JOHN O. GOOCH is a free-lance writer and editor. He is a veteran of more than 40 years in youth ministry, at the local church, district, conference, jurisdictional, and national levels of The United Methodist Church. A native of Missouri, John is a retired pastor who currently is a youth ministry consultant, a youth Sunday school teacher, a Stephens Ministry leader, and a frequent writer of United Methodist curriculum resources, both for youth and for adults.  

Leadership in youth ministry is constantly changing. Every year there are adult youth workers who are new to the task. In response to questions frequently asked by youth ministry workers, Gooch provides practical information about how to do youth ministry. Written in a Q & A format, 103 Questions addresses questions Gooch has encountered in workshops with youth workers, examining the following areas: Building community; dealing with discipline; topics/resources (how to select, where to find information you need); long-range planning/how to get youth to take ownership of the process; getting youth more involved; balancing spiritual growth, learning, and fun; characteristics of a good youth counselor; recruiting and training volunteers; involving parents; getting support from the congregation; ways to combat youth resistance to Sunday school; how to stay in touch with the problems youth are experiencing.  

103 Questions Youth Workers Ask was originally published in 2003 by Discipleship Resources and is now out of print. John O. Gooch owns the publishing rights and grants YouthWorker Movement members permission to download this book for their own learning. Permission is not granted to reproduce additional copies or sell this to other people. 

(Downloadable Chapters are available in PDF format by clicking the Chapter titles below.) 

Table of Contents and Introduction 
Building Christian Community 
Dealing With Discipline 
Topics/Resources 
Long-Range Planning and Youth Ownership 
Getting Youth More Involved 
Balancing Spiritual Growth, Learning, and Fun 
What Makes a Good Counselor 
Recruiting and Training Volunteers 
Involving Parents in Youth Ministry 
Getting Support From the Congregation 
Sunday School is Sooo Boring 
Old Stuff and New Stuff 
For Professionals Only
Youth Ministry Resources
For Further Reading