What’s Your Youth Ministry Goal This Year? . . .
Okay. . . . this one might get me in some trouble. And it’s all because I’m increasingly convinced that we’re doing something wrong in youth ministry. . . and perhaps in ministry in general. We’ve been chugging along thinking…
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As I Promised. . . A FREE Lil Nas X 3(D) Resource Download. . . “Montero”. . .
Last week I posted some initial thoughts the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards and Video Of The Year Award going to Lil Nas X for his song, “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)”. If you missed initial thoughts, you can…
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Hey Kids. . . Let Your Heart Be Your Guide. . . Nope. . .
Generally speaking, I have regrets about the times I let my emotions take the reins from my brain. I’m also thankful for the times when God would graciously intervene in some miraculous way to derail my emotions and save me…
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Lil Nas X and the VMA Video of the Year. . . Is This Who We Are? . . .
MTV’s Video Music Awards happened last night. Did you happen to watch? I didn’t. The annual show used to be must-viewing for me. When MTV was relevant and the internet was either non-existent or nowhere near as pervasive as it…
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Defining “Love” . . . .
A corrective to our culture’s mis-definition and misunderstanding of “love”, from C.S. Lewis: “Love, in the Christian sense, does not mean an emotion. It is a state not of the feelings but of the will; the state of the will…
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Youth Culture Insights. . . The Dopamine Hit and Addictions. . .
What new challenges do our kids face in today’s world. . . challenges that undermine their human flourishing? What must parents and youth workers know about these challenges so that we might address them. . . countering them in ways…
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The Newest Online Dare: The Milk Crate Challenge. . .
“I dare you. . . !” I can’t tell you how many times those words were uttered among my circle of adolescent peers during the years when we were going through middle school, high school, and college. The dictionary defines…
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What’s New At School? Reading, Writing, and Gender Education. . .
Middle School. They tore mine down a few years ago. In some ways I was sad to see it go. But as a monument to our shared pre-teen and early-pubescent vulnerabilities and insecurities, seeing that school reduced to rubble was…
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Read With Us! An Invitation To Spiritual Growth. . .
“What are you reading?” That’s a question I love to ask as I’m always looking for books that might enhance my own spiritual walk and/or my knowledge of faith and culture. Sometimes, I’m just looking to read for enjoyment or…
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A Back-To-School Prayer For Our Kids. . .
School is starting. This year, some of our kids are heading to a building. Others are going to school online. Still others are being home-schooled out of necessity or by choice. I love looking at all the first-day-of-school pictures that…
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Youth Ministry’s Transgender Moment. . . Some Helps. . .
As the school year gets started and we begin another season of youth ministry, the kids will be coming back. And they will be bringing with them, more than ever before, a host of unfolding beliefs and behaviors on sexuality…
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Counter-Cultural Guidance As You Head Off To Worship Today. . .
Thought for today as you head off to worship. . . whether you are listening, teaching, or preaching. . . “If leaders and teachers are just ‘stewards of God’s mysteries,’ then there’s no such thing as a ‘great Bible teacher’…
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