In this week’s Whiteboard Wednesday experiment, we explore the “mechanics” of a dependent relationship with Jesus—where the reality of his presence is not confined to the pages of the Bible. Jesus made it clear that the gift of the Spirit means we have an ongoing, real-time, experiential relationship with him.…
Season 2, Episode 012: Are We Heading Toward a “Bibleless” Christianity? When you picture someone who has devoted his entire life to the passion of getting people to read the Bible, you might think of a person who’s a bit rigid and judgmental.…
In Matthew 18:20 (NIV), Jesus says, “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” If you start or stop there and stay there, you can easily miss what Jesus is saying. By these words alone, you might easily reach three different conclusions: Jesus isn’t present when we’re alone.…
Season 2, Episode 011: How to Apply a Filter to the Bible As a youth worker or volunteer, one of the most powerful things you can do for your teenagers is get them excited about reading the Bible. This week, Rick randomly chose a Scripture passage and together with his sidekick Becky (now nicknamed B-Hodge) applied an “Oprah” filter as they unpacked it.…
In this week’s Whiteboard Wednesday experiment, we show how to unlock the truth about Jesus, and the truth about the Bible, using “The Oprah Question” and “Reading Filters” as tools. Our pursuit of the Bible’s truths can be transformational for teenagers when we help them slow way down, or really speed up, when they read.…
In this week’s Whiteboard Wednesday feature, I invite a group of young people to experience the Bible in the epic way it was meant to be experienced. It’s a live experience, and therefore as messy as you think it would be.…
Season 2, Episode 010: When The Bible Doesn’t Meet Your Expectations With so many teenagers reporting dissatisfaction with the Bible, we have to ask why? How can youth workers unlock the mystery of the Bible for young people? This week we join professor Ken Castor and share our own personal history and discovery with the Bible.…
I am not sporty. I don’t track athletes, teams, or even where the ball is on the field. ESPN has never been my jam. I’m much more of a Food Network kind of guy. Yet I was serving in a youth ministry full of athletes.…
First, a brutal confession: In high school, I didn’t care about the Bible. I cared about Jesus, but I saw him as a distant Savior who helped only when things went terribly wrong. If I needed Jesus to hear me, I’d read his Word because I thought that would make him happy—and when Jesus was pleased with me, he’d be more likely to answer my prayers.…
In Sunday school, I remember singing at the top of my lungs, “Zacchaeus was a wee little man, and a wee little man was he. He climbed up in a sycamore tree, for the Lord he wanted to see.” Such songs allowed my imagination to take me into Scripture.…
 Are We Heading Toward a “Bibleless” Christianity?){kind=link}
 How to Apply a Filter to the Bible){kind=link}
 When the Bible Doesn’t Meet Your Expectations){kind=link}
