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July 11, 2026

Foundations

Foundations is a course designed to help you build a healthy youth group where young people can grow.

A healthy youth ministry doesn’t just happen. It requires intentional effort and purposeful leadership.

Foundations is a course that helps you look to Jesus as the ultimate model for ministry.

During the first thirty years of His life, Jesus “grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man” (Luke 2:52). We call this His Preparation Phase.

The Foundations Phase began when Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan River and stepped into His public ministry. If we look at His life immediately after His baptism and during the following weeks, we can identify six key priorities that became the foundation of His mission throughout the next three and a half years. These priorities created the environment in which His disciples grew spiritually.

They also provide the foundation for building a healthy youth ministry today. As you begin or strengthen your ministry, these are the six priorities worth focusing on:

  1. Prayer
  2. Relationships
  3. God’s Word
  4. Vision
  5. Love
  6. Christ

 

Throughout this course, you’ll explore what each of these priorities looks like in everyday ministry. You’ll evaluate how effectively you’re applying them today, assess whether your team reflects a biblical vision of ministry, and set practical growth goals. Along the way, you’ll discuss your progress with an Epokha mentor who will help you turn these principles into action.

We’ve been using this material for more than five years in our NEXT leadership program and while mentoring youth ministry teams across Ukraine.

If you’re interested in taking this course, we’d love to hear from you.

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Course “Core”

Every local church should make building a strong youth ministry one of its highest priorities. King Josiah began seeking God when he was just sixteen years old. By the age of twenty-six, God used him to bring revival to Israel, restore the temple, and place God’s Word back at the center of the nation’s life. David was also still young when he chose to face Goliath. Most of Jesus’ disciples were likely young adults when He called them to follow Him. The CORE Manual was created to help local churches reach, equip, and disciple the next generation of Josiahs and Davids. The manual is divided into two parts. The first focuses on how to communicate the gospel effectively to today’s young people. The second equips local churches to build healthy youth ministries and lead young believers toward becoming the disciples Christ has called them to be. Each session includes: an in-depth Bible study on the topic, practical teaching supported by research and real-life insights, discussion questions designed to help your team apply what they’ve learned in their own ministry context, and practical assignments that you’ll complete with the guidance of an Epokha mentor. By the end of the course, your team will develop a clear ministry action plan and set specific goals to pursue together throughout the coming year.
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Harmony of the Gospels

For our organization, the ministry model we teach must be rooted in the life of Christ. “Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.” — 1 John 2:6 To see ministry through God’s eyes and walk as Christ walked, we need to know the Gospels well. That’s why we use a tool called the Harmony of the Gospels. This study bible contains all the texts of the four gospels. To maintain the chronological sequence of events, the reports have been placed in the appropriate order. The compilation of the chronological sequence is based on the NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION A HARMONY OF THE GOSPELS by Robert L. Thomas and Stanley N. Gundry. Through the website Harmony Bible, you can read all four Gospels in chronological order, explore maps and videos from the locations where events took place, and fully immerse yourself in the ministry of Jesus. We use this tool throughout the NEXT program and integrate its content into Foundations, Core 1, and other parts of our training. We highly recommend trying this resource if you want to gain a deeper understanding of the biblical model of youth ministry.
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GRO 1-5

The GRO course is designed to be studied in a small group or with a friend. Each meeting should last no longer than one hour. Every GRO course consists of 4 sessions. Once you complete one course, you can either take a break or continue straight into the next one. What does one hour of a session include? Warm-up: Each session begins with an opening question to start a conversation around the topic or reflect on the week you’ve had. Dig Deeper: Then you’ll open the Bible together and explore questions connected to your spiritual growth. Looking Back: End your time by praying for one another and sharing each other’s needs. Extras: Additional ideas for spending time together and practical assignments for your personal growth. At Epokha, we offer 5 parts of the GRO course that you can go through gradually or choose according to your current needs. Below, you’ll find a description of the content of each one. To order free books for your group, please send us a direct message on Instagram. GRO 1 When you put your faith in Jesus you didn’t purchase something, but you did receive a precious gift—a relationship with God and eternal life in him. You probably have lots of questions about what that means. This study will help you get started. GRO 2 Your relationship with God is not just a set of new beliefs or a change in convictions. It is a living relationship with a living God who is better than you can imagine. How can you get to know him better? Learning to talk to him, hear his voice and respond to his leading is essential. GRO 3 Because you put your trust in Jesus, God accepts you in spite of your faults and failures. But he loves you too much to let you stay the way you are. As you follow him, he will be working to change you to become more like Jesus. In this study you will learn four key skills that are essential for bringing this change. GRO 4 Jesus promised his followers that he would be with them always (Matt 28:20). This is great news! It means that no matter what you are facing in life, you are never alone. But, just like the early disciples, your experience of Jesus will be greatly affected by your faith. In this study you will look at four stories from the life of Christ and learn what it means to believe in Jesus through every single day and every challenge that you face. GRO 5 As you follow Jesus, a key area he will begin to change is your relationships. One of Christ’s top commands for his disciples was that they love each other in the same way that he had loved them (John 13:34). But what does this look like practically? In this study we will look at four ways God can transform your relationships as you let him lead.