MoreThanDodgeball.com - the huge evangelical youth work blog - has a great piece asking how long it's possible to go on in youth ministry for. Here's a slice...

Congratulations, you made it to the summer and for most of us it is another notch in the youth ministry belt. Doesn't matter how long you've been in youth ministry, when another year passes by you look back at how far you've come and then you might find yourself asking, "How long can I really do youth ministry?"

It's not a question of, "Is it time to quit?" because that's a result of frustration and burn out. Pondering your longevity is healthy question because let's face it one day your time will come to hang up the flip-flops and t-shirts. One day you will not be the youth minister of the church in which you currently reside. By asking this question you begin the process of doing something every youth minister should do which is REPLACE YOURSELF.

But, how do you go about doing so? How does one replace them selves without picking a date? It starts with:

Casting Vision: Your ministry can't be about you otherwise it will crumble when you depart. Creating a vision means creating a destination that goes beyond you. It's about what you feel God has called you to lead and one-day hand off. In order to make this happen you need to share the vision of your ministry with your team, your students and the church so that they can carry it forward even after you are gone.

Go, read the rest...