years. Each has a story, and many are training others, multiplying the ministry and helping youth workers around the world as they reach out to youth.