The launch of a new season in your youth ministry is almost always exciting and full of momentum. But fast-forward a few months, and your “best-laid plans” have not come together the way you’d hoped. The people who promised to help set things in motion are now distancing themselves.…
Jack Anderson (not his name) thought it could never happen—at least not at his church. The color drained from his face when he received the call that a police investigation was in progress due to a report of sexual misconduct from one of his volunteers.…
Stressed-Out Teens The most stressed-out people in the world are sitting right there in your youth room every Wednesday night. Listen, and you’ll likely hear your teenagers complaining about their workload—homework, college apps, choir tryouts, after-school jobs, SAT prep, chaos at home… The list of woes is long.…
In the shadow of a virus pandemic, digital strategies for doing youth ministry are more important than ever. Necessity breeds invention—so now is the time to try some new ideas. Treat this season as an opportunity for experimenting with new approaches to connecting with your teenagers.…
Join Rick and the Becky-nator for Episode 8 of Season 8 – “Losing Our Chaff” – a continuation of the series “THE WAYS OF JESUS.” Here Rick and Becky explore themes drawn from his just-released book titled Editing Jesus. In this episode they continue their deep dive into the “core” of Jesus’s mission—it’s not to plant a new religious movement, or to reset our moral compass, or to warn us of the consequences of rejecting a relationship with God.…
Check out Episode 3 of Season 8: “The Exclusionary Jesus” — a continuation of the series “THE WAYS OF JESUS.” Rick and Becky will be exploring themes drawn from his upcoming book (releasing June 4) titled Editing Jesus. In this episode we dive into a hard truth… Yes, Jesus was radically inclusive when he offered marginalized people dignity, or when he elevated women and Gentiles from a place of scorn, or when he chose to hang out with, and even honor, “sinners” like tax collectors and prostitutes.But…
Check out Episode 4 of Season 8: “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy” — a continuation of the series “THE WAYS OF JESUS.” Rick and Becky will be exploring themes drawn from his upcoming book (releasing June 4) titled Editing Jesus. In this episode we dive into a way of living that seems, well, weak—but in the weakness of this way of living is our greatest strength.…
Join Rick as he dives into the seventh episode of the series IN HIS IMAGE. Today we’ll be exploring why Relaxed is theologian Dallas Willard’s favorite one-word description of Jesus. When we “live and breathe and move” from a relaxed place in our life, we are fully living our dependent relationship with Jesus.…
Check out Episode 5 of Season 8: “The Relational Generosity of Jesus” — a continuation of the series “THE WAYS OF JESUS.” Rick and Becky will be exploring themes drawn from his upcoming book titled Editing Jesus. In this episode we explore one facet of the diamond-like beauty of Jesus—the way He longs to relate to us is deeply magnetic for our souls.…
Join Rick and the Becky-nator for Episode 8 of Season 9 – “The Deep-Fake Jesus” – a continuation of the series “THE WAYS OF JESUS.” Here Rick and Becky explore themes drawn from his just-released book titled Editing Jesus. In this episode they explore something that didn’t exist in our vocabulary 10 years ago—with the burgeoning advances made in AI, artificial intelligence, comes the dark side of the coin… What happens when something unreal looks so real that we can’t tell the difference?…
