It’s easy to see teenagers like caterpillars that are wrestling free from the numbing rhythms of their everyday life and into their butterfly life—where they figure out who they really are and what they really have to give to the world.…
Yesterday, I was having a conversation with a student that was really fascinating. She made the statement, “I feel like adults always feel like they need to tell teens the same thing. They tell us about how we can’t ever do anything so bad that God won’t love us.…
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again… A healthy relationship with your senior pastor is a core part of a healthy youth ministry. I understand this isn’t often the case, and you may wonder most days what’s happening in his or her head. …
Confession time… I once auditioned for a national commercial. The tagline of the product? “Never let them see you sweat.” These commercials were famous. The spokesperson would offer an additional summary at the end of the ad, such as “Everyone feels pressure.…
Let’s be honest… evangelism weirds most Christians out. We fear doing “bad evangelism” to the point that we do the worst kind of evangelism… we say nothing. We’re afraid of becoming a stereotype. Perhaps that’s why I was so inspired by a street preacher I recently encountered while driving by his spot on a local corner.…
In the News Washington, D.C.—The election this week of business mogul Donald J. Trump as America’s 45th president left many people stunned and afraid. Although polls had predicted a victory for Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, she lost the electoral vote 290 to 232.…
Because of the difficulties students have in early and mid-adolescence to manage strong feelings of intimacy, the new experience of having someone who listens and whom they can trust sometimes lead them to believe that they are in love with their youth worker.…
Last Spring, during the SYM Conference, I filmed a teaching video for teams on the Simply Youth Ministry TOOLS site. The video was on creating a safe place within small groups and Sunday school. I wanted to share some of these thoughts with you.…
*Read PART 1 here!* Left to their own devices, children with Asperger’s Disorder will often go through life like a train on a track: one way, straight ahead, never varying, and avoiding the unexpected. It is hard to live a life of faith without the flexibility to take-risk, something that is difficult for an Apsie.…
We sat down in a close circle, exhaled and focused as we opened the Bible. As each page was read, they became more and more involved. Word after word, they sat drinking in the richness of the sacred texts of God.…
