I can’t remember the topic, but my rant was probably about something insignificant. A friend who’d been listening to my umpteenth tirade about the subject inserted a scalpel at the exact right moment. He injected some needed restraint into my rant, and I felt exposed, suddenly wrestling with shame.…
Hey Youth Ministry Nation! We’ve got another hot freebie for ya this week. How about a fresh sermon series? Tim Levert, student pastor at Vineyard Church in New Orleans, shared his most recent sermon series with us so we could share it with you!…
Ned Nederlander. Franck. Jiminy Glick. These popular fictional characters were given life through the creative mind and talent of Martin Short. And then there’s Ed Grimley… Martin Short’s first breakthrough character. You may not know the backstory of how this greasy-hair-cowlicked-vertically-in-the-air, teeth-baring hyperactive manchild came to be… let alone how it all relates to the nerves and presumptions we all wrestle with in struggling to say something profound. …
I have a few “go-to” tools that help me prepare a message. I am the primary teacher in our high school youth ministry but I also carry part of the teaching load for our church (about once a month). More than anything, I want to correctly convey God’s word.…
Last week I had the privilege of emceeing Challenge, the national conference for EFCA students. There were about 4500 students and 1000 youth workers. The energy was high, the students were dialed in to learning and serving, and the adult leaders were committed shepherds…I was encouraged and impressed. …
What are the top cultural forces that our teenagers must contend with today? And how can we be sure we’re “majoring on the majors” with them? I’ve put together a list of the most important influences in their life—the seven realities that are important for us to know as we pastor students living in a challenging culture.…
Kurt and I deviate from our usual structure (the good, bad and #smh) and we give you our TOP four tips on speaking to students. We know that for some speaking my come easy, and for others speaking can be a challenge. …
