Youth Ministry’s a Pain in the Neck, and Back, and Butt!

The things we go through doing student ministry are staggering…and sometimes stupid! 

My students thoroughly enjoy the absurd games that we partake in each week: Stuffed Animal Dodgeball, Bologna Face, The Shoe Game 🙂 
Last night I added a new one suggested by our curriculum xP3. Something similar to King of the Hill, however King of the Bean Bags needs no hill.

King of the Bean Bags goes down like this:

• Setup: 
•  2 giant bean bag chairs are in the center of the room
• Form a circle around the bean bags with each person connected to the person next to them by a rope. We used tube socks because I can pick up a pack from Wal-Mart for 8 bucks and they’re stretchable and it’s simple!
• Play: 
• You want to pull/swing the others into the bean bags!
• If you touch the bean bags in the center – you’re out! If you let go of your sock – you’re out! If you kick the player next to you – you’re out!
• The circle gets smaller and smaller until there’s only 2 left.
• The final player is the King of the Bean Bags

Simple enough? Sure! But we have quite the competitive group of guys! It didn’t take them long at all to figure out if they simply teamed up with the player(s) next to them that they could eliminate the students across from them and then end up as the last 2/3 players to duke it out together. 

After a round or two, those fateful awful words that every Youth Pastor dreads were uttered aloud: LET’S GET THE OLD MAN OUT! 

OLD MAN?!?! EXCUSE ME???? I’M NOT EVEN 30!! EXCUSE ME!!!  IT IS ON LIKE DONKEY KONG FOOLS!!! 

A few rounds later I was yanked pretty viciously by the other side of the circle, I launched myself over the bean bags, the student next to me released his sock, with the tension from one arm released, the other side of students were able to pull me pretty quickly around, I barrel rolled midair and came down on the ground flat on my back…well actually on my butt and my neck! 

“Holy Hangover” doesn’t even scratch the surface as to how I feel this morning. I’ve been moving a bit slowly nursing some Alleve. I’m sure the bruises will surface today. Pics coming soon.
All that being said…I LOVED every minute of it and given the chance would do it all over again! Wait, I do have that chance…it’s coming in 6 days 🙂  

What’d you do yesterday?