It's a fact of life: teenagers become twentysomethings, who then reach their 30s, then their 40s and beyond. Today's youth group is tomorrow's elder board. So why don't more churches actively engage youth ministries, especially as they struggle year after year to find people willing and qualified to serve and to lead?

Doug Franklin is the founder and president of LeaderTreks in Carol Stream, Illinois, a ministry that uses trips, innovative training, and curricula to help youth workers develop students into leaders in the church. Franklin spoke with Laura Leonard, editor of BuildingChurchLeaders.com, about how churches can better support their youth ministries and prepare both students and adults to lead in the ways God has called them.

Why did you start LeaderTreks? What did you see happening in youth ministry that you wanted to address?

Twenty years ago I was a youth worker and my youth group was growing quickly. We didn't have enough adults for everything, so more and more I relied on putting ...