Youth Worker On Fire Podcast

About Youth Worker On Fire Podcast

Today's youth need youth pastors, mentors, teachers, volunteers, and most of all, they need YOU! Youth Worker On Fire is designed to give you the knowledge and inspiration you need to be the best youth worker possible. Youth Worker On Fire podcast is full of valuable information from people who work with youth on a daily basis. It is also packed with interviews with former students (years later) in their adult life and how student ministry, or the lack of it, effected their future. Many are are changing their world and the world at large because of the influence of youth workers in their adolescent years. Listen as they share their stories of mentoring and positively influencing adolescents in today's world.

Publisher

Doug Edwards

Category

education · religion & spirituality

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

23 Aug 2016

Latest episode

21 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

330 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   21 Oct 2026

   Can You Still Talk to People?

   We can text, DM, email, and talk to AI all day - but are we losing the ability to actually connect with people face-to-face? Doug Edwards explores the communication skills every youth pastor, volunteer, parent, teacher, and mentor needs to reach teenagers and build stronger relationships. Drawing from Matthew 10:16, communication research from Vanessa Van Edwards, and her book Conversation: How to Connect with Anyone & Make Every Interaction Count, Doug looks at reading social cues, understanding different personalities, making conversation count, and becoming someone people actually want to talk to. Because knowing what to say matters, but knowing how to connect may matter even more. Listen to more episodes from the Youth Worker On Fire Podcast here: https://bit.ly/3saDyYq (https://bit.ly/3saDyYq) _________________________________________________________________________________ 📬 Stay connected: Email: youthworkeronfire@gmail.com Rate ★★★★★ & share with youth workers who dream big for the Kingdom. Looking for a new student ministry resource? You can read my book "Burn Up Not Out: A Student Ministry Fire Builder's Guidebook (https://amzn.to/3PtBTIy)" here: https://amzn.to/3PtBTIy EPISODE CREDITS Email us at: youthworkeronfire@gmail.com (mailto:youthworkeronfire@gmail.com) Hosted by: Doug Edwards Theme Song: "The One and Only" by The 808 : Listen to more at https://bit.ly/3FTYIAJ Intro/Outro Voiceover: Michael Helms: https://www.youtube.com/@MichaelTheSoundGuy Edited by: Secret Roots Music House (https://www.secretrootsmusichouse.com/) PODCAST EPISODE TOPICS: Communication, Conversation, Youth, Ministry, Students, Teenagers, Leadership, Parents, Volunteers, Teachers, Schools, Mentoring, Relationships, Listening, Social, Skills, Jesus, Christian, Technology, AI

2. 

   14 Oct 2026

   Stop Calling Them the Future of the Church

   What if calling young people "the future of the church" is actually part of the problem? In this episode of Youth Worker On Fire, Doug Edwards challenges churches, youth pastors, volunteers, parents, and ministry leaders to stop treating the next generation like they're waiting for their turn. Through examples from a multigenerational church in Singapore, experience in the Youth for Christ ministry, student missions, and next-gen discipleship, Doug explores what happens when young people are given real opportunities to lead, serve, pray, own their faith, and learn alongside older generations. Reaching students isn't enough. We have to disciple them for a lifetime. That means moving beyond programs alone and intentionally helping Gen Z, Gen Alpha, teenagers, college students, and young adults develop spiritual maturity, leadership, and a faith they can carry into the future. And sometimes the greatest impact doesn't become visible until years later. Doug shares the story of a former student who went on mission trips with him as a teenager and later told him those experiences changed her life. The next generation doesn't only need a place in the church someday. They need someone willing to invest in them, trust them, and bring them into the mission today. Listen to more episodes from the Youth Worker On Fire Podcast here: https://bit.ly/3saDyYq (https://bit.ly/3saDyYq) _________________________________________________________________________________ 📬 Stay connected: Email: youthworkeronfire@gmail.com Rate ★★★★★ & share with youth workers who dream big for the Kingdom. Looking for a new student ministry resource? You can read my book "Burn Up Not Out: A Student Ministry Fire Builder's Guidebook (https://amzn.to/3PtBTIy)" here: https://amzn.to/3PtBTIy EPISODE CREDITS Email us at: youthworkeronfire@gmail.com (mailto:youthworkeronfire@gmail.com) Hosted by: Doug Edwards Theme Song: "The One and Only" by The 808 : Listen to more at https://bit.ly/3FTYIAJ Intro/Outro Voiceover: Michael Helms: https://www.youtube.com/@MichaelTheSoundGuy Edited by: Secret Roots Music House (https://www.secretrootsmusichouse.com/) PODCAST EPISODE TOPICS: Youth, Ministry, Leadership, NextGen, Students, Pastor, Volunteers, Discipleship, Mentoring, GenZ, GenAlpha, Church, Jesus, Christian, Faith, Missions, Parents, Generations, Evangelism, Development

3. 

   7 Oct 2026

   Burnout: How to Rest Before You Break

   Feeling burned out in ministry? If you're constantly overwhelmed, pushing harder may be making things worse. In this episode of Youth Worker On Fire, Doug Edwards talks directly to driven youth pastors, ministry volunteers, parents, coaches, teachers, and Christian leaders who struggle to slow down. When your calling matters deeply and people are constantly on your mind, rest can feel irresponsible, but ignoring your limits can eventually affect your ministry, health, marriage, family, and relationship with God. Doug reflects on his own seasons of overwork and collapse and turns to Matthew 11, where Jesus tells the weary and burdened, "Come to me…and I will give you rest." This episode explores the difference between carrying God's calling and carrying burdens we were never meant to place on ourselves. You'll hear encouragement about ministry burnout, Christian leadership, sabbaticals, boundaries, trusting God instead of your own productivity, and learning to recognize when Jesus is telling you to stop and rest. Whether you're a full-time youth pastor, part-time student minister, volunteer youth worker, Christian parent, grandparent, teacher, or coach, this episode is a reminder that you do not have to destroy yourself to prove that you're faithful. Scripture: Matthew 11:28–30 Youth Worker On Fire exists to encourage and equip youth pastors, youth ministry volunteers, parents, and everyone investing in the next generation. Subscribe and share this episode with another ministry leader who needs permission to rest. Listen to more episodes from the Youth Worker On Fire Podcast here: https://bit.ly/3saDyYq (https://bit.ly/3saDyYq) _________________________________________________________________________________ 📬 Stay connected: Email: youthworkeronfire@gmail.com Rate ★★★★★ & share with youth workers who dream big for the Kingdom. Looking for a new student ministry resource? You can read my book "Burn Up Not Out: A Student Ministry Fire Builder's Guidebook (https://amzn.to/3PtBTIy)" here: https://amzn.to/3PtBTIy EPISODE CREDITS Email us at: youthworkeronfire@gmail.com (mailto:youthworkeronfire@gmail.com) Hosted by: Doug Edwards Theme Song: "The One and Only" by The 808 : Listen to more at https://bit.ly/3FTYIAJ Intro/Outro Voiceover: Michael Helms: https://www.youtube.com/@MichaelTheSoundGuy Edited by: Secret Roots Music House (https://www.secretrootsmusichouse.com/) PODCAST EPISODE TOPICS: youth, ministry, burnout, rest, pastor, students, volunteers, leadership, Christian, overwhelmed, stress, sabbatical, boundaries, Jesus, Matthew, faith, calling, parents, exhaustion, encouragement

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.9 / 5

11 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

4 ratings

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Guest appearances

Books guests

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