Youth Ministry Booster

Youth Ministry Trends 2026: Predicting Win Lose Meme

• Youth Ministry Booster • Episode 300

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Cleaner, Braver, More Effective: Youth Ministry in 2026

In this episode of Youth Ministry Booster, Zac and Chad lay our cards on the table, personal stakes, ministry wins we’re chasing, habits we’re cutting, and the simple shifts that actually build momentum with teenagers.

🌦️ Cultural Forecast: Where Teen Attention Is Really Going

Teen culture is shifting—and the old plays aren’t working like they used to.

  • Teens are less platform-hopping and more rooted in one primary lane
  • The “grow your Instagram” for the sake of reach is a strategy that is losing effectiveness
  • Vanity metrics are fading; trusted circles are winning

If reach is fragmenting, trust is the new algorithm.

🏆 The Big Youth Ministry Win for 2026: Practical Evangelism

The most effective move forward is surprisingly old-school:

Teach students how to share their faith simply and confidently.

We break it down into repeatable tools:

  • A 2-minute personal testimony
  • One gospel verse every student memorizes
  • Three conversation-opening questions for real-life moments

Pair that with a program shift:

  • Less content, more confidence
  • Proverbs over lectures
  • Make the move to Coaching over Influencing

End every gathering, every week with one crystal-clear action step students can actually live out this week.

🔄 From More Content to More Confidence

Instead of piling on teaching:

  • Build repeatable prayers and rhythms
  • Reinforce the same tools until students own them
  • Measure success by clarity and courage, not coverage

Confidence compounds when expectations are clear and doable.

🎮 Rethinking Games, Hangouts, and Connection

Let’s be honest—forced mixers and tired screen games aren’t doing the work anymore.

We suggest:

  • Structured hangout time instead of awkward programmatic icebreakers
  • Simple competitions with small stakes
  • Leader-led engagement that models participation

Connection grows when leaders go first and environments feel safe, playful, and intentional.


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SPEAKER_00:

Snap. Hey, welcome back to a new year. Hey, happy new year's Chad Youth Ministry with your podcast 2026, man. This is we're going on year 11 of this. Thoughts? Got a little gray in the beard.

SPEAKER_02:

Dude, I have gotten much more gray since we started this movie.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh, yes, yes.

SPEAKER_00:

Your boy. I mean, well, Isaiah was an infant. He was laying on the floor, dude. He was laying on the floor. No, it's watched, it's fun to watch him big now. So we are recording this at the very end of 2025, but we were going to do some New Year's predictions for youth ministry, uh, some projections for ministry, and then some maybe some resolutions or predictions for us. We thought it would be fun. We want you to play along at home. Uh, we're gonna record these answers, review them in December of 2026 to see how well we knew what was coming for you. We've all been around the block enough to know uh that there are some trends that happen in ministry, some ups, some downs, and some memes. So, Chad Higgins, let's start it personally though. Oh. Uh, this year for you, what are some things maybe so so the game is this it's win, lose, and meme. So win-lose meme. Like what's a thing that's gonna be like a win? Uh, we'll talk about it personally and then for us in ministry, something to lose, something to kick to the curb, throw behind us, no longer participating in, and then meme. We're gonna predict meme. So right now, in this moment of December 2025, if you would have said this is the year of six, seven, um, you would have been been, you would have won. You you would have won. We would have hated you, but we would, we would have won. Nobody would have believed you, but we you would have won. So uh, so personally, Chad Higgins, win-lose meme. Uh how do you want to play the game and go?

SPEAKER_02:

All right. So when, so we just want to talk personal. We're talking personal first. Like for the 2026, the year that Chad Higgins will win by and by the way, all of this episode, as we talk about it, the the big hope for you all is that you're thinking about and setting goals for the year, right? Like what are you wanting to see happen, all of those kind of things. Um, personal win for me in 2026 is I'm I'm gonna go, I'm gonna go back to my my my chess roots here. Okay. On 2026.

SPEAKER_00:

Return to the competitive scene? We're gonna we're gonna we're gonna put the stake of the claim out there a little bit. Um we win it, we win in a biggie, winning a big one this year. No, we're probably not gonna win anything. But competing, competing at a high level?

SPEAKER_02:

I wasn't gonna say that, but now that you're saying it. Come on, do it.

SPEAKER_00:

Do we want to cheer for you? Let us follow your journey.

SPEAKER_02:

I okay, 2026. Chad's gonna go back to Over the Table? The Oklahoma Chess Championship.

unknown:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

When is this? How can we follow along? Over the board. We love over the board chat. You're gonna go to at least one larger tournament? Give us one one tournament to follow.

SPEAKER_02:

You really no, yeah, I don't want to give updates. That's embarrassing. No, dude, it's very important. They just walk in and get wrecked. No, it's okay. I'll follow along and tag it. Yeah, I don't know. I'll have to look up. I literally chess, though. Maybe I think I'm gonna I want to compete in another big tournament or big open.

SPEAKER_00:

Chess chess chess chad.com. Yeah, you can follow chess chad.com.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, I have so much work to do now. Um yeah, okay. Yes, yes, okay.

SPEAKER_00:

That's fair. That's fair. Mine's a lot of work too, so I'll just I'll I'll co-conspire with you. This is the year I'm gonna write more. Um, I got the bug for when we got to the book last year. We have some other projects in the works, and so been writing a lot for school. We're gonna write for a lot of other purposes too. Rearrange the office to be more writer-friendly. Um, so if you don't see more published writing stuff from Zach either in blog, newsletter, or book form this year, um, then put my feet to the fire. So come on, come on. That's how we're gonna win this year. We're gonna write a whole lot. So what are you losing? But not chess games. Losing chess games.

SPEAKER_02:

That's also probably gonna lose to a nine-year-old at the chess opening. The wins and the loses. Yes, yes, yes. Um Golly. If you have any good openings in black, I'm struggling and and black pieces.

SPEAKER_01:

That chess support channel, yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, I listen.

SPEAKER_01:

I chessbooster.com.

SPEAKER_02:

I I play a lot of the Kings Indian, and it's just my middle game is not strong. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Does it fold?

SPEAKER_02:

Um, okay, so the loss for me personally, what am I getting rid of?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, like you're like, it's in the rear view. Let's lose this habit, let's lose this thing, let's lose this trend.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, um, man, I I would say, so if you know me personally, and I haven't talked about this on podcasts, uh over the last two years, I've been on a pretty big like weight loss journey.

SPEAKER_00:

So I've I've noticed whether you've been on they've talked about it or not, dude. I I see it. I see it.

SPEAKER_02:

So yeah, so it's been a slow gradual um from my absolute heaviest. I'm I'm down almost 70 pounds.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, buddy, come on.

SPEAKER_02:

Um, and so I but I've stalled for a long time. So I'm not gaining, but I'm just like sitting. Okay. Um, and I gotta reboost. Okay, I gotta re-gotta re-launch.

SPEAKER_00:

We're gonna relaunch. Come on. Yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_02:

So yeah, it's not that I've been doing bad. I just like, you know how you hit these like plateaus where like what has been working isn't working. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Well, and that's the that's the challenge, right? To like to give up or to return and not to push through. No, that's good. That's good.

SPEAKER_02:

That's that's where I'm at. That's what I'm I'm I'm losing pounds, but I'm I'm losing there. There's I think at every milestone along the journey, like you have to like re-engage in a different way, especially with something like that. That your body will get like used to what you've been doing, even if those are good habits that have gotten you somewhere. You still gotta mix it up. You've got to mix it up.

SPEAKER_00:

That's good. Okay.

SPEAKER_02:

Uh, I'm gonna lose the clutter.

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, dude, I know, I know.

SPEAKER_02:

Zach working, that means you may not be able to like buy something off of Facebook.

SPEAKER_00:

Listen, man, we are in the middle of it right now. Uh, have already got rid of four tubs worth of junk. Uh, and we are uh if anybody wants uh men's XL on Poshmark, hit me up at old Z at Zach Working on the Poshmark uh because the stuff is going. No, I just um again turned 40 this year, and I have things that I like and I have things that I don't wear, and I have gear that I thought I was gonna use and I'm not gonna use. And none of it's like it it was all bought with intention, and then it just kind of like, I don't know. I'm I'm I'm a sucker for a deal. I don't know if anybody else feels that way. When they flash those rolling back prices and clearance tags, I think that's uh like a personally coded message for me. Yeah, and I gotta have it. And so this year we're gonna clutter less. So it's it's it's this is a big one, right? This is a big one, yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

You and I, you and I are so similar in so many ways, except this one. Like for years, I could never, I could never in my life, uh, and nothing bad. Like, I get it. I a hundred percent get it. I think it's just a little bit of the wiring. The minute I see something on sale, you assume it's like, well, I'm the only one. If they if they want to give it away, why would I want it?

SPEAKER_00:

See, that's those are those like psychological little things that you and I differ on that I think make us a strong team, but also like when you say it that way, I'm like, yeah, yeah, I understand. I know, no, that does that's a that is a good rationale. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Where I'm just like, dude, I saved$40. And you're like, you didn't need it at$80. Why would you need it at 40? And I'm like, God.

unknown:

Right.

SPEAKER_02:

Well, and I just, yeah, like, especially with product. Yeah. Like if you put your product on sale, yeah, I'm just like, oh, so you need it out of your warehouse.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

To to clear up rooms.

SPEAKER_00:

They bought too much, so you shouldn't buy too much of what they bought too much of. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

Well, because then my assumption is like, okay, well, they obviously believe in what's coming after it.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. They like that more than what they have now.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, so they got to get rid of that one. So, like, let's let me wait another month to see what the new one is. To see what the new one is, because it's probably gonna be better.

SPEAKER_00:

That's good. Okay. Um, meme of the year, meme of the year. This this can be like this can be our transition into youth ministry stuff. All right. Not your meme of the year, but for like teenagers today, like what do you think is like again to the game. All right, I'm making a prediction. Okay.

SPEAKER_02:

Here's my prediction. I think we I think we experience another loss of something.

SPEAKER_00:

Okay.

SPEAKER_02:

I think this is uh this is a return of a Harambe type Oh, that unites the people.

SPEAKER_00:

Like like there's there's a there's some kind of like unifying tragedy. Okay.

SPEAKER_02:

But but but yeah, that but that is like a tragedy in like a um yeah, a way like a zoo animal.

SPEAKER_00:

In in a viral way, like a like a like a zoo animal, or like um, like we we lost all the Nikes overboard or whatever. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I think there's some there's something Crocs as a company closes, like the end of Crocs or something, yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

And then we get those like memes of like Abraham Lincoln, yeah, you know, Mr. T in the clouds, you know, with a cloak.

SPEAKER_00:

Looking, you know. Okay. Um Do you have any predilection on if it's gonna be like you think like like like an animal or like like I don't know, I just something I feel like a unifying force. It's been a few years since we've had that. Yeah, the last bumblebee. Yeah. Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

That's actually bad. That's real bad. If you don't know, that's real bad.

SPEAKER_00:

See, I was gonna say, so um, I think if we're gonna get another unifying like social good campaign, like like the ice bucket ice water challenge. Oh, it has been a minute. It's been a it's been a minute, and I feel like next year's gonna be a tough year. It's a tough, I I think somebody's gonna do like some kind of pay it forward, like, you know, uh, I I gave X dollars to this. Now you have to. Some kind of like not forced charity, but like everybody's buying each other's Chick-fil-A things, but there's some kind of like twist.

SPEAKER_02:

Stepping on mouse traps for gout. Yes, right? Yes, yeah, yeah. We're gonna rally with the people with gallery.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, pinky in the brain. That's right. Yeah, no, it's a whole just uh losing pinkies for gout. No, there's there's gonna be some kind of like social push for something, and I think it probably will be like an economic bent, maybe it's an illness or something, but there's some kind of like rallying force that tries to the only thing I have hesitation about is like the social media stuff is starting to polarize so much. I don't know where it's gonna start, right? Because before there was enough cross-generational stuff on Facebook, like I guess it'll start on TikTok. I don't know, because that's where like everything's kind of stratifying so much that like I don't know. I feel like more and more users of a social platform only use one, right? I don't think people are cross-posting as much. And so if you live on Instagram, you're on Instagram. If you're on Snap, you're on Snap. If you're on TikTok, you're on TikTok. So I'm curious there, but I do think some kind of like economic, charitable, pay it forward thing is is coming. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

It'll probably start on LinkedIn.

SPEAKER_00:

A lot of they're due for oh my gosh. It's the recommend challenge. It's I recommend. Yes. Oh, that's it. They're due. Oh, dear LinkedIn. If you want any ideas, you can hit us up in the show notes below. Holy, that's it. LinkedIn learning.

SPEAKER_02:

LinkedIn starting a viral crazy.

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, it's a chain chain, it's a it's a chain linked in. It's a chain linked. Oh no. Oh my god. Wow. Okay.

SPEAKER_02:

Like 900 people asking for some sort of like me to buy into their like um marketing campaign.

SPEAKER_00:

Small biz startup sprint. No thanks.$2, too good. Student ministry. Student ministry, so win, lose, student ministry. So this is predictive. No, not predictive, suggestive. So now it's like, so what do you think? If you were gonna, if if someone was gonna sit down with you in youth ministry, brand new year, and they're like, okay, I can't do it all. If you want me to double down in something that you think is the big win this year, what do you think the big win is? So uh a few years ago, it wasn't as formal as this challenge, but when we were with trainers, we talked about introducing elements of silence in your ministry because everything felt really noisy. So that was the like, if you're gonna do one thing, that was what I that's that was kind of my recommendation 23 into 24. But from 25 and 26, what do you think, what do you think it should be?

SPEAKER_02:

I think here's what I think.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

Um teaching, uh giving students a practical way for evangelism.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay.

SPEAKER_02:

I think I think that I I think returning to that, I think that was really strong. Yeah almost 20 years ago. Yeah, right. Like student ministries were teaching kids whether it was like Roman Road or the Bridge Method or those type of things.

SPEAKER_00:

Like tract-esque, like it distilled down, like like hyper focused.

SPEAKER_02:

I I think I think this generation of kids are as a whole pretty passionate about their faith.

SPEAKER_00:

Yes.

SPEAKER_02:

I think if we're gonna really We're about to sync up here, but keep going. I think we're really looking at like some cultural things over the last year.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

I think with Charlie Kirk, I think you have some boldness of faith.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah and I think that some desire for courage, but direction.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, and I think that they're moving away a little bit from this solely social media push to like relational elements. And so I I think I think practically teaching them how to share their faith would be a very big win. Honestly, I think starting now, but over the next five years, yeah. Um, I think the student ministries that do this really well, yeah. I think you're gonna see, I think you're gonna see a good number of students come to know.

SPEAKER_00:

That's good. That's good. Well, so uh in a similar vein, what I was gonna offer is less content, more confidence or conviction.

SPEAKER_02:

There you go.

SPEAKER_00:

Uh I think youth ministry has been dominated by what are we gonna teach, and not, hear me say the difference, what are we hoping they learn? Yeah. It's small. Um, so the the two the two things inside of the one is I think our formats for our programs should be structured enough that there is a real concrete expectation. Like either we're praying the same thing every week, or um we have certain prayer times or scripture readings that are repeatable just to give a confidence, like this is a prayer that I could learn, a scripture I could memorize.

SPEAKER_02:

So instead of trying to cover a way to share the gospel, or a way to share the gospel. Let's link up on this.

SPEAKER_00:

Well, so the but the other one I was gonna offer is I would encourage every youth pastor, prepare your lesson to teach something, but I would have you every time you get up in front of them, that there is some proactive, hyper-specific wisdom moment. Like, whether it's hey this week, spend your money on this, hey this week, like in a way that is like, I don't know, the the tension that I feel right now is that we're moving out of the I think influencer age to the coach age and like carving up the next steps for students. There should be no doubt after spending time with you on our Sunday or Wednesday, what I should do this week. It should be we we we've gotta go, we've gotta go uh um from epistles to proverbs, yeah, is how I would paint it. And so again, that can look a little different every ministry, but if I sit with you on a Wednesday, it should be crystalline clear to the room what I should do this week in a way that is like prescriptive. Yeah, it's good. Fair? Fair? Love it. Okay, yeah. Like I that's that's how I'm I'm I'm doubling down on that this year. Okay. So what are we losing? What are we getting rid of? Because also I'll go ahead and say lose first because you already said mine. I think hear me, this is this is a hot take. I think we lose social media. I don't, I don't think we lose social video and social interaction. I think we lose chasing down trying to grow a social media account. Like, take that out of what you're trying to do. I think I think I think if you have one, great, but the emphasis is sharing in a social circle instead of trying to grow that bad boy to the point that like if it's not very big anyway, just send them in a group me or a group mess, a series of group messages. Like, I think the the mass of people, I think students are starting to be less and less interested in social. And so for us to try to like hype the machine, I don't care. You should use social tools. I think we should find ways to share videos and stories and connections and and ask questions between services, but like trying to like grow your Instagram this year, get out of here. I'm out, I'm out. Trying to like launch a youth group TikTok this year. If you don't have one, don't. That that that's my that's my encouragement. Like if you don't have it already, don't lose it. And make sure you actually are ministering to the ones that are in the room because of what you said about sharing faith. I think there's a courage there, and they see how thin and hollow it can be online. And so, yes, that's a part of their life, but it's becoming increasingly a lessening part of their life. Okay, that's my target. Yep.

SPEAKER_02:

What do I think they need to lose?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, as a youth, like if like give us one less thing to work on, give us one less thing to worry about.

SPEAKER_02:

I so I don't know if this is a full loss, but I think it's time if you haven't already to start to think about doing things differently.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay.

SPEAKER_02:

I think I think the old way of doing games is done. Oh, okay. I'm yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

I I think that in the multiple choice question of what kind of games you should play, Chad says D, none of the above.

SPEAKER_02:

Well, they're either screen games that are boring, yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Um or they're Stop calling screen games games, is that what you think? Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

Well, or it's just like um it's a forced mixer thing. A forced mixer thing.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, right?

SPEAKER_02:

That like is obviously somewhat awkward.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

You normally have like two kids that want to play and everybody else it's like don't worry about it.

SPEAKER_00:

Grudgingly play. Yeah, yeah, yeah. They're like on their phone, like ah, fine.

SPEAKER_02:

I think that there's ways, as you've talked about, of connecting. Remember the reason that we play games.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

The reason we play games is to either create energy or for connection.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

That I don't think we should lose. Okay. I think we should fight very hard for that.

SPEAKER_00:

Okay. Connection in, game out.

SPEAKER_02:

I think though we've gone into a rut of we do the same type of thing every day. So it's like I'm gonna go to Walmart, I'm gonna get three supplies, yeah, play this weird game that is not really that engaging.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. Well or games that we would never play on our own. Like, like pick a game that you would actually like if the activity is something that we actually would do. for fun and not just the fill time. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

And I I think I think getting creative and how we do that and what we're thinking about. I still think that there should be an element of fun. Yeah. I do think though that we've need to reimagine what that could look like.

SPEAKER_00:

That's good.

SPEAKER_02:

I I think specifically as our culture's changing opportunities for a fun way of just getting kids up and talking with each other that's directed or or or taught, I think is just as engaging as putting peanut butter on somebody's face or whatever.

SPEAKER_00:

Throwing Cheetos on the shaving crane. Right. Burning their eyes because we forgot to buy the safety goggles with the side panels.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah I just I feel like that that kind of time period is changing a little bit. And I think that I think ways to engage in some fun thoughtfulness in there is different.

SPEAKER_00:

And even if we have to have like time for middle school students to run right that we're the game may just be sprints to the dumpster and back. Well fastest foot race for seventh graders.

SPEAKER_02:

But to realize like the the up the before the program starts is our fun.

SPEAKER_00:

And like thinking about the whole night as a whole but structure too like that's so that's one thing I would if I can piggyback um I I I I hear what you're saying and I'm with you for like games that no one wants to play but you can't just label something hangout time. Like hangout time is a structured element. Like like having Nintendo Switch turned on and having a like ping pong table in the room is not hangout time. Like that's those are the the resources for it but having someone run a Mario Kart tournament on the Switch or a jungle pong game like that's that's the hangout time. Hangout time isn't the doors are open the lights are on yeah like hangout time is either there's leaders or student leaders that are directing the so to borrow from our event friends these are activations that should activate people. Like it's we don't just have couches and coffee we've got you know conversation starter questions or we've got a connect for tournament that the winner gets you know Starbucks credit. And that's like that's what like that's what's happening is a connect for tournament.

SPEAKER_02:

And it's like oh oh okay yeah yeah yeah and you can play or not but there's stakes and there's excitement and and that's what I'm for like I'm still if you're hearing me as saying well Chad doesn't think we need to have fun on what's hang dude we're just gonna hang till we start it's yeah it's either this like we don't actually have anything and we've just thrown elements in the room yeah or we're playing these cheesy old games that aren't connecting with Sudan and I I just think that we've got to come back to something in life.

SPEAKER_00:

Competition competit uh competition and connection are are like the secret sauce to the game not the actual what the game was itself. So but we want to hear from you uh it's 2026 it's a knocking on the door of what's new next year. So what's your win your lose or your meme? Drop them in the comments below and we'll come back and revisit it later this year. So happy new year wherever you're at wherever you're doing uh and we'll see you again next week

Head Shot

Chad Higgins

Host
Head Shot

Zac Workun

Host

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