Hey leaders, welcome to the PursueGOD Training Podcast. Today we’re going to give you a complete roadmap for leading the SALT program—from the big picture 9-month journey to the nightly flow that makes every meeting meaningful, fun, and spiritually powerful.

If you’re leading SALT, this is your playbook.

Segment 1: The Big Picture Vision

SALT is a 9-month student leadership program that helps high school students:

• Grow in their faith,
• Serve consistently, and
• Lead by example in their local church.

It comes straight from Jesus’ words in Matthew 5:13: “You are the salt of the earth.” SALT students learn to be distinct, purposeful, and impactful in a world that needs Jesus.

The program centers on three core habits:

1. Read daily through the Bible plan.
2. Serve weekly on a ministry team.
3. Meet monthly for teaching, discussion, and accountability.

Your job as a leader? Guide students through these habits, cheer them on, and make it relational, consistent, and fun.

Segment 2: The 9-Month Structure

Here’s the program flow:

• Boot Camp (Weeks 1–6):
• These first weeks set the tone. Students meet each other, start the Bible reading plan, find a serving role, and learn the rhythm of SALT.
• Monthly Meetings (Months 2–8):
• After Boot Camp, you meet once a month for a leadership lesson, Bible and serving check-in, group discussion, and prayer.
• Graduation (Month 9):
• The final meeting celebrates growth, shares stories, and launches students to keep living out their faith.

Every meeting follows a similar rhythm—but the first few weeks focus on relationships and introductions, while later months focus more on leadership growth and consistency.

Segment 3: Preparing Before Each Meeting

Here’s what leaders should do before every SALT meeting:

• Watch the lesson video/podcast and review the Talking Points and discussion questions.
• Listen to this leader podcast so you feel confident about the plan.
• Set the atmosphere: Whether you meet at someone’s home or the church, make it welcoming. Play music, have snacks ready, maybe even start a game while students arrive.
• Plan the fun: Bring icebreakers or simple games like Uno or Play Nine to make it easy for students to connect.

The goal is for students to show up feeling like this is their space—a place they want to be.

Segment 4: The Nightly Flow

Okay, let’s get practical. Here’s a simple outline for each SALT night:

1. Food and Fun: Start with snacks or a meal, plus a game or icebreaker. This sets a relational tone.
2. Watch the Video: Keep it short and focused—it sets up your discussion.
3. Read the Talking Points: Invite students to take turns reading aloud.
4. Ask One Question at a Time: Read the question, let the group respond, and keep it conversational.
5. Check In on Bible Reading & Serving: Encourage consistency and celebrate wins.
6. End with Prayer Requests: Have each student share one thing to pray about and invite students to pray for each other.

This simple rhythm works whether you’re in Boot Camp or month seven.

Segment 5: Leading with Purpose

SALT isn’t about perfection—it’s about walking with students as they learn to own their faith.

As a leader, remember:

• Relationships first: Know your students personally.
• Model consistency: Be faithful in reading, serving, and showing up.
• Keep it fun and welcoming: Kids come back when they feel connected and cared for.
• Pray with them and for them: This shapes hearts more than anything else.

By the end of the 9 months, students should feel closer to Jesus, more confident serving, and ready to lead others.

Wrap-Up

So that’s the full SALT playbook: a 9-month journey built on daily Bible reading, weekly serving, and monthly meetings—each night filled with fun, discussion, and prayer.

If you want all the lessons, videos, and guides, go to pursueGOD.org/SALT.

Thanks for leading the next generation—we can’t wait to see what God does through you and your students this year.

SALT Training 1: What Is SALT?
Welcome to SALT Training — the kickoff session of a powerful leadership journey for students. Hosted by Brock and Abigail, this episode lays the foundation for what SALT is all about and why it matters in the life of a Christian student.

What Is SALT?
SALT is the Student Leadership Team program from pursueGOD.org. It’s a 9-month discipleship and leadership track for students in grades 9–12 who want to grow in faith, take ownership of their church, and serve like Jesus.

Here’s how it works:

• Connect Monthly in SALT team meetings

• Serve Weekly in a ministry role at your church

• Read Daily through a chapter-a-day New Testament plan
  At the end of the year, students get a certificate to celebrate their completion.

What Is Student Leadership?
This first lesson focuses on servant leadership — the Jesus way of leading that turns power upside-down. Leadership isn’t about titles or popularity. It’s about loving people, putting others first, and sacrificing your comfort to serve.

Jesus said:

“Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant… For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others.”
Matthew 20:26-28 (NLT)

Why Students?
Most of Jesus’ disciples were likely teenagers or in their early twenties — and God used them to launch the church. Peter was probably the oldest. Timothy was young when Paul mentored him (1 Timothy 4:12), and he was spiritually mature because of the example of his mother and grandmother (2 Timothy 1:5).

That’s why SALT exists. Because students matter. Your voice matters. Your example can make a huge difference in your church today — not just “someday when you’re older.”

“Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example… in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.”
1 Timothy 4:12 (NLT)

So whether you’re outgoing or shy, already strong in your faith or just starting your journey — the only qualification you need is a willingness to follow Jesus and serve others.

And remember: serving others is cool. Because it’s what Jesus did.

Stay tuned for Lesson 2, where we’ll unpack the core elements of the program — meetings, responsibilities, reading, and more.

Until then… STAY SALTY!

SALT Training 2: SALT in a Nutshell
In this lesson, we’re answering two big questions:

1. What did Jesus mean when He called His followers the “salt of the earth”?

2. What exactly will this Student Leadership Team program look like over the next nine months?

The Salt Verse Explained

Matthew 5:13 (NLT) — “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor?”

Salt in the ancient world wasn’t always pure. It was mixed with other minerals and could become useless if the real salt content was leached out. That’s the kind of “salt” Jesus’ audience understood: outwardly the same, but inwardly powerless.

As Christians, we’re called to live in a way that’s distinct—preserving truth, adding flavor, and creating thirst for the things of God. When our lives stop reflecting the kingdom, we lose our saltiness, and that kind of faith, Jesus says, is functionally useless.

Three Ways Salt Works (and Why It Matters to You)

• Salt preserves. In Jesus’ day, it kept food from rotting. Today, we preserve God’s truth by living it and sharing it.

• Salt adds flavor. Our lives should reflect joy, peace, and love—the “flavor” of God’s kingdom.

• Salt makes people thirsty. A life lived for Jesus makes others curious, hungry for more.

The SALT program helps you do exactly that in your local church—to live like salt and stay salty.

What the SALT Program Looks Like

In one sentence:

Read daily, serve weekly, and meet monthly.

1. Read Daily

You’ll follow a chapter-a-day New Testament reading plan through the YouVersion Bible App.

• Engage in the reading by commenting at least twice a week.

• This helps you build consistency in God’s Word and grow spiritually.

2. Serve Weekly

Pick a team and show up to serve—just like Jesus did (Matthew 20:28).
Options include:

• Greeter Team (everyone’s a greeter!)

• Clean Team

• Sound/Media

• Kid’s Church

The goal, depending on your church’s structure is that you’ll serve during one service and attend another (either your church’s service or Sunday youth class). Serving helps you build responsibility, confidence, and relationships in your church community.

Acts 20:35 — “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

3. Meet Monthly

We’ll meet once a month for team building, reflection, and leadership growth. A typical SALT meeting includes:

• Fun icebreaker or game

• Leadership lesson from pursueGOD.org

• Reading Plan check-in

• Serving Team updates

• Prayer & encouragement

These meetings build community and give space to grow and regroup.

Boot Camp: Your First 6 Weeks

Here’s how we’ll get started strong:

• Week 1: SALT Training 1 + Leader Introductions

• Week 2: SALT Training 2 + Student Introductions

• Week 3: SALT Training 3 + Open Q&A

• Weeks 4–6: The 6-part Pursuit series, ending with a commissioning

This intro phase helps set the tone and get everyone on the same page before fully launching into regular meetings and serving schedules.

Graduation and the Big Goal

At the end of the 9-month program, you’ll receive a certificate of completion—a great résumé builder and a meaningful milestone of your growth.

But more importantly, SALT is about something eternal:

• Building your faith before you leave high school

• Making your faith your own, not just your parents’

• Becoming a faithful disciple who reflects Jesus to others

And that’s why we say:
Don’t just look like salt. Be salt. Stay salty.

Coming up next: Lesson 3 — Am I qualified to join the team?
Till then, STAY SALTY!

SALT Training 3: Why You Should Be a Student Leader
In this final lesson of the SALT training series, we’re tackling the most important and practical question:
Am I really qualified to join the Student Leadership Team?

If you’ve been asking yourself, “Are you sure I can do this?” — you’re not alone. Most student leaders wrestle with one of these doubts:

• “I’m too quiet.”

• “I’m not a natural leader.”

• “I don’t feel strong in my faith yet.”

But here’s the good news: You don’t have to be perfect. You just have to be willing.

Let’s look at three biblical examples that prove it.

1. “I’m kind of an introvert…”

Guess what? So was Moses.

Exodus 4:10-12 (NLT) — Moses said, “I’m not very good with words… I get tongue-tied…”
But God replied, “Now go! I will be with you… and instruct you in what to say.”

Moses didn’t feel confident speaking in public, and he begged God to pick someone else. But God used him anyway to stand before Pharaoh and lead a nation to freedom.
You don’t have to be loud to lead. You just have to obey.

2. “I don’t see myself as a leader…”

You’re in good company. David was overlooked by his own family.

1 Samuel 16:7 (NLT) — “People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

Everyone saw David as “just a shepherd boy,” but God saw leadership potential in his heart. If you’ve ever felt unnoticed or underestimated, remember: God doesn’t call the qualified—He qualifies the called.

3. “I’m not a very strong Christian yet…”

Neither were the disciples.

• They doubted.

• They made mistakes.

• They even abandoned Jesus during His arrest.

And still, Jesus chose them to build the Church.

1 Corinthians 1:27 (NLT) — “God chose things the world considers foolish… to shame those who think they are wise.”

God delights in using people the world would never expect. And He wants to use you.

1 Timothy 4:12 (NLT) — “Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example… in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.”

SALT isn’t about being the loudest, the oldest, or the best. It’s about students saying, “I’m willing.”
Willing to grow.
Willing to serve.
Willing to follow Jesus, even if they’re still figuring it all out.

That’s what makes a great student leader.

So… are you in?

We hope you’ve enjoyed this training series. If you’re ready, let your leaders know—and STAY SALTY.