In the past couple of years, one of the consistent requests was for training materials for Core Members. Youth ministers were constantly looking for something that would help train, form and strengthen the Core team. We have always been quick to offer practical training on the “how-to’s” of being a Core member, whether at a Core Member University training event or in the Core Handbook resource. But ministry is so much more than knowing what to do; it always comes back to the why. The personal relationship with Christ and prayer life of a Core member is much more important that his/ her ability to give a talk or be in a skit. To grow as a ministry, we must first look at the heart of who we are and who we are called to be.
It is out of that desire that we published Core Values: a Spiritual Guide for Core Members. Taking the seven Core Values of Life Teen as a framework, this book addresses the spirituality of Life Teen and how it calls us as ministers to a deeper relationship with Christ and His Church. But we did not want to stop at just a book. We believe that these Core Values can radically transform your ministry and your ministers.
This Core retreat resource takes the Core Values book and breaks it open in a retreat format. Our prayer is that this resource will allow you to honestly evaluate which Core Values are being lived out in the ministry and which ones need attention. It is written with flexibility in the scheduling; it can be a weekend retreat, a day of reflection, or a series of weeknight prayer meetings.