What makes a Lock-in Successful?

Have a Bible Study? Naaaaaaaaaah. Probably not.

Joseph Botwinick

 

Tim, I think it depends on what your definition of "successful" is? What are you wanting to accomplish?

 

Throw away the key?

 

keep the evening fast-paced

overplan, overplan, overplan...some of your games that you thought would go an hour will bomb in five minutes

Where are you having this lock-in? Location determines a great deal of what you can do.

One thing that will keep your JH boys in particular happy is setting up a bunch of video games. We set up about 15 TV's as well as our projection system in our sanctuary for games. PRE-SCREEN THE GAMES though.

Don't think that you'll manage any spirituality after about 2:30-3 a.m. That's unlikely to happen. If they get still, they're gone anyway.

Big, strategy "capture the flag" type games are good for events like these.

Tell us more about your spiritual goals for the event...do you want to accomplish them through small-group times? Through teaching and/or worship? What are your thoughts?

God bless ya. I just did a d'now weekend and "lock-in" is a curse word.

 

I think rbell gives some great advice. Have a game plan and have a purpose for everything you do.

Honestly, I have never had much success with lock-ins when I was a youth pastor. The fellowship was always great, but it is an awful lot of work just for fellowship. I think that is why I read one guy say that youth lock-ins were the baptist equivalent of purgatory

Hopefully you can get some spiritual things accomplished.

 

Mama dont do lock-ins na more.

We have done lock-outs before that is pretty much activity based. Instead of lockins, we usually do Disciple Nows.

 

Its kinda like a retreat, but its often held in peoples homes. Different grades go to different homes for snacks, sleep and Bible study sessions. All meet back at a central location for games, recreation, worship and food. Some people do them differently. When I do them, I like to use our ASsociational camp facility and we dont need host homes. But i do take adult leaders to lead in whatever we are doing in small groups.
I think its pretty much an SBC activity, am I right yall?

 

Mostly SBC, but I know of other denoms that do it.

I do DiscipleNow (d'now) weekends annually. I work between 600-700 hours total on them...they are a very big deal for our church and student ministry. We do ours totally in-house, with a speaker, band, and group leaders from around the southeast. This year, I also wrote our curriculum. It was based on 1 Peter 2:9-12; theme: "This Ain't Home."

D'now weekends are worth it. You'll see tremendous growth in the students' walks with God, and in addition the small group atmosphere fosters some good accountability.

Holler if you want more specifics (schedule, ideas, etc.)

 

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.
Always looking for new ideas.

 

I've only been to one lock-in before. It was like two years ago at Vineyard Church of Columbus. We went to church at like 7 at night and had bible study til 9:30. Then we had a bunch of assisstant youth pastors drive us to a YMCA in Westerville that was like 5 minutes away. They had an indoor pool, running track, tennis and basketball courts, TV rooms, a climbing wall, an exercise room, and a food court that was completely free that night. It had cotton candy too! We stayed there that night and then we went back to the church at 6 in the morning and had bible group til 7:30. It was a lot of fun.

 

Structure.

Continuous activity.

Food.

Purpose deliniated ahead of time and well defined.

Plenty of adult support and presence.

 

Make sure you notify the police ahead of time too!

Back when I was a "youth" one lock-in the pastor forgot to tell the cops about it (which I guess he usually did, it was a rural church). All the blinds were drawn with the lights on. The cops suspected a break-in, so they snuck in a door thru the kitchen and a few of the youth were there and the cops pulled their guns on them and yelled "freeze!".

 

A good theme is a plus. Our Narnia (gasp) retreat is coming up soon, and it really is a lock-in with a theme. It will be at the church and there will be lots of activities through out it, but there will be a "bedtime". Mama gots ta sleep!

 

yes, 'edtimes' are important

 

(dang, youre fast, SFIC!!)