| 97. Youth Worker BOOST: Genuine |
| From youthministry360 on Wednesday, April 10, 2013 @ 4:53 AM PST in the "Resources" Category. ym360 knows youth workers. We know what an incredibly rewarding, yet incredibly challenging job youth ministry can be. There are days when your spirits are sky-high, and there are days when you could use a bit of a "pick me up" from God's Word . . . That's why we're happy to offer Youth Worker Boost, one of the many valuable resources on the ym360 Blog. Boost is a short, weekly piece of encouragement designed to, well, "boost" your spirits and encourage you as you minister to students. We consider it yet another great opportunity to serve you and your ministry. Suscribe To The E-Boost and get them all delivered right in your inbox! "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?"--2 Corinthians 13:5During the California gold rush many prospectors thought they had discovered riches when in reality they had uncovered a substance known as iron pyrite, or, "Fool's Gold." Pyrite has a golden color. It's shiny like gold. But the mineral has little or no value. In other words, it has the appearance of gold with none of the characteristics that makes gold so distinctive.We could use the same words to describe the faith of so many in the church: looks kind of like the real thing, but it's only surface level. There's not a lot of real faith underneath.Paul saw this, too. And it worried him. See, Paul knew that for the early church to survive it had to be led by people who had genuine faith. There were "Christian imitators" back then who led many young believers astray. That is why the test of genuine faith was so important then. Genuine faith in our leaders is every bit as important now as it was 2,000 years ago. As a leader, how is your faith? Does your lifestyle, language, and interactions with others show the quality of having been influenced by Christ? Or, do you have the appearance of a Christ-follower, but not the substance?Commit today to living a genuine faith, in all you do, each and every day.Our prayer for you: We pray that as you lead students, your faith would be genuine, that you would completely given over to following Christ with all that you are. Look for a new Youth Worker Boost each week on the ym360 Blog.Last Week's BOOST: WorryNext Week's BOOST: Lonely Get more BOOST articles HERE! Read More... |
| 98. Entertainment That Delivers For Youth Ministry |
| From Youth Specialties on Tuesday, April 9, 2013 @ 4:33 PM PST in the "Resources" Category. Using films, music and pop culture as tools in youth ministry is nothing new. Though sometimes, it does take some creativity to make the connection. King’s Faith is a new film that walks a fine line and does it well – it’s entertaining, has good production values and great acting while also providing a strong ministry connection. Blogger and youth worker, Paul Turner said on his site: “Let me say up front that I am critical of Christian movies. Ask anyone. And yet, Christian films are getting better. Two years ago I took my kids to see To Save A Life. The story was good, the acting was above average, and the stars passed the teen-cool litmus test. That was the last Christian movie I was excited about, until now. Kings Faith, from Faith Street Films, will be coming to theaters April 26th. I did not have high expectations for this film, but what I found was not a Christian movie, but a movie done well.” Youth workers who have seen King’s Faith are excited about using it to spur on important conversations about second chances, what grace really means and how we should treat those who are outcasts. Youth Specialties is working with King’s Faith to offer leaders a chance to screen the film online – and to get your hands on a free copy of the study created just for youth. Randy Rainwater, head of student ministries at Grace Fellowship Church in Georgia said, “This is a really well done film featuring award winning actors and is not cheesy!!!! I think the best faith based film I have seen.” Join the conversation on Facebook and let the producers know how you’d like to use this film for your group. www.facebook.com/kingsfaith Read More... |
| 99. Entertainment That Delivers For Youth Ministry |
| From Youth Specialties on Tuesday, April 9, 2013 @ 4:32 PM PST in the "Resources" Category. Using films, music and pop culture as tools in youth ministry is nothing new. Though sometimes, it does take some creativity to make the connection. King’s Faith is a new film that walks a fine line and does it well – it’s entertaining, has good production values and great acting while also providing a strong ministry connection. Blogger and youth worker, Paul Turner said on his site: “Let me say up front that I am critical of Christian movies. Ask anyone. And yet, Christian films are getting better. Two years ago I took my kids to see To Save A Life. The story was good, the acting was above average, and the stars passed the teen-cool litmus test. That was the last Christian movie I was excited about, until now. Kings Faith, from Faith Street Films, will be coming to theaters April 26th. I did not have high expectations for this film, but what I found was not a Christian movie, but a movie done well.” Youth workers who have seen King’s Faith are excited about using it to spur on important conversations about second chances, what grace really means and how we should treat those who are outcasts. Youth Specialties is working with King’s Faith to offer leaders a chance to screen the film online – and to get your hands on a free copy of the study created just for youth. Randy Rainwater, head of student ministries at Grace Fellowship Church in Georgia said, “This is a really well done film featuring award winning actors and is not cheesy!!!! I think the best faith based film I have seen.” Join the conversation on Facebook and let the producers know how you’d like to use this film for your group. www.facebook.com/kingsfaith Read More... |
| 100. YS Roundtable Episode 4 : Jim Hampton |
| From Youth Specialties on Tuesday, April 9, 2013 @ 4:26 PM PST in the "Resources" Category. This is a new video show hosted by Terry Linhart, director of the Youth Specialties Academic Support Network (YSASN) and Professor of Youth Ministry & Adolescent Studies at Bethel College in Indiana. In this episode, Jim Hampton joins Terry to discuss how youth workers can deal with tensions within the larger context of what the church is about. YS Roundtable is produced by our friends at RemedyLive. Read More... |
| 101. YS Roundtable Episode 4 : Jim Hampton |
| From Youth Specialties on Tuesday, April 9, 2013 @ 4:26 PM PST in the "Resources" Category. This is a new video show hosted by Terry Linhart, director of the Youth Specialties Academic Support Network (YSASN) and Professor of Youth Ministry & Adolescent Studies at Bethel College in Indiana. In this episode, Terry will be joined by Tom Bergler around the YS RoundTable to discuss how the church has accepted juvenile behavior as the standard measurement of spirituality in the church. YS Roundtable is produced by our friends at RemedyLive. Read More... |
| 102. Trending: How to be a Ninja Warrior, Preparing students for the future, and coping with Prom Season |
| From Youth Specialties on Tuesday, April 9, 2013 @ 4:10 PM PST in the "Resources" Category. Links What's Next for Students? And Are they Ready? - Walt Mueller FREEBIE: Family Digital Code of Conduct - Digital Kids Initiative Top 10: JH/MS Boys (who do we minister to?) - TheJrHighUthGuy It's Prom Season! - Youth Worker Journal The Fall of Facebook - TheSource4YM Teens Already Know About Sex, Let's Show Them Relationships - NewStateman Read More... |
| 103. Trending: How to be a Ninja Warrior, Preparing students for the future, and coping with Prom Season |
| From Youth Specialties on Tuesday, April 9, 2013 @ 4:10 PM PST in the "Resources" Category. Links What's Next for Students? And Are they Ready? - Walt Mueller FREEBIE: Family Digital Code of Conduct - Digital Kids Initiative Top 10: JH/MS Boys (who do we minister to?) - TheJrHighUthGuy It's Prom Season! - Youth Worker Journal The Fall of Facebook - TheSource4YM Teens Already Know About Sex, Let's Show Them Relationships - NewStateman Read More... |
| 104. YM Essentials: Being Vs. Doing In Discipleship |
| From youthministry360 on Tuesday, April 9, 2013 @ 7:21 AM PST in the "Resources" Category. Our church has begun a twice-yearly series of training sessions for parents designed to help them know the "why" and the "how" of discipling their children. Our college pastor, a good friend of mine, recently kicked off the latest series with a great challenge from Deuteronomy 6. One of the things I liked about his talk was that he didn't put a ton of emphasis on the practical, application-driven aspect of discipleship, but instead focused on the attitude parents should embrace as the foundation of their discipleship efforts. He preached that we should all focus on "being" before we focus on "doing." He defined "being" as emphasizing on who we are in Christ, our "new creation" identities as children of God. I loved this approach because I see a similar issue impacting our efforts to lead teenagers deeper in their relationship with Christ. As we interact with youth ministers from across the country, one thing I see quite often is the "cart before the horse" effect. Guided by the best intentions, we push the "how" of programs and practices before the "why" of a true and deep love of God. We over-emphasize the "doing" and under-emphasize the "being." But as we challenge youth workers to start with the "why" of their students' faith before the "how," to focus on their new identities before they focus on what to do, we often arrive at a similar place . . . "OK, but how do I do that?" And so, I couldn't help wondering if there were some thoughts on guiding people in "being," a way to answer the question, "What can I do in order to be?"I think this is an important point for us as youth workers. We need to help guide our students in "being" as much as we do in "doing." And I think there are some practical things we can do to accomplish this. Here are a few. Seek Silence And SolitudeThere's no way to spend meaningful time focusing on our identities as God's children without, um . . . spending meaningful time focusing on our identities as God's children. If we don't fight for time alone with God, where we've briefly disconnected ourselves from the world, it's virtually impossible to allow God to deepen our understanding of what it means to abide in Him. There is no shortcut here. You must do this. And you must challenge your students to do it.ListenYou pray. And prayer is the language of our relationship with God. But like any conversation, prayer is a two way street. We must listen for God's response. So the question is, does your prayer life include time to listen for God's response? Pray with expectancy. Pray expecting to hear God's voice in the silence, or through Scripture, or through the voice of a Christian friend. One of the most important things you can do is to lead your students to embrace this value in their own prayer lives. Engage Your HeartPart of "being" is connecting with the emotional side of your relationship with God, as opposed to growing in knowledge of God. Both are vital. But engaging your heart happens through praise and worship, through meditating on the psalms, through a heightened awareness of God as He is seen and experienced all around you, and so on. This is one of the hardest things for us and for our students to do because of how we live our lives in our culture. But it's such a vital part of "being."A focus on "being" can seem abstract. After all, "doing" is measurable. It makes us feel like we're, well, doing something. While the doing of our faith is important, doing without being can lead to an empty faith. We don't want this for ourselves, and we sure don't want it for our students.What do you think? What are some ways you lead students to focus on the "being" of their faith? Read More... |
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