I was listening to the latest Car Talk podcast (love those guys!) and heard them reference an ad campaign for an investment company that used the line, "The only place where 'success' comes before 'preparation' is in the dictionary."
Anyone have a way we can use this as an illustration? I have the feeling it's a good one.
9.12.2007
9.09.2007
A little shift in perspective, and suddenly...
On my way out the door to go look for kids the other day, I realized that I'd forgotten to pick a book off my shelf to bring to Starbucks, and asked my program director if she had anything I hadn't read (or loaned her my copy of). She grabbed Mark Yaconelli's "Contemplative Youth Ministry" which I'd been meaning to get into.
Mark makes the point that the rarest gift teenagers have is an adult presence who truly listens to them, and those words jumped out at me. I like to teach, and talk, and I put a lot of pressure on myself to always have something useful and Godly to say to my students when I see them.
But this morning I decided to go about things a little differently; I went in determined to listen. And before the main service, I'd had four good conversations, two of them with students I haven't seen in a while.
A lot of my summer has been devoted to writing programming and lesson plans for this coming year, and that attitude bled over into the way I related to kids. So reading Mark's words brought me back to the place God had prepared for me today.
Mark makes the point that the rarest gift teenagers have is an adult presence who truly listens to them, and those words jumped out at me. I like to teach, and talk, and I put a lot of pressure on myself to always have something useful and Godly to say to my students when I see them.
But this morning I decided to go about things a little differently; I went in determined to listen. And before the main service, I'd had four good conversations, two of them with students I haven't seen in a while.
A lot of my summer has been devoted to writing programming and lesson plans for this coming year, and that attitude bled over into the way I related to kids. So reading Mark's words brought me back to the place God had prepared for me today.
9.08.2007
The Perfect New-Volunteer test
Yesterday was a busy day, and it's on days like that when the most random ideas strike me as excellent--
So there I was, sitting in Starbucks, and I had the idea for a very reliable volunteer interview scenario. Find a Starbucks near a middle school (within walking distance) and arrange to interview your new volunteer there on a Friday afternoon; in fact, plan to meet 20 minutes after the first wave of kids walks in, so you'll be standing in line with 30 or so teenagers who all want to talk about the amazing things that happened in school today.
You'll weed out all the adults who really don't have a clue about youth ministry, such as this mom who walked in with her younger daughter and nearly walked right back out again (the daughter found some friends before mom could steer her out the door), saying, "Not only is there a long line, but they're noisy!"
So there I was, sitting in Starbucks, and I had the idea for a very reliable volunteer interview scenario. Find a Starbucks near a middle school (within walking distance) and arrange to interview your new volunteer there on a Friday afternoon; in fact, plan to meet 20 minutes after the first wave of kids walks in, so you'll be standing in line with 30 or so teenagers who all want to talk about the amazing things that happened in school today.
You'll weed out all the adults who really don't have a clue about youth ministry, such as this mom who walked in with her younger daughter and nearly walked right back out again (the daughter found some friends before mom could steer her out the door), saying, "Not only is there a long line, but they're noisy!"
9.07.2007
Loving the fuzzy logic
This past week in our Wednesday small group night, we asked our students to talk about how a new person should feel at his/her first small group night. G, one of the most enthusiastic kids, had this answer:
"They should feel worried... really worried! Because then, when they realize how awesome it is, they'll REALLY want to come back!"
"They should feel worried... really worried! Because then, when they realize how awesome it is, they'll REALLY want to come back!"
On making a speech you can believe in
One of my students asked me the other day, "Do you know any good topics for debates?" Her homework was to write a short (1-2 minute) speech on a topic that people could debate. (The class wouldn't actively debate each topic, but the assignment was supposed to test the students' understanding of what topics will bring out lively debate.)
The advice I gave was, "You should make the speech about something you believe in." For two reasons, a speech should always be about something the speaker believes in, and the more passionate the belief, the better. Audiences can tell if a speaker is just reciting. Sometimes speakers have to debate the opposite side of their own position, but this should only be done as an exercise, not as a habit.
So we tried to come up with something she believed in. And we came up with three categories of things that count as beliefs: religious belief, political belief, and "cause" belief-- for example, one of my causes is worldwide literacy.
What I couldn't convince her to do was to actually pick a strong belief and make the speech about it. Part of the problem was that the assignment was due the next day. But another part came from this student not wanting the challenge of using such a short speech to convince an audience about the power of her belief.
That's a problem a youth worker can sink his teeth into. We're called to be "always ready to give an explanation for the hope that is within us," (1 Peter 3:15) and sometimes we only have a short time to do so.
With that in mind, here's an exercise I use, borrowed from a pastor I worked with.
Get students to pick partners. Then give them these instructions:
"Imagine you're in an airport seeing a friend off. You have one minute until s/he boards the plane, and your friend suddenly turns to you and says, 'You know, I've always noticed something was different about you. You have a lot more hope than most people, and you have this way of getting through things. What makes you work like that?' In the one minute before the plane leaves, explain how God's love affects your life."
The advice I gave was, "You should make the speech about something you believe in." For two reasons, a speech should always be about something the speaker believes in, and the more passionate the belief, the better. Audiences can tell if a speaker is just reciting. Sometimes speakers have to debate the opposite side of their own position, but this should only be done as an exercise, not as a habit.
So we tried to come up with something she believed in. And we came up with three categories of things that count as beliefs: religious belief, political belief, and "cause" belief-- for example, one of my causes is worldwide literacy.
What I couldn't convince her to do was to actually pick a strong belief and make the speech about it. Part of the problem was that the assignment was due the next day. But another part came from this student not wanting the challenge of using such a short speech to convince an audience about the power of her belief.
That's a problem a youth worker can sink his teeth into. We're called to be "always ready to give an explanation for the hope that is within us," (1 Peter 3:15) and sometimes we only have a short time to do so.
With that in mind, here's an exercise I use, borrowed from a pastor I worked with.
Get students to pick partners. Then give them these instructions:
"Imagine you're in an airport seeing a friend off. You have one minute until s/he boards the plane, and your friend suddenly turns to you and says, 'You know, I've always noticed something was different about you. You have a lot more hope than most people, and you have this way of getting through things. What makes you work like that?' In the one minute before the plane leaves, explain how God's love affects your life."
9.03.2007
Introduction and Covenanting Lesson Plan
Here's a lesson from the curriculum we've been developing for our fall semester with the high school class. "Melvin the Christian" is an idea one of the teachers had at the end of last year-- build a chicken-wire frame, probably half-scale, of a person's body and over the year, as we talk about what it takes to live a Christian life, add layers of papier-mache, then clothes and other details, to Melvin to show how we're growing.
Feel free to use any of this that would be useful to you!
This matters on Monday morning
9th-12th grade curriculum
School year 2007-2008
Topic: Introduction and Covenant
You may need to complete this lesson in two parts; it’s designed to introduce the class to their teachers and to each other; get a sense of everyone’s spiritual activity; and create the class covenant that will make this a safe place.
Teacher’s Preparation:
How will I keep my classroom a safe place for all my students, in their bodies, minds and spirits?
Reflections for the Teacher:
In this class, you’re not THE BOSS in a negative sense. It’s not your job to keep everyone thinking exactly the same thing, or dump information into their brains and ask them to repeat it back.
You are a guide, a leader who points the way to our ultimate Teacher, Jesus Christ. That means we teachers don’t have all the answers, and that we expect ourselves to grow as our students do.
The goal of this curriculum is to present topics that our students deal with, through a Christian lens. How do we already act? What does our world teach us? How does God expect us as His people to be different? And how can we, every day, respond to God’s love by becoming more and more like our Savior.
Do challenge students’ opinions. Do make them think. Do tell them when God has a completely different idea than they think. But never make them think it’s not okay to wonder. Don’t make doubt a bad word; explain that wondering, and doubting, and feeling lost, are part of the journey we’re on, and that God will support us and guide us.
Who are we?
Ask your students to introduce themselves by sharing the following three facts:
Name
School
Activity that will take up the most of my time this school year.
As teachers, introduce yourselves by name, reminding the students what you’d like to be called, (Mr. or Mrs. is okay, but students may have a hard time warming up to you with your title.)
Teachers, then share the thing about living a faithful life that you find the hardest to keep up with. You might want to share this in two parts—what God expects from a Christian, and how you find it hard to live up to.
Take time to pray.
Thank God for your students. Pray for them each by name during this prayer.
Pray for God’s strength and wisdom as we learn to live His way.
Ask for God’s guidance and forgiveness in the mistakes we make.
What will the tone of this class be?
Ask a student to take notes for the class during this next section.
Tell your students that your classroom will be a safe place for them. Then ask, “What should we expect from each other that will keep our classroom safe?” Write down all the answers.
Ask your students to define, “Confidential.” Explain that what you say in the classroom will be kept confidential. Then ask your students if they know any exceptions to a promise of confidentiality. (You’ll need to say clearly that if a student admits being a danger to him/herself or others, or is involved in a dangerous situation, you will have to report it to the right people—sometimes that’s parents, sometimes it’s law enforcement.)
At the top of the paper where you’ve written the expectations for your classroom’s tone, write, “We will,” and have students sign the paper. (We’ll laminate this or put it in a frame and make it part of your classroom.) This is your classroom covenant.
What has God already done in us?
Draw three long horizontal lines on a chalkboard, At opposite ends of the first line, write, “Don’t know what I think,” and “Completely set in my opinions.” On the ends of the second line, write, “Completely believe,” and “Completely doubt.” On the third line, write “Growing like a weed,” and “Standing still.” Ask your students to write their names on each line where they best fit.
The first line is for gauging opinions. The second is for checking where our belief in God stands as of right now. The third line is for asking, “How do I feel my faith has been growing over the summer?”
DISCUSSION:
What’s the most powerful thing God has done in my life this year?
What does it mean to live God’s way?
What makes it hard to live God’s way?
How can we support each other as we work to live God’s way?
Explain to your class that you’ll be setting goals for yourselves to grow toward as part of each topic. Ask:
How can we hold ourselves accountable for our growth?
What should we do if one of us admits not making progress in a given week?
What support can we give each other during the week?
Melvin the Christian
Bring in the frame for Melvin and the papier-mache supplies. Today you’ll be making his first layer.
Ask each student to write on a slip of paper a sentence or two that describe where they’re at in faith. Use the scale you made on the board if you need to. These should be written anonymously, and can be pasted on face up or face down.
Close in prayer.
Feel free to use any of this that would be useful to you!
This matters on Monday morning
9th-12th grade curriculum
School year 2007-2008
Topic: Introduction and Covenant
You may need to complete this lesson in two parts; it’s designed to introduce the class to their teachers and to each other; get a sense of everyone’s spiritual activity; and create the class covenant that will make this a safe place.
Teacher’s Preparation:
How will I keep my classroom a safe place for all my students, in their bodies, minds and spirits?
Reflections for the Teacher:
In this class, you’re not THE BOSS in a negative sense. It’s not your job to keep everyone thinking exactly the same thing, or dump information into their brains and ask them to repeat it back.
You are a guide, a leader who points the way to our ultimate Teacher, Jesus Christ. That means we teachers don’t have all the answers, and that we expect ourselves to grow as our students do.
The goal of this curriculum is to present topics that our students deal with, through a Christian lens. How do we already act? What does our world teach us? How does God expect us as His people to be different? And how can we, every day, respond to God’s love by becoming more and more like our Savior.
Do challenge students’ opinions. Do make them think. Do tell them when God has a completely different idea than they think. But never make them think it’s not okay to wonder. Don’t make doubt a bad word; explain that wondering, and doubting, and feeling lost, are part of the journey we’re on, and that God will support us and guide us.
Who are we?
Ask your students to introduce themselves by sharing the following three facts:
Name
School
Activity that will take up the most of my time this school year.
As teachers, introduce yourselves by name, reminding the students what you’d like to be called, (Mr. or Mrs. is okay, but students may have a hard time warming up to you with your title.)
Teachers, then share the thing about living a faithful life that you find the hardest to keep up with. You might want to share this in two parts—what God expects from a Christian, and how you find it hard to live up to.
Take time to pray.
Thank God for your students. Pray for them each by name during this prayer.
Pray for God’s strength and wisdom as we learn to live His way.
Ask for God’s guidance and forgiveness in the mistakes we make.
What will the tone of this class be?
Ask a student to take notes for the class during this next section.
Tell your students that your classroom will be a safe place for them. Then ask, “What should we expect from each other that will keep our classroom safe?” Write down all the answers.
Ask your students to define, “Confidential.” Explain that what you say in the classroom will be kept confidential. Then ask your students if they know any exceptions to a promise of confidentiality. (You’ll need to say clearly that if a student admits being a danger to him/herself or others, or is involved in a dangerous situation, you will have to report it to the right people—sometimes that’s parents, sometimes it’s law enforcement.)
At the top of the paper where you’ve written the expectations for your classroom’s tone, write, “We will,” and have students sign the paper. (We’ll laminate this or put it in a frame and make it part of your classroom.) This is your classroom covenant.
What has God already done in us?
Draw three long horizontal lines on a chalkboard, At opposite ends of the first line, write, “Don’t know what I think,” and “Completely set in my opinions.” On the ends of the second line, write, “Completely believe,” and “Completely doubt.” On the third line, write “Growing like a weed,” and “Standing still.” Ask your students to write their names on each line where they best fit.
The first line is for gauging opinions. The second is for checking where our belief in God stands as of right now. The third line is for asking, “How do I feel my faith has been growing over the summer?”
DISCUSSION:
What’s the most powerful thing God has done in my life this year?
What does it mean to live God’s way?
What makes it hard to live God’s way?
How can we support each other as we work to live God’s way?
Explain to your class that you’ll be setting goals for yourselves to grow toward as part of each topic. Ask:
How can we hold ourselves accountable for our growth?
What should we do if one of us admits not making progress in a given week?
What support can we give each other during the week?
Melvin the Christian
Bring in the frame for Melvin and the papier-mache supplies. Today you’ll be making his first layer.
Ask each student to write on a slip of paper a sentence or two that describe where they’re at in faith. Use the scale you made on the board if you need to. These should be written anonymously, and can be pasted on face up or face down.
Close in prayer.
9.02.2007
It's fishbowl time!
Best question that came into the Wednesday night fishbowl (the fishbowl's for questions that don't fit that night's topic but that people have to know):
Why is the Mona Lisa so famous?
(Anyone want to take a stab at that one before Wednesday?)
Why is the Mona Lisa so famous?
(Anyone want to take a stab at that one before Wednesday?)
8.31.2007
A chuch typo
We're putting together an updated songbook for our children's chapel service, and I walked into our clergy assistant's office today to find a sheet on her desk with one of my all-time favorite camp songs on it.
"I love this song!" I said, not noticing that she was pulling all those pages out.
"Read the whole thing," she told me.
The first verse was good: "I will call upon the Lord/who is worthy to be praised/ So shall I be/ saved from my enemies."
But the chorus had a kicker to it: "The Lord liveth!/ and blessed be the Lord/ and may the God of our salvation be exhausted!"
(It should read, "be exalted," by the way.)
"I love this song!" I said, not noticing that she was pulling all those pages out.
"Read the whole thing," she told me.
The first verse was good: "I will call upon the Lord/who is worthy to be praised/ So shall I be/ saved from my enemies."
But the chorus had a kicker to it: "The Lord liveth!/ and blessed be the Lord/ and may the God of our salvation be exhausted!"
(It should read, "be exalted," by the way.)
8.29.2007
A follow-up to the last post
An op-ed piece in the NYTimes today describes "the dark night of the soul," and what it means for a person's faith, and it's a good read.
There's a reason we call for "authenticity" in youth ministry today, and this story really throws light on how foolish it is to try and make the Christian life look easy to nonbelievers, new believers or anyone else. It's ridiculous to hide the hard times we have and the difficult seasons we have to go through (I'm in one... it's one of the reasons I haven't written much lately) because if we try and keep a face up in front of people, and then they somehow discover that we're not all content and perfect, our whole faith is going to look iffy to them.
There's a reason we call for "authenticity" in youth ministry today, and this story really throws light on how foolish it is to try and make the Christian life look easy to nonbelievers, new believers or anyone else. It's ridiculous to hide the hard times we have and the difficult seasons we have to go through (I'm in one... it's one of the reasons I haven't written much lately) because if we try and keep a face up in front of people, and then they somehow discover that we're not all content and perfect, our whole faith is going to look iffy to them.
8.27.2007
Apparently even great saints have doubtful times
I found an article in my mailbox today, copied from the Post-Dispatch (I'll edit in a link later, in a hurry just now) about Mother Teresa's writings to her confessors and confidants about how she experienced a really long time (years and years) of feeling like God was not with her.
The mom who mentioned this story to me yesterday, before I saw the paper itself, seemed a little shaken by it, but I had a thought:
Even if Mother Teresa did feel lost, did wonder if Christ had really forsaken her, she still obeyed the command He'd given her, still served the people who needed her most. And thus, no matter what any writings say, she is still an example of true faith.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer: "Only the obedient believe, and only believers obey."
The mom who mentioned this story to me yesterday, before I saw the paper itself, seemed a little shaken by it, but I had a thought:
Even if Mother Teresa did feel lost, did wonder if Christ had really forsaken her, she still obeyed the command He'd given her, still served the people who needed her most. And thus, no matter what any writings say, she is still an example of true faith.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer: "Only the obedient believe, and only believers obey."
8.19.2007
Why I enjoy small group so much
At the beginning of small group, between dinner/check-in and actually getting started, I pull the questions out of the fishbowl on the table that kids have left there for me from the week before. (This is the way we keep ourselves on task during the group; if someone has a question that doesn't connect to the topic, we put it in the fishbowl for the next week.)
The question was "Why do we end prayers with 'Amen'?"
Smart Kid: "In Hebrew, it means 'Let it be done.'"
Really Smart Kid: "Then shouldn't we say, 'Amen, please?'"
The question was "Why do we end prayers with 'Amen'?"
Smart Kid: "In Hebrew, it means 'Let it be done.'"
Really Smart Kid: "Then shouldn't we say, 'Amen, please?'"
8.14.2007
Apparently it's logical
Humans today are apparently trapped in a virtual world, an environment created by advanced "posthumans," according to this story in the NY Times today.
"My gut feeling is that the odds are better than 20 percent, maybe better than even. I think it’s highly likely that civilization could endure to produce those supercomputers. And if owners of the computers were anything like the millions of people immersed in virtual worlds like Second Life, SimCity and World of Warcraft, they’d be running simulations just to get a chance to control history — or maybe give themselves virtual roles as Cleopatra or Napoleon.
It’s unsettling to think of the world being run by a futuristic computer geek, although we might at last dispose of that of classic theological question: How could God allow so much evil in the world? For the same reason there are plagues and earthquakes and battles in games like World of Warcraft. Peace is boring, Dude."
"My gut feeling is that the odds are better than 20 percent, maybe better than even. I think it’s highly likely that civilization could endure to produce those supercomputers. And if owners of the computers were anything like the millions of people immersed in virtual worlds like Second Life, SimCity and World of Warcraft, they’d be running simulations just to get a chance to control history — or maybe give themselves virtual roles as Cleopatra or Napoleon.
It’s unsettling to think of the world being run by a futuristic computer geek, although we might at last dispose of that of classic theological question: How could God allow so much evil in the world? For the same reason there are plagues and earthquakes and battles in games like World of Warcraft. Peace is boring, Dude."
8.13.2007
Reusing (clothes, anyway) catching on
A while ago I read an article about how while recycling had gotten trendy over the past few years, no one's ever paid much attention to the "reduce" and "reuse" parts of the original triangle.
I'm a proud Goodwill shopper and talk about donating clothes and buying used with my kids fairly often, as a form of stewardship, and some of the folks (guys especially) I talk to are really uncomfortable with it. Since every designer store in the world, it seems, has a location in St. Louis, this story caught my eye today:
"Back to school shoppers stock up at resale stores"
"While parents are increasingly shopping resale, another trend is on the horizon: Teenage shoppers, who once never would have set foot in such stores, also are on the rise."Being green is cool, and we are in the recycling business," Maurice said. "Definitely the attitude (among teens) has changed. Also the kids are happier because they are getting more."
I'm a proud Goodwill shopper and talk about donating clothes and buying used with my kids fairly often, as a form of stewardship, and some of the folks (guys especially) I talk to are really uncomfortable with it. Since every designer store in the world, it seems, has a location in St. Louis, this story caught my eye today:
"Back to school shoppers stock up at resale stores"
"While parents are increasingly shopping resale, another trend is on the horizon: Teenage shoppers, who once never would have set foot in such stores, also are on the rise."Being green is cool, and we are in the recycling business," Maurice said. "Definitely the attitude (among teens) has changed. Also the kids are happier because they are getting more."
A little moment that kept me laughing through Communion
I preached yesterday, in the "big church," at all three services. Today, I'm really tired from all that, but still laughing because of my students. I'd been given the idea to include some material in my sermon about the students at our church, since I have a perspective on them that the other preachers generally don't use. And so during the main service, I talked directly to the youth group in the congregation.
The youth group was busy while I was preaching. They were busy putting a whoopee cushion under my chair, and then re-inflating it a couple of times when I'd managed to sit on it while there was too much noise (hymns, etc) for it to be embarrassing.
Maybe they didn't get all of the challenge I set out for them in the sermon, but they're comfortable enough to hang around while I teach about God, which is a great start!
The youth group was busy while I was preaching. They were busy putting a whoopee cushion under my chair, and then re-inflating it a couple of times when I'd managed to sit on it while there was too much noise (hymns, etc) for it to be embarrassing.
Maybe they didn't get all of the challenge I set out for them in the sermon, but they're comfortable enough to hang around while I teach about God, which is a great start!
8.07.2007
Is it Enough?
The other day I was watching "My Super Sweet 16" on MTV-- for anyone who's unfamiliar, this is a show that gives us all a good look at 16th birthday parties thrown by kids whose parents want to buy their love or can't fight their sense of entitlement.
The two girls featured on the show (they had the same birthday, so shared the party) asked all their guests to donate money to St. Jude Children's Hospital rather than bringing gifts, and over the course of the party raised $50,000 for the hospital.
Which is a good thing. $50,000 worth of research and care for kids with cancer-- who could fault them for that?
The trouble is, the party cost $421,000, eight times the value of the donation. Nearly half a million dollars spent on celebrating two children and making them feel like rockstars. Does the donation, set against that obscene self-aggrandizement, have any value left? If the two students had spent the half-million on the hospital, and the 50,000 on the party, wouldn't that have made more of a difference?
When Jesus said, "The measure with which you give is the measure which will be given to you," did he have this sort of thing in mind? I'm not sure quite what to think-- I want to give those two girls credit for their generosity, but when their party cost eight times what they gave away, and the money for the donation came from their guests and not themselves, how generous was it?
The two girls featured on the show (they had the same birthday, so shared the party) asked all their guests to donate money to St. Jude Children's Hospital rather than bringing gifts, and over the course of the party raised $50,000 for the hospital.
Which is a good thing. $50,000 worth of research and care for kids with cancer-- who could fault them for that?
The trouble is, the party cost $421,000, eight times the value of the donation. Nearly half a million dollars spent on celebrating two children and making them feel like rockstars. Does the donation, set against that obscene self-aggrandizement, have any value left? If the two students had spent the half-million on the hospital, and the 50,000 on the party, wouldn't that have made more of a difference?
When Jesus said, "The measure with which you give is the measure which will be given to you," did he have this sort of thing in mind? I'm not sure quite what to think-- I want to give those two girls credit for their generosity, but when their party cost eight times what they gave away, and the money for the donation came from their guests and not themselves, how generous was it?
8.06.2007
A bag-o-friendship to teach commitment
Last week, a friend from here at church dropped off a fragrant bag at my office. In it was about a cup of "starter" batter for a batch of Amish friendship bread. The bread, a tradition probably started by the Amish, is passed on in starter form from one friend to another; the recipient works the bag for 10 days, sometimes adding ingredients, mostly just mushing it up to keep it from being stagnant. At the end of the preparation, you make several gift starters to pass on to your own friends, add the last ingredients (including, oddly, a box of instant pudding) and bake the actual bread. What you end up with is a sweet, cinnamon-sugar-crusted loaf of Amish goodness.
When I told one of my students about it, she let me get about a sentence into the story and interrupted me to say, "Just to let you know, I don't want one!" According to her, it was far too much work.
So that made me start to think about how this weeklong bread might be a good activitiy for a small-group Bible study during a series about friendship and what it means to be a friend. You have to be committed to this bread or the starter will go bad. It takes some waiting; the bag leaks odd smells through the days when it sits on the counter; it's harder to make than most bread because there's a specific order to the steps. It's like a good friendship. (Which, of course, is why I suspect the Amish named it the way they did.)
"Of course it's hard. Anything that's worth doing is hard," I told a student one day. But to see that there's an investment required to build up good, Christian friendships, this kind of concrete, tasty project might be just what students need.
Here's the recipe:
Amish Friendship Bread Starter
Amish Friendship Bread (requires the starter)
When I told one of my students about it, she let me get about a sentence into the story and interrupted me to say, "Just to let you know, I don't want one!" According to her, it was far too much work.
So that made me start to think about how this weeklong bread might be a good activitiy for a small-group Bible study during a series about friendship and what it means to be a friend. You have to be committed to this bread or the starter will go bad. It takes some waiting; the bag leaks odd smells through the days when it sits on the counter; it's harder to make than most bread because there's a specific order to the steps. It's like a good friendship. (Which, of course, is why I suspect the Amish named it the way they did.)
"Of course it's hard. Anything that's worth doing is hard," I told a student one day. But to see that there's an investment required to build up good, Christian friendships, this kind of concrete, tasty project might be just what students need.
Here's the recipe:
Amish Friendship Bread Starter
Amish Friendship Bread (requires the starter)
8.03.2007
A "Spiritual Interview" for youth and leaders
I was sitting in Starbucks the other day, reading “The New Faithful” by Colleen Carroll, and noticed a job interview happening at a table across the cafe from me. This made me think about the number of job interviews I'd seen happening there since I moved to St. Louis-- every time I walk into a Starbucks store, someone's trying to get a job, either at the store, or meeting an interviewer at this convenient place.
The purpose of a job interview is to find out how well the person applying will fit in and what he/she will contribute to the company. One tactic that interviewers use all the time is asking challenging or tricky questions, trying to find out how well people think on their feet or how much they know. After the interview, the applicant will have an idea of where he's a strong choice for the job, and a set of weaknesses she can work on before the next meeting.
It made me think about how useful it might be to hold spiritual interviews with students once in a while, to directly ask questions about faith that check what students know and give them some things to think about afterward. The idea wouldn't be to put pressure on students to come up with certain answers, but to see where they're at and help us figure out how to help them more precisely. Greg Stier's “Ministry Mutiny” has an idea like this; that's another spark source for me on this one.
These are some useful questions for a spiritual life interview:
When you go to worship, what part of the service do you most look forward to?
If God had a message to give you right now, what medium (music, people, words, etc.) would He use to deliver it?
When you need to make a big decision, what steps do you take to discern what God wants you to choose?
How do they make M&Ms? (That's an actual interview question, designed to check creativity. Throw it in just for fun.)
What spiritual practices give you strength when you're tempted?
Talk about the times this year when you've been the highest and lowest, spiritually. Where was God in both of those places?
Sometimes we can get these things to come up in conversation. But I also think there's a place for a planned check-in.
6.19.2007
The Vatican's 10 Commandments for Drivers
Found this story on Yahoo today, courtesy of the Associated Press: "Vatican's 10 commandments for drivers"
"An unusual document from the Vatican's office for migrants and itinerant people also warned that cars can be "an occasion of sin" — particularly when they are used for dangerous passing or for prostitution.
It warned about the effects of road rage, saying driving can bring out "primitive" behavior in motorists, including "impoliteness, rude gestures, cursing, blasphemy, loss of sense of responsibility or deliberate infringement of the highway code."
It urged motorists to obey traffic regulations, drive with a moral sense, and to pray when behind the wheel.
Cardinal Renato Martino, who heads the office, told a news conference that the Vatican felt it necessary to address the pastoral needs of motorists because driving had become such a big part of contemporary life."
"An unusual document from the Vatican's office for migrants and itinerant people also warned that cars can be "an occasion of sin" — particularly when they are used for dangerous passing or for prostitution.
It warned about the effects of road rage, saying driving can bring out "primitive" behavior in motorists, including "impoliteness, rude gestures, cursing, blasphemy, loss of sense of responsibility or deliberate infringement of the highway code."
It urged motorists to obey traffic regulations, drive with a moral sense, and to pray when behind the wheel.
Cardinal Renato Martino, who heads the office, told a news conference that the Vatican felt it necessary to address the pastoral needs of motorists because driving had become such a big part of contemporary life."
6.06.2007
Another small but vital thought
I posted one of these a few days ago, and since then another one has been kicking around in my mind, something I probably should have gotten a long time ago, and I'm not entirely sure why it just appeared.
It isn't that God starts speaking when I start listening.
It's that God's speaking all the time, and when I start listening, I hear Him.
It isn't that God starts speaking when I start listening.
It's that God's speaking all the time, and when I start listening, I hear Him.
6.04.2007
In evolution, religious belief found "useful"
The Post-Dispatch, here in St. Louis, ran this story about researchers at Wash. U. who are researching religion as an evolutionary response:
Perhaps since the time of Galileo, science and religion have had a gentleman's agreement: You stay out of my business, and I'll stay out of yours. Not any longer. A cadre of scientists, including Washington University anthropologist Pascal Boyer, are trying to explain why, in almost every human culture, people choose belief in God over unbelief — why, it seems, the human brain is wired for belief.And the scientists are finding something that would please Charles Darwin himself: Religion may have evolved through the same rules that led to big brains and opposable thumbs. From an evolutionary standpoint, they have found, belief can be useful."Supernatural beliefs are, in general, very easy extensions from beliefs that are useful in everyday life," Boyer said...
"Believers say, 'You're showing how God interacts with my brain.' Atheists say, 'That's great because it shows that it's nothing more than activity in the brain,'" he said.But Boyer feels that he has been caught in the middle. Believers have accused him of trying to take the mystery away. And atheists have criticized him for not attacking religion enough. He has received hate mail from both sides.
Perhaps since the time of Galileo, science and religion have had a gentleman's agreement: You stay out of my business, and I'll stay out of yours. Not any longer. A cadre of scientists, including Washington University anthropologist Pascal Boyer, are trying to explain why, in almost every human culture, people choose belief in God over unbelief — why, it seems, the human brain is wired for belief.And the scientists are finding something that would please Charles Darwin himself: Religion may have evolved through the same rules that led to big brains and opposable thumbs. From an evolutionary standpoint, they have found, belief can be useful."Supernatural beliefs are, in general, very easy extensions from beliefs that are useful in everyday life," Boyer said...
"Believers say, 'You're showing how God interacts with my brain.' Atheists say, 'That's great because it shows that it's nothing more than activity in the brain,'" he said.But Boyer feels that he has been caught in the middle. Believers have accused him of trying to take the mystery away. And atheists have criticized him for not attacking religion enough. He has received hate mail from both sides.
5.30.2007
An Open Letter to the Scientists
Dear Scientists of the world,
Please show us that the reason you came to be a scientist is because you wondered about something you didn't know, and that wonder consumed you and drove you.
When someone writes a newspaper article about a new discovery you made, please tell us how many wrong turns your investigation took, how many times you asked the wrong question or missed something. Tell us about how much you kept wondering through the whole thing.
Because when my students see an unbroken string of stories about how we've just proved something, they learn that it's the results that matter, and not the wonder. That curiosity is only good when it's leading to proof. That things we can't see, and don't understand, don't matter until we can, and do.
I love what you're doing for the world, making medicine and cool gadgets and the Showtime Rotisserie. And I know we-- scientists and ministers-- can play nice together, since all the things you're discovering are things God made work that way. So let's make each other's jobs a little easier, and give the world back the gift of wonder, of process, of saying "I don't know."
Thanks,
Isaac
Please show us that the reason you came to be a scientist is because you wondered about something you didn't know, and that wonder consumed you and drove you.
When someone writes a newspaper article about a new discovery you made, please tell us how many wrong turns your investigation took, how many times you asked the wrong question or missed something. Tell us about how much you kept wondering through the whole thing.
Because when my students see an unbroken string of stories about how we've just proved something, they learn that it's the results that matter, and not the wonder. That curiosity is only good when it's leading to proof. That things we can't see, and don't understand, don't matter until we can, and do.
I love what you're doing for the world, making medicine and cool gadgets and the Showtime Rotisserie. And I know we-- scientists and ministers-- can play nice together, since all the things you're discovering are things God made work that way. So let's make each other's jobs a little easier, and give the world back the gift of wonder, of process, of saying "I don't know."
Thanks,
Isaac
5.25.2007
It's a great time to be in ministry
...as this article from the Christian Science Monitor points out.
"The rising interest in spirituality has led many more students to enroll in religion courses or to major in religion, reports The New York Times. Many students choose to live in dorms that allow a focus on matters of faith. Often, these students were raised by baby-boomer parents who did not impose a religion on them, but when faced with difficulties on campus, the students search for answers to tough questions of life."
"The rising interest in spirituality has led many more students to enroll in religion courses or to major in religion, reports The New York Times. Many students choose to live in dorms that allow a focus on matters of faith. Often, these students were raised by baby-boomer parents who did not impose a religion on them, but when faced with difficulties on campus, the students search for answers to tough questions of life."
How do we make this happen?
I had a whole discussion this week with my small group about how they weren't going to read their Bibles. We had a dare, since we're in a series right now about how to use the Bible, which was to pick a number between 3 and 8, and read the Bible that many days between group meetings. The discussion then ran through some of the following comments:
Buddhist student and pastor's kid: "We already know everything about the Bible; we've read it before!"
Fairly reliable student: "What if reading it one time is pretty much impossible?
Me: "How is that impossible?"
FRS: "Well, I'm studying for finals."
Particularly obnoxious student: "Yeah, finals are way more important than the Bible!"
Struggling student: "What if I read the same thing every day?"
POS: "What if I read one word every day?"
Me: "You have to read more than one word at a time."
POS: "What if God was leading me to that one word?"
How do we overcome resistance to reading the Bible because it's too ________ (fill in: boring, old, weird, violent, irrelevant, hard...)? I really want my students to be excited about Scripture because every time I open it something jumps out at me, but they don't seem to be catching on. Help!
Buddhist student and pastor's kid: "We already know everything about the Bible; we've read it before!"
Fairly reliable student: "What if reading it one time is pretty much impossible?
Me: "How is that impossible?"
FRS: "Well, I'm studying for finals."
Particularly obnoxious student: "Yeah, finals are way more important than the Bible!"
Struggling student: "What if I read the same thing every day?"
POS: "What if I read one word every day?"
Me: "You have to read more than one word at a time."
POS: "What if God was leading me to that one word?"
How do we overcome resistance to reading the Bible because it's too ________ (fill in: boring, old, weird, violent, irrelevant, hard...)? I really want my students to be excited about Scripture because every time I open it something jumps out at me, but they don't seem to be catching on. Help!
5.22.2007
Bible will not be declared an "indecent publication"
From Reuters, this story:
HONG KONG (Reuters) - "Hong Kong's media regulator has rejected calls to reclassify the Bible as an indecent publication following more than 2,000 complaints about its sexual and violent content, including rape and incest...
Publications classified as indecent in Hong Kong can only be bought by people aged over 18 and must be sealed in a wrapper with a statutory warning notice."
HONG KONG (Reuters) - "Hong Kong's media regulator has rejected calls to reclassify the Bible as an indecent publication following more than 2,000 complaints about its sexual and violent content, including rape and incest...
Publications classified as indecent in Hong Kong can only be bought by people aged over 18 and must be sealed in a wrapper with a statutory warning notice."
Finally, a good answer
My students have been asking questions that have both stumped and inspired me in the last couple of weeks, and one that comes out especially often has to do with prayer, and it usually goes "Why won't God give me what I'm praying for?"
This small thought snuck into my mind the other day and won't go away:
We ask for anything we think would be good enough.
But God will only give us what is perfect for us to have.
This small thought snuck into my mind the other day and won't go away:
We ask for anything we think would be good enough.
But God will only give us what is perfect for us to have.
5.18.2007
But why do we have church?
A student came up to me last week and asked, "Why do we have church (meaning the regular Sunday worship)? Why can't we just have youth group and Bible study?
I explained it was because we needed to hear the Gospel and have Communion.
"But why can't we just do that in youth group?" he wanted to know.
I told him it was because we needed a priest to do Communion, and that we needed to hear the sermon.
"But why couldn't the priest just come to the youth group?"
I didn't have a good answer for him that day. But it made me think.
Well, J, the reason we have church is because we need the chance to worship with the whole community. By which I mean this:
If we had the Gospel and Communion in the youth group, we would end up having those things with people who were just like us: young, growing in faith, and without a lot of experience at anything. We would invite Jesus into our little circle and enjoy our time with Him all by ourselves.
We have church because we need to worship with people who are old. People who have a lot of stories to tell with their lives. People who are just beginning to wonder about God. People who are wrestling with Him. People who are different-- in their ages, in their faith development, in their involvement with the church-- from us.
Church is so we can talk to God together.
Church is so we can see the people we pray for.
Church is so we don't ever think we are the only ones who know God, because we're comfortable in our own little way of doing things.
I explained it was because we needed to hear the Gospel and have Communion.
"But why can't we just do that in youth group?" he wanted to know.
I told him it was because we needed a priest to do Communion, and that we needed to hear the sermon.
"But why couldn't the priest just come to the youth group?"
I didn't have a good answer for him that day. But it made me think.
Well, J, the reason we have church is because we need the chance to worship with the whole community. By which I mean this:
If we had the Gospel and Communion in the youth group, we would end up having those things with people who were just like us: young, growing in faith, and without a lot of experience at anything. We would invite Jesus into our little circle and enjoy our time with Him all by ourselves.
We have church because we need to worship with people who are old. People who have a lot of stories to tell with their lives. People who are just beginning to wonder about God. People who are wrestling with Him. People who are different-- in their ages, in their faith development, in their involvement with the church-- from us.
Church is so we can talk to God together.
Church is so we can see the people we pray for.
Church is so we don't ever think we are the only ones who know God, because we're comfortable in our own little way of doing things.
5.16.2007
An open letter to all of my students
My dear young friends in Christ,
No, I cannot personally prove to you that God is real. But at the same time, I cannot prove to you that any of the situations you see on reality television would actually happen if there weren't any cameras there, and you believe in those rather easily.
No, having never been there, I cannot personally prove to you that Heaven and Hell are in fact real places. I can also not prove that winning the county Little League championship in third grade will land you a spot on the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals, but you're talking about that as if it's going to happen tomorrow.
No, I cannot personally prove that the Bible records with complete accuracy the miracles Christ performed, since I wasn't there to see them myself. But neither can I prove that the tips you pick up in "Cosmo" will in fact lead you to Mr. Right, and you quote them the way I'd like to hear you quoting the New Testament.
No, it's not possible to completely understand the book of Revelation and Christ's second coming. But if Jesus had a band, and they were reuniting after many years, you'd want to know all about it.
Finally, no, I cannot prove that your friends, family, teachers, co-workers or that guy at the bus stop will understand why you want to live a life that is faithful to God, and not to yourself or to them. But no one understands you anyway.
I love you all with the love of Christ,
Isaac
No, I cannot personally prove to you that God is real. But at the same time, I cannot prove to you that any of the situations you see on reality television would actually happen if there weren't any cameras there, and you believe in those rather easily.
No, having never been there, I cannot personally prove to you that Heaven and Hell are in fact real places. I can also not prove that winning the county Little League championship in third grade will land you a spot on the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals, but you're talking about that as if it's going to happen tomorrow.
No, I cannot personally prove that the Bible records with complete accuracy the miracles Christ performed, since I wasn't there to see them myself. But neither can I prove that the tips you pick up in "Cosmo" will in fact lead you to Mr. Right, and you quote them the way I'd like to hear you quoting the New Testament.
No, it's not possible to completely understand the book of Revelation and Christ's second coming. But if Jesus had a band, and they were reuniting after many years, you'd want to know all about it.
Finally, no, I cannot prove that your friends, family, teachers, co-workers or that guy at the bus stop will understand why you want to live a life that is faithful to God, and not to yourself or to them. But no one understands you anyway.
I love you all with the love of Christ,
Isaac
5.15.2007
Skittles: Steal the Rainbow
From MSNBC, this story:
"A man caught removing tires from a truck
has been charged with stealing the tractor-
trailer containing $250,000 worth of Skittles,
police said."
The most odd part of this story is that the Skittles in the stolen trailer were worth $250,000. The tires and rims he was trying to remove and sell were worth $500. I suspect there's a metaphor there, useful for youth Gospel messages.
"A man caught removing tires from a truck
has been charged with stealing the tractor-
trailer containing $250,000 worth of Skittles,
police said."
The most odd part of this story is that the Skittles in the stolen trailer were worth $250,000. The tires and rims he was trying to remove and sell were worth $500. I suspect there's a metaphor there, useful for youth Gospel messages.
5.14.2007
The difference was, she did it on purpose
"As he went along, he passed a woman in the crowd who had been constantly bleeding for twelve years, and no one could heal her. She thought to herself, 'If I can just touch him, I will be healed.' So she reached out and touched the hem of his robe, and instantly she was healed. Jesus stopped and said to his disciples, 'Who touched me?' They laughed and said, 'Master, the crowd is pressing and jostling against you-- dozens of people have been touching you. How can you ask who it was?' He replied, 'I know someone touched me; I felt power go out from me.' Then the woman, seeing she could not go unnoticed, threw herself at Jesus' feet and in front of the whole crowd told how she had touched him and felt herself instantly healed. Jesus said to her, 'Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace.'"
At the evening prayer service before the Confirmation banquet, I had the honor of reading the Gospel lesson for the day, and the quote at the beginning of this post was part of it. After the service, the story got me thinking.
The whole crowd touched him. Anyone close to Jesus, wanting to hear what he said, bumped up against him and pushed into him on all sides. Some of the crowd was behind him, pushing him forward. Others were in front, trying to hear and lead the way at the same time. They all touched him, but one woman reached out to him. One woman touched him on purpose, knowing that if she could just contact Christ, something would happen to her life.
In this story, where am I? I'd like to automatically say I was with that woman, reaching out to touch Jesus on purpose, but there are some days when I know I'm so familiar with Him that I know I'm probably bumping and pushing, maybe even getting ahead and trying to get Christ to follow me. How do I avoid that state?
And where are my students? I know they're reaching out, but there are many times when I know they're reaching out in the wrong direction. How do I keep them in the crowd so they can hear Christ, and hear from Him which direction they should be pointing?
Above all, I pray that they and I will learn to do all these things on purpose, conscious that something will happen when we contact Christ, even if we underestimate it.
At the evening prayer service before the Confirmation banquet, I had the honor of reading the Gospel lesson for the day, and the quote at the beginning of this post was part of it. After the service, the story got me thinking.
The whole crowd touched him. Anyone close to Jesus, wanting to hear what he said, bumped up against him and pushed into him on all sides. Some of the crowd was behind him, pushing him forward. Others were in front, trying to hear and lead the way at the same time. They all touched him, but one woman reached out to him. One woman touched him on purpose, knowing that if she could just contact Christ, something would happen to her life.
In this story, where am I? I'd like to automatically say I was with that woman, reaching out to touch Jesus on purpose, but there are some days when I know I'm so familiar with Him that I know I'm probably bumping and pushing, maybe even getting ahead and trying to get Christ to follow me. How do I avoid that state?
And where are my students? I know they're reaching out, but there are many times when I know they're reaching out in the wrong direction. How do I keep them in the crowd so they can hear Christ, and hear from Him which direction they should be pointing?
Above all, I pray that they and I will learn to do all these things on purpose, conscious that something will happen when we contact Christ, even if we underestimate it.
5.11.2007
There's a light at the end of this tunnel
...and someday our students will get there, and do things like this: (AP, via NYTimes.com
"Twenty years later, Wiese hauled [her] diary out of storage and read it to a bar full of strangers just for laughs.
''Cringe readings,'' these exercises are called, and they are growing in popularity around the country.
Groups in New York and elsewhere convene to relive what most would rather forget: the depths of their teenage angst. Participants get up on stage with their ragged, old diaries and are instructed to read only material embarrassing enough to make them cringe.
It turns out that embarrassing is also funny. When Wiese appeared at the reading, held monthly at a Brooklyn bar, the room was packed beyond capacity. The 33-year-old fundraiser may have been cringing, but her audience was cheering."
"Twenty years later, Wiese hauled [her] diary out of storage and read it to a bar full of strangers just for laughs.
''Cringe readings,'' these exercises are called, and they are growing in popularity around the country.
Groups in New York and elsewhere convene to relive what most would rather forget: the depths of their teenage angst. Participants get up on stage with their ragged, old diaries and are instructed to read only material embarrassing enough to make them cringe.
It turns out that embarrassing is also funny. When Wiese appeared at the reading, held monthly at a Brooklyn bar, the room was packed beyond capacity. The 33-year-old fundraiser may have been cringing, but her audience was cheering."
4.27.2007
What does this say about my small group?
One of my students brought a friend to small group night this week and shared the following conversation:
"So [my friend] said, 'At my youth group, we watch Rob Bell videos.' And I said, 'yeah, at my church we watch Will It Blend'!"
"So [my friend] said, 'At my youth group, we watch Rob Bell videos.' And I said, 'yeah, at my church we watch Will It Blend'!"
4.26.2007
Doing a bit of thinking
One of the reasons I choose to call myself a rookie, and plan to for my whole career, is to keep me from being arrogant. Yes, I want to be the best youth minister in the world. But that doesn't have anything to do with me, or whatever status might come along with that. It's because God called me to this ministry and He, (and my students) deserve nothing less than that from me.
It's struck home this semester how much I need to avoid arrogance. I've been taking an "Intro to classroom teaching" course and part of the course was a classroom observation series in local schools. I saw some amazing teaching that inspired me to go back to my youth group and immediately start using some of the things I saw. I also saw some really poor teaching; teachers who didn't care, and didn't stretch themselves, so their students stayed right where they started. And I saw some teachers who were right in the middle, doing the very best they could and not seeing many results.
It's easy not to be arrogant in the presence of great teachers, because they are so obviously better at it than me and I am eager to learn from them. It's nearly as easy to avoid arrogance when I'm watching bad teachers, because my thoughts get extreme enough about how much better than that I want to be that I can identify them and stop them right away. But in the middle is the hardest part. In the middle I'm caught between my incredibly high ideals, that get boosted by my education professor, and knowing the reality of how students can often seem callous and non-absorbent.
So in that place, I need to be the most careful. I need to consciously watch for what a teacher cares about. I need to see the small ways (often very small ways) the students show their respect and interest. And however long I'm there, I need to ask myself, "What would make me do the same thing this teacher is doing?" rather than "I can't believe she's doing that... I have a much better plan!"
Arrogance is one of the great killers of great youth ministers. And great teachers. And only when we break through it can we keep on learning.
It's struck home this semester how much I need to avoid arrogance. I've been taking an "Intro to classroom teaching" course and part of the course was a classroom observation series in local schools. I saw some amazing teaching that inspired me to go back to my youth group and immediately start using some of the things I saw. I also saw some really poor teaching; teachers who didn't care, and didn't stretch themselves, so their students stayed right where they started. And I saw some teachers who were right in the middle, doing the very best they could and not seeing many results.
It's easy not to be arrogant in the presence of great teachers, because they are so obviously better at it than me and I am eager to learn from them. It's nearly as easy to avoid arrogance when I'm watching bad teachers, because my thoughts get extreme enough about how much better than that I want to be that I can identify them and stop them right away. But in the middle is the hardest part. In the middle I'm caught between my incredibly high ideals, that get boosted by my education professor, and knowing the reality of how students can often seem callous and non-absorbent.
So in that place, I need to be the most careful. I need to consciously watch for what a teacher cares about. I need to see the small ways (often very small ways) the students show their respect and interest. And however long I'm there, I need to ask myself, "What would make me do the same thing this teacher is doing?" rather than "I can't believe she's doing that... I have a much better plan!"
Arrogance is one of the great killers of great youth ministers. And great teachers. And only when we break through it can we keep on learning.
4.18.2007
4.17.2007
Cheddarvision
www.cheddarvision.tv-- the link goes to a webcam from England that shows a wheel of Cheddar cheese aging. Live.
Here's the YouTube timelapse too.
This is a neat idea. Not only because I love cheese. But also because not everything happens in an instant.
Here's the YouTube timelapse too.
This is a neat idea. Not only because I love cheese. But also because not everything happens in an instant.
I've been waiting four years (the number of years I've been working directly with confirmation classes) for this to happen. My senior pastor in Michigan used to tell the class it was an option every year, and said he'd never had anyone say it either.
I'd messaged a student to ask for some feedback on our confirmation class, and my student wrote back to me, "I just don't want to be confirmed."
I'll tell you why I was thrilled about this.
Confirmands make promises. It's not just what they promise their youth minister that matters, it's that they promise their congregation and their God that they will, among other things, "continue in the apostles' teaching, in the breaking of bread and in the prayers," something that new members have promised to do since the church in Acts.
Every year, at least one confirmand makes those promises without intending to keep them. Every year, a few of them drift away after confirmation, without really thinking about what a serious breach they're creating between their promises and their actions. Especially in mainline churches, the temptation is to see confirmation as just another ritual, and go through the motions to make your parents happy. (That's a whole separate problem, by the way, not something I'm happy about or working to allow.)
So I'm thrilled because someone finally said, "This just isn't for me." We're not going to lose track of this student. But admitting honest doubt is, even if the doubter doesn't realize it, a step toward honest faith. Someone who says, "No" isn't always saying "Never" but often "I need more time."
I'd messaged a student to ask for some feedback on our confirmation class, and my student wrote back to me, "I just don't want to be confirmed."
I'll tell you why I was thrilled about this.
Confirmands make promises. It's not just what they promise their youth minister that matters, it's that they promise their congregation and their God that they will, among other things, "continue in the apostles' teaching, in the breaking of bread and in the prayers," something that new members have promised to do since the church in Acts.
Every year, at least one confirmand makes those promises without intending to keep them. Every year, a few of them drift away after confirmation, without really thinking about what a serious breach they're creating between their promises and their actions. Especially in mainline churches, the temptation is to see confirmation as just another ritual, and go through the motions to make your parents happy. (That's a whole separate problem, by the way, not something I'm happy about or working to allow.)
So I'm thrilled because someone finally said, "This just isn't for me." We're not going to lose track of this student. But admitting honest doubt is, even if the doubter doesn't realize it, a step toward honest faith. Someone who says, "No" isn't always saying "Never" but often "I need more time."
4.16.2007
One of these things is not like the other...
More hilarity from classroom observations, in the middle school. The lesson talked about the structure of the early church, and how the church modeled itself on the hierarchy of the Roman Empire, with laypeople, then priests, then deacons, then bishops, then archbishops, etc. One student had a question.
Student: A bishop... you mean like a jester?
Teacher: No... bishops and jesters are two completely different things.
Then one student identified the top of the hierarchy, the Pope.
Teacher: That's right. Are you Catholic?
Student: No, I'm Episcopalian.
Other Student: What's an Episcoponian?
Student: A bishop... you mean like a jester?
Teacher: No... bishops and jesters are two completely different things.
Then one student identified the top of the hierarchy, the Pope.
Teacher: That's right. Are you Catholic?
Student: No, I'm Episcopalian.
Other Student: What's an Episcoponian?
4.13.2007
Empowerment or worse!
So how's this for an idea that could start out healthy and turn bad in just a few heartbeats?
Mommy and Daddy's Little Life Coach (NYTimes)
"Parents have long depended on their children to be in-house experts on fashion, technology and pop culture, to introduce them to fresh music, purge their closets of ghastly apparel (“mom jeans”) and troubleshoot household electronics. And generations of parents have encouraged their children to weigh in on family decisions like choosing a winter vacation spot or a replacement for the belly-up goldfish.
But the nature and pervasiveness of child-to-parent advice has reached new proportions for a variety of reasons. Many parents — who have shed their status as old fogy untouchables and become pals with their progeny — are treating their offspring as worldly equals. They think of their computer-savvy, plugged-in children as confidants, and so they look to them for advice on life decisions, as well as major purchases: cars, computers, vacation packages, real estate, home décor. "
Mommy and Daddy's Little Life Coach (NYTimes)
"Parents have long depended on their children to be in-house experts on fashion, technology and pop culture, to introduce them to fresh music, purge their closets of ghastly apparel (“mom jeans”) and troubleshoot household electronics. And generations of parents have encouraged their children to weigh in on family decisions like choosing a winter vacation spot or a replacement for the belly-up goldfish.
But the nature and pervasiveness of child-to-parent advice has reached new proportions for a variety of reasons. Many parents — who have shed their status as old fogy untouchables and become pals with their progeny — are treating their offspring as worldly equals. They think of their computer-savvy, plugged-in children as confidants, and so they look to them for advice on life decisions, as well as major purchases: cars, computers, vacation packages, real estate, home décor. "
4.11.2007
When I pray in school, it's for more comments like these...
The other day I was observing a middle school social studies classroom on a day when they were hearing a lesson on the early Christians, as part of a unit on Roman history.
Teacher: "Why might Roman roads have helped spread the Christian message?"
Student: "Maybe they had pictures of Jesus on them...?"
Teacher: "Why might Roman roads have helped spread the Christian message?"
Student: "Maybe they had pictures of Jesus on them...?"
4.09.2007
Christos anesti! Alethos anesti!
Welcome to a new season of blogging with the Rookie Youthworker! I took a fast from writing on it over Lent for a couple of reasons:1) I was feeling really pressured to keep putting up awesome useful content, on top of work and school, and needed to step back and rest for a little while.
2) I didn't really know what the blog was for anymore.
God gave me an excellent season during Lent to sit and think and pray about it. Although most of the real progress didn't happen until the end of Lent, the whole time was worth it.
To deal with the problem of pressure, I've decided to re-instate the posting rule I had when I first started the RYW blog in December of 2005. I will post "major" content, aka serious essay-type posts or technique ideas or something to wrestle with and use, three times every week. That way I'll have time to think on them and make sure they're coherent and helpful.
To recover my sense of direction, God and I realized that the blog has three main purposes:
1) To glorify God by serving as a place where youth ministers can wrestle with theology and philosophy of ministry, to make sure the things we do are faithful to His commands.
2) To contribute to the overall state of youth ministry by offering ideas that we can work on, tweak, debate and remodel.
3) To share both humor and information from the world around us that helps us keep our perspective and appreciate the unique context we're working in today.
May God bless you through this blog and we strengthen each other in conversation this year!
2.20.2007
Blogging in Lent
For the past little while I've been having a little bit of trouble deciding what my direction is for this blog and what, ultimately, it does for my ministry and that of my fellow youthworkers.
Because of the confusion, I haven't been updating all that often, and sticking to lighter-hearted (except the last post) topics.
To clarify, I will be fasting from blogging during Lent, to pray over the direction God has for this part of my ministry and ask for guidance on how I should direct my efforts.
The RYW podcast will take the same hiatus; I'm much clearer on my intentions for that, but the two are connected and so both need the guidance and prayer that I'll be giving them.
Any prayers you're willing to offer for me would be very much appreciated!
Because of the confusion, I haven't been updating all that often, and sticking to lighter-hearted (except the last post) topics.
To clarify, I will be fasting from blogging during Lent, to pray over the direction God has for this part of my ministry and ask for guidance on how I should direct my efforts.
The RYW podcast will take the same hiatus; I'm much clearer on my intentions for that, but the two are connected and so both need the guidance and prayer that I'll be giving them.
Any prayers you're willing to offer for me would be very much appreciated!
How big is your box?
Talking with a student the other day, we started on the subject of who should go to Hell. Let's just say we had very different opinions.
Actually, let's say a little more than that. My student believes that, even should someone reach him with the Gospel of Christ, Osama bin Laden categorically deserves damnation.
The dangers I pointed out in his thinking (thank you to the Spirit for these, since I'm positive I hadn't thought about this myself) are twofold:
All deeds aside, (not to excuse them but because the argument goes a different direction) Osama is more a symbol today than an actual man, and beginning to think a certain way about him will subtly begin, in our fallen and sinful human minds, to stamp everyone else associated with the symbol of the leader the same way, and thus begin to call for all the leader's followers to wind up in Hell as well.
This leads to the second problem: we cannot decide that any person deserves Hell with no chance of redemption. For one thing, it's not our decision; it's God's. For another, if we've already decided, we've drawn a box around who can be reached with the power of the Gospel, and who can't. That limits our evangelism, our prayer life, and the challenges from God we're able to hear for our lives. And that does not advance God's plan for us.
What makes radical Christianity different from radical anything else is that we truly believe there is no one outside the reach of Christ's grace. This isn't to say that everyone will believe in that grace or respond to our invitations to experience it, but neither is that objection an excuse for us not to earnestly reach out to everyone and try to share the story we have. If it turns out some surprising people are in Heaven because of the outreach of radical Christians, so much the better.
We may not ever stop believing that repentance and redemption is a possibility for anyone.
As we're getting ready for Lent to begin, I think a worthwhile exercise is to ask God to expand the boxes we work in so that we can believe and act as if no one is outside them, no one is not worth prayer and outreach.
Actually, let's say a little more than that. My student believes that, even should someone reach him with the Gospel of Christ, Osama bin Laden categorically deserves damnation.
The dangers I pointed out in his thinking (thank you to the Spirit for these, since I'm positive I hadn't thought about this myself) are twofold:
All deeds aside, (not to excuse them but because the argument goes a different direction) Osama is more a symbol today than an actual man, and beginning to think a certain way about him will subtly begin, in our fallen and sinful human minds, to stamp everyone else associated with the symbol of the leader the same way, and thus begin to call for all the leader's followers to wind up in Hell as well.
This leads to the second problem: we cannot decide that any person deserves Hell with no chance of redemption. For one thing, it's not our decision; it's God's. For another, if we've already decided, we've drawn a box around who can be reached with the power of the Gospel, and who can't. That limits our evangelism, our prayer life, and the challenges from God we're able to hear for our lives. And that does not advance God's plan for us.
What makes radical Christianity different from radical anything else is that we truly believe there is no one outside the reach of Christ's grace. This isn't to say that everyone will believe in that grace or respond to our invitations to experience it, but neither is that objection an excuse for us not to earnestly reach out to everyone and try to share the story we have. If it turns out some surprising people are in Heaven because of the outreach of radical Christians, so much the better.
We may not ever stop believing that repentance and redemption is a possibility for anyone.
As we're getting ready for Lent to begin, I think a worthwhile exercise is to ask God to expand the boxes we work in so that we can believe and act as if no one is outside them, no one is not worth prayer and outreach.
2.19.2007
He thought I wanted to hear it...
A student of mine invited himself to come to lunch with me yesterday. He was telling this story about a girl, who is apparently "really cute" and he'd love to go out with her, but they don't know each other very well, but somehow they spent the afternoon in the same place... the important part came when he said,
"And then she offered to drive me home and I thought, 'COULD THIS GET ANY BETTER?' because... um... uh... because she's such a safe driver!"
"And then she offered to drive me home and I thought, 'COULD THIS GET ANY BETTER?' because... um... uh... because she's such a safe driver!"
2.16.2007
Interesting website
Found this today: Challenge The Blasphemy. They did a YouTube video where they found a bunch of folks who are posting videos specifically saying they deny the existence of God/Christ/the Holy Spirit, then recruiting believers to commit to praying for those people.
As they remark on the website, "the fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much." --James 5:16.
It's an interesting site. A lot of the responses from the people being prayed for aren't real positive; an obvious concern is that it'll drive people away from faith by seeming to force prayer on them, but God has worked in much more mysterious ways. It's an interesting project.
As they remark on the website, "the fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much." --James 5:16.
It's an interesting site. A lot of the responses from the people being prayed for aren't real positive; an obvious concern is that it'll drive people away from faith by seeming to force prayer on them, but God has worked in much more mysterious ways. It's an interesting project.
2.14.2007
Cellphones tool for teen dating abuse
Christian Science Monitor story:
"In the survey, conducted by Teenage Research Unlimited, 20 to 30 percent of teens who had been in relationships said their partner had constantly checked in on them, had harassed or insulted them, or had made unwanted requests for sexual activity, all via cellphones or text messages. One out of 4 reported hourly contact with a dating partner between midnight and 5 a.m. – in some cases, 30 times per hour. And 1 out of 10 had received physical threats electronically. A much smaller percentage of parents reported that their teens had had such experiences.
"Dating violence has always had this core feature ... of trying to control the thoughts, feelings, and actions of another person," says Julie Kahn, program director of the Transition House Dating Violence Intervention Program in Cambridge, Mass. "When you add the technological piece, there are more ways to track someone, to keep someone on an 'electronic leash,' if you will.""
The website that goes along with it, for the National Teen Dating Abuse Hotline
"In the survey, conducted by Teenage Research Unlimited, 20 to 30 percent of teens who had been in relationships said their partner had constantly checked in on them, had harassed or insulted them, or had made unwanted requests for sexual activity, all via cellphones or text messages. One out of 4 reported hourly contact with a dating partner between midnight and 5 a.m. – in some cases, 30 times per hour. And 1 out of 10 had received physical threats electronically. A much smaller percentage of parents reported that their teens had had such experiences.
"Dating violence has always had this core feature ... of trying to control the thoughts, feelings, and actions of another person," says Julie Kahn, program director of the Transition House Dating Violence Intervention Program in Cambridge, Mass. "When you add the technological piece, there are more ways to track someone, to keep someone on an 'electronic leash,' if you will.""
The website that goes along with it, for the National Teen Dating Abuse Hotline
2.12.2007
A future evangelist?
I had the following conversation with a student yesterday:
(The setup: Whether or not to go on the mission trip depends on when soccer camp is.)
Me: So how exactly does your managing the varsity girls' soccer team serve Jesus?
Him: I'm serving his community.
Me: So that means nothing. How are you doing that?
Him: I'm serving all the hot girls.
Me: Tell me how that isn't completely un-Jesus-like?
Him: Um, I'll tell them Jesus loves them?
Bottom line seems to be: if all sinners were great-looking, all youth groups would have a stellar record for evangelism.
(The setup: Whether or not to go on the mission trip depends on when soccer camp is.)
Me: So how exactly does your managing the varsity girls' soccer team serve Jesus?
Him: I'm serving his community.
Me: So that means nothing. How are you doing that?
Him: I'm serving all the hot girls.
Me: Tell me how that isn't completely un-Jesus-like?
Him: Um, I'll tell them Jesus loves them?
Bottom line seems to be: if all sinners were great-looking, all youth groups would have a stellar record for evangelism.
2.08.2007
Away for the weekend
I'm off to the church council retreat tomorrow morning; be back Saturday night with, hopefully, some great stories and plans for helping our church do evangelism better. This means, according to the author of the book and facilitator of the retreat, Martha Grace Reese, "sharing something you enjoy with people you like."
I like that phrase, and her book: Unbinding the Gospel.
If you've already read that one, check out this one: Bad Science: The Short life and Weird Times of Cold Fusion.
Have an excellent weekend; I'll be back with stories from the retreat, and middle school youth group!
I like that phrase, and her book: Unbinding the Gospel.
If you've already read that one, check out this one: Bad Science: The Short life and Weird Times of Cold Fusion.
Have an excellent weekend; I'll be back with stories from the retreat, and middle school youth group!
2.05.2007
Colts win Super Bowl; disciples astonished
I wish I could take credit for this one; a pastor (and a loyal Bears fan) at a church I visit on the weekends began his sermon Saturday evening by speculating that at the end of the game, the Chicago Bears would be like the disciples, saying: "We have worked all night, and caught nothing."
Who says prophets aren't still alive among us?
Who says prophets aren't still alive among us?
2.04.2007
Rookie on the Radio: Show notes for episode 4
On this week's "Rookie on the Radio," Undiscovered listens to Project Damage Control's "Try Again;" we'll brainstorm with teachers and Quakers on how to get the most out of our post-event debriefings; a kid calls me on "So I called this kid" and we'll wind up with a thought from St. Catherine.
"Undiscovered" music comes from the Podsafe Music Network
Podcast intro and exit music comes from CCMixter user SCott
"A Thought" music comes from CCMixter user duncan_beattie
Simon Hole and Grace Hall McEntee's article "Reflection is at at the Heart of Practice" is from the May 1999 issue of "Educational Leadership."
"Undiscovered" music comes from the Podsafe Music Network
Podcast intro and exit music comes from CCMixter user SCott
"A Thought" music comes from CCMixter user duncan_beattie
Simon Hole and Grace Hall McEntee's article "Reflection is at at the Heart of Practice" is from the May 1999 issue of "Educational Leadership."
2.02.2007
A Confluence of Challenges
From today's lectionary readings: 2 Timothy 3:1-17
"But mark this. There will be terrible times in the last days. People will... have a form of godliness, but deny its power. (ellipsis covers the list of other horrible conditions people will have-- the break isn't there to change the context.)
From the book I'm reading, prepping for CSMSG's vestry retreat: "Unbinding the Gospel" by Martha Grace Reese
"I was leading a retreat for eight smart, loving pastors of growing mainline churches. Off the cuff, I asked, 'Hey, what difference does it make in your own life that you are a Christian?'
Silence. Loud silence stretched on. And on. I stared around the circle in disbelief. Finally one volunteered hesitantly, 'Because it makes me a better person?'
...
Since that retreat, I've asked hundreds of pastors what difference being a Christian makes in their own lives. Most reacted with surprise. Most had a hard time answering."
In what areas of all our lives must we ask God's forgiveness for denying the power of a relationship with Him?
"But mark this. There will be terrible times in the last days. People will... have a form of godliness, but deny its power. (ellipsis covers the list of other horrible conditions people will have-- the break isn't there to change the context.)
From the book I'm reading, prepping for CSMSG's vestry retreat: "Unbinding the Gospel" by Martha Grace Reese
"I was leading a retreat for eight smart, loving pastors of growing mainline churches. Off the cuff, I asked, 'Hey, what difference does it make in your own life that you are a Christian?'
Silence. Loud silence stretched on. And on. I stared around the circle in disbelief. Finally one volunteered hesitantly, 'Because it makes me a better person?'
...
Since that retreat, I've asked hundreds of pastors what difference being a Christian makes in their own lives. Most reacted with surprise. Most had a hard time answering."
In what areas of all our lives must we ask God's forgiveness for denying the power of a relationship with Him?
1.29.2007
Profound, but by accident
...so the trouble with dropping a Bible in a river is that, six months later, everyone who looks at it can tell which books you use all the time and which ones you skip over... poor Deuteronomy is feeling a little left out.
And I called a kid this afternoon (nearly saved this for the podcast, but it's a true story) and the call went like this:
Me: Hey, I just called to say happy birthday! (feeling very excited that I'd remembered to check the birthday list on my computer's calendar this morning)
He: Oh, um... it's not my birthday.
Me: (now feeling quite confused because the computer told me so) Is your birthday anywhere near here?
He: No, it's in October.
Me: Oh...
(Long pause)
Me: So what else is going on?
And I called a kid this afternoon (nearly saved this for the podcast, but it's a true story) and the call went like this:
Me: Hey, I just called to say happy birthday! (feeling very excited that I'd remembered to check the birthday list on my computer's calendar this morning)
He: Oh, um... it's not my birthday.
Me: (now feeling quite confused because the computer told me so) Is your birthday anywhere near here?
He: No, it's in October.
Me: Oh...
(Long pause)
Me: So what else is going on?
1.26.2007
Christian life as a coffee bean
Hey folks, this is just worth reposting, and it's a forward I hadn't seen before (rarest of rarities!) Thanks to Heidi, our clergy secretary, for passing it along to me. Everyone print it out and put it in your illustrations file...
A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.
Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.
In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me what you see."
"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.
Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg. Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma.
The daughter then asked, "What does it mean, mother?" Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened.
The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water , they had changed the water.
A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.
Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.
In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me what you see."
"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.
Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg. Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma.
The daughter then asked, "What does it mean, mother?" Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened.
The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water , they had changed the water.
1.25.2007
What I learned on the ropes course
Ropes courses, to me, are very inspiration. Usually I'll pull out some kind of devotional point. This past weekend, though, on the middle school retreat, I learned one simple lesson, at the intersection of prep time and face time.
Trout Lodge's staff does an amazing job leading students through their different courses, so when our middle schoolers got out to the site I'd been planning to cheer them on for a little while and then head back to the lodge to get ready for the next program session, setting out the supplies and material we'd need.
But my students kept saying, "You have to climb with us!"
I hadn't thought they'd be so insistent. "But I've done this before!" I said. That had been a valid excuse for the kids who weren't climbing.
"Maybe, but we haven't seen you!" one smart sixth-grader shot back.
So I climbed. I put on a harness and went through the course and said to myself, "Isaac, you can go back and prep when the next group comes through."
But the next group wanted me to stay too. They let me hang out on the ground, after I told them (and the staff vouched for me) that I'd climbed earlier, but they weren't letting me go anywhere.
On the way home, I thought about that. And I dug one simple rookie lesson out of it:
Any chance for face time with students has to be spent with students, duh! It's straight out of summer camp training, and something I remind adult leaders about near-weekly: spend most of your time with students.
Minor prep can always wait. Program-writers and perfectionists *Isaac raises both hands* like me need to be especially careful not to forget that.
Trout Lodge's staff does an amazing job leading students through their different courses, so when our middle schoolers got out to the site I'd been planning to cheer them on for a little while and then head back to the lodge to get ready for the next program session, setting out the supplies and material we'd need.
But my students kept saying, "You have to climb with us!"
I hadn't thought they'd be so insistent. "But I've done this before!" I said. That had been a valid excuse for the kids who weren't climbing.
"Maybe, but we haven't seen you!" one smart sixth-grader shot back.
So I climbed. I put on a harness and went through the course and said to myself, "Isaac, you can go back and prep when the next group comes through."
But the next group wanted me to stay too. They let me hang out on the ground, after I told them (and the staff vouched for me) that I'd climbed earlier, but they weren't letting me go anywhere.
On the way home, I thought about that. And I dug one simple rookie lesson out of it:
Any chance for face time with students has to be spent with students, duh! It's straight out of summer camp training, and something I remind adult leaders about near-weekly: spend most of your time with students.
Minor prep can always wait. Program-writers and perfectionists *Isaac raises both hands* like me need to be especially careful not to forget that.
1.23.2007
Don't think we're not busy...
...just because I'm not here every day telling you about it. Here's some photos from one of our last projects; painting the youth room and redecorating it.
1.20.2007
Rookie on the Radio: Show notes for Episode 3
On this week's "Rookie on the Radio," Youth in the News digs up some funny stories about exams:
Ban all homework as exams near, student trustee urges (Toronto Star)
Hong Kong tutors discovering sex sells (Guelph Mercury)
NC State students use Morgan Freeman's face to ease exam stress (Brock Press)
Japanese School to test chopstick skills as part of entrance exam (International Herald-Tribune)
Undiscovered listens to G.A.S, courtesy of the Podsafe Music Network;
I Called This Kid and asked him to invite someone special to church this week;
And we'll think about how candles and science speak to us about God.
Ban all homework as exams near, student trustee urges (Toronto Star)
Hong Kong tutors discovering sex sells (Guelph Mercury)
NC State students use Morgan Freeman's face to ease exam stress (Brock Press)
Japanese School to test chopstick skills as part of entrance exam (International Herald-Tribune)
Undiscovered listens to G.A.S, courtesy of the Podsafe Music Network;
I Called This Kid and asked him to invite someone special to church this week;
And we'll think about how candles and science speak to us about God.
1.17.2007
Theology Tuesday: A Theology of Education
I am nearly a college student again. Just the registration line stands between me and 8am classes, between me and the $2 student discount at the movies. Just that one step stands in between me and a new arena for my faith.
Driving back from the entrance assessment and advisor meeting yesterday, I asked myself, "How can I use this semester of classes and the knowledge I get there to inform my faith?" Like the Magnificat, I didn't ask it in those words on the first try, but that's the gist of it. Then I started thinking, "How will this semester of classes let me show that Christians value knowledge?"
Driving back from the entrance assessment and advisor meeting yesterday, I asked myself, "How can I use this semester of classes and the knowledge I get there to inform my faith?" Like the Magnificat, I didn't ask it in those words on the first try, but that's the gist of it. Then I started thinking, "How will this semester of classes let me show that Christians value knowledge?"
...Actually, I've now been through the registration line and sat for my first day of class. I have not yet taken the movie discount, but only because it's retreat season. Still, I couldn't not use that first paragraph. This post just sat in my admin area for a little while while I debated how to finish it.
Frequently in the general culture, and more frequently in college/other educational settings, Christians are viewed as people who don't appreciate knowledge, especially the scientific brand. Just look at the debate over intelligent design vs. evolution in curricula. Both are interesting and provocative theories, but the publicized arguments a year or so ago stamped Christians once again as closed-minded and unwilling to allow anyone to study in a way we don't fully endorse.
Long story short, lots of secular folks believe that Christians don't like to think. Which isn't true. Reading the church fathers, their works are always full of profound intellectual arguments, wrapped in faith that makes the un-understandable parts fit into the whole. Which is as God intended us to work.
So how, in this current semester, I asked myself, can I use my time in class to show that Christians love knowledge, and love to think about God's world and how we can use our skills to make it a better place?
On the bottom line, I can follow Paul's admonition that earthly authority is part of God's plan for running the world, and be on time for class, do my homework, read the assigned chapters for each session and listen carefully to my professors.
Beyond that, I can pick essay topics and articles to analyze that mesh with my beliefs and let me show that I've considered them carefully. I can ask good questions. I can be proud of my beliefs and at the same time show that the new things I learn help to shape those beliefs and principles.
I'm a Christian who loves to think, after all. Is the educational world ready for such a thing?
1.12.2007
Check This Out: God Detector
I finally opened an issue of "Wired" that's been on my coffee table for a while, and found a gadget... that's what you find when you read Wired, but this one's different.
How do you know when you're in the presence of the Supreme Being? You have a God Detector, of course, and it tells you.
1.10.2007
Church attendance makes you healthy!
An email just came in from one of my adult leaders, with the following information:
"Active Participation" (ie standing, attending a ceremony,) at church burns 136 calories an hour...
"Reading religious materials at home" burns 88 cal/hr
How much of a workout do you get at church?
"Active Participation" (ie standing, attending a ceremony,) at church burns 136 calories an hour...
"Reading religious materials at home" burns 88 cal/hr
How much of a workout do you get at church?
Theology Tuesday: Not Defective!
Urbana '06, a giant missions conference (over 22,000 participants) happened in St. Louis a couple of weeks ago. Here's the link to a story that ran in the Post-Dispatch about the event.
A friend of mine was in town for it, and on the last day of the event I took her and a friend of hers for lunch. Talking about the different workshops and events that were part of the conference, M's friend made the comment that she was "really struck by the total depravity of people."
I've heard that same sentence a lot. I've even said it now and then. But that time, it made me nervous. And now I know why.
I think it's possible to insult God by focusing too much on the "depravity of mankind." We, after all, are good creatures who behave badly, not defective creatures God made wrong andwill someday completely replace.
In another time this might be too fine a distinction, but everything in our culture focuses on what's wrong with us. From "consolidate your debt" to "melt away fat with such-and-such a new procedure" to "you're not in my top 8 anymore because you're a freak," the whole world is telling us we're made wrong.
When you discover something you bought doesn't work correctly, you bring it back to the store and have it replaced. You don't fix it yourself; most of us wouldn't know where to begin fixing the things we buy today. That's replacement, not redemption, and it is not what God practices with us.
Depravity would be a safer topic in a culture that valued redemption of its possessions more, in a place where everyone knew how to fix things. We don't have that, so what we need is to strike a balance with teaching, reminding ourselves and our students that God made us right and perfectly, and when we behave badly doesn't give up on us and replace us with a better model.
A friend of mine was in town for it, and on the last day of the event I took her and a friend of hers for lunch. Talking about the different workshops and events that were part of the conference, M's friend made the comment that she was "really struck by the total depravity of people."
I've heard that same sentence a lot. I've even said it now and then. But that time, it made me nervous. And now I know why.
I think it's possible to insult God by focusing too much on the "depravity of mankind." We, after all, are good creatures who behave badly, not defective creatures God made wrong andwill someday completely replace.
In another time this might be too fine a distinction, but everything in our culture focuses on what's wrong with us. From "consolidate your debt" to "melt away fat with such-and-such a new procedure" to "you're not in my top 8 anymore because you're a freak," the whole world is telling us we're made wrong.
When you discover something you bought doesn't work correctly, you bring it back to the store and have it replaced. You don't fix it yourself; most of us wouldn't know where to begin fixing the things we buy today. That's replacement, not redemption, and it is not what God practices with us.
Depravity would be a safer topic in a culture that valued redemption of its possessions more, in a place where everyone knew how to fix things. We don't have that, so what we need is to strike a balance with teaching, reminding ourselves and our students that God made us right and perfectly, and when we behave badly doesn't give up on us and replace us with a better model.
1.09.2007
Rookie on the Radio: Show notes for Episode 2
The new episode of "Rookie on the Radio" is now available at Podomatic: http://rookieyouthworker.podomatic.com. The RSS feed for subscribing, through iTunes or other music managers, is http://rookieyouthworker.podOmatic.com/rss2.xml
General Info: After this week's episode, look for new editions of the Rookie podcast on Saturdays!
“Won't Say Uncle” by Pierced-- www.myspace.com/piercedrocks
Podsafe music from www.garageband.com
Youth In the News Stories:
Teacher Took Bribes to Skip Gym Class
School Fundraisers Put Big Dent in Boca Parents' Pocketbooks
Unclaimed Lottery Winnings will go to After-School Programs
Youngster Saves Sister from Choking
Rookie on the Radio intro/exit music from ccmixter user SCott
Youth In the News music from ccmixter user Vidian
Here's a Thought music from ccmixter user aenygma
General Info: After this week's episode, look for new editions of the Rookie podcast on Saturdays!
“Won't Say Uncle” by Pierced-- www.myspace.com/piercedrocks
Podsafe music from www.garageband.com
Youth In the News Stories:
Teacher Took Bribes to Skip Gym Class
School Fundraisers Put Big Dent in Boca Parents' Pocketbooks
Unclaimed Lottery Winnings will go to After-School Programs
Youngster Saves Sister from Choking
Rookie on the Radio intro/exit music from ccmixter user SCott
Youth In the News music from ccmixter user Vidian
Here's a Thought music from ccmixter user aenygma
1.08.2007
The Intersection of Forgiveness and Ropes Course
The retreat this weekend made me remember a newsletter piece I'd written last year on the value of ropes course safety equipment when we're talking about God's capacity to forgive. There's a chance this has already appeared on the RYW blog-- if it has, consider it a classic, not a rerun!
Forty feet in the air, with my feet resting on a one-inch wide rope, I lost my balance. The rope I was crossing shook, my body bent at the waist, and I fell backward into thin air.
My fall lasted eight inches, until the rope attached to my climbing harness reached the end of its four percent stretch and held me fast. On the ground, a staffer named Jack held the rope, keeping me in the air. With a little work and some encouragement from the others on the ropes course structure, I pulled my feet back on the rope, stood and finished the course.
On my own, without the rope and harness, the fall would have hurt. Since I was supported, it gave me a chance to look carefully at the rest of the path through the course, take a deep breath, and keep going. While a high ropes course is not as easy as walking down the sidewalk, I trusted my gear. My harness, rope and clips were as strong as I needed them to be.
One part of the safety talk we heard before beginning the ropes course at Trout Lodge was a few statistics about how much weight each part of the safety system could hold. The weakest part, the threaded caribiner clip holding the rope to our harness, is rated to support 5,000 pounds. The ropes themselves hold up to 6,000 pounds. If we could get the harness around it, one rope and one biner could belay a small pickup truck.
The smallest detail of God's plan for this world is stronger than our greatest fears. The least part of God's love for us is able to defeat the biggest wrong thing we've ever done. And just as the ropes course gear is able to support many times more strain than I was able to put on it, God doesn't just give us the minimum support we need, but lavishes love on us, more than we'll ever know and certain more than we could ever use up.
Sometimes we fall. Sometimes our balance shakes in the wind or in our fear. But God's care for us turns that fall into a rest, when we can look at the path, take a deep breath, and let God lift us back onto it. --February 2006, Dragon Tales (the newsletter of the Church of St. Michael & St. George, St. Louis, MO)
Forty feet in the air, with my feet resting on a one-inch wide rope, I lost my balance. The rope I was crossing shook, my body bent at the waist, and I fell backward into thin air.
My fall lasted eight inches, until the rope attached to my climbing harness reached the end of its four percent stretch and held me fast. On the ground, a staffer named Jack held the rope, keeping me in the air. With a little work and some encouragement from the others on the ropes course structure, I pulled my feet back on the rope, stood and finished the course.
On my own, without the rope and harness, the fall would have hurt. Since I was supported, it gave me a chance to look carefully at the rest of the path through the course, take a deep breath, and keep going. While a high ropes course is not as easy as walking down the sidewalk, I trusted my gear. My harness, rope and clips were as strong as I needed them to be.
One part of the safety talk we heard before beginning the ropes course at Trout Lodge was a few statistics about how much weight each part of the safety system could hold. The weakest part, the threaded caribiner clip holding the rope to our harness, is rated to support 5,000 pounds. The ropes themselves hold up to 6,000 pounds. If we could get the harness around it, one rope and one biner could belay a small pickup truck.
The smallest detail of God's plan for this world is stronger than our greatest fears. The least part of God's love for us is able to defeat the biggest wrong thing we've ever done. And just as the ropes course gear is able to support many times more strain than I was able to put on it, God doesn't just give us the minimum support we need, but lavishes love on us, more than we'll ever know and certain more than we could ever use up.
Sometimes we fall. Sometimes our balance shakes in the wind or in our fear. But God's care for us turns that fall into a rest, when we can look at the path, take a deep breath, and let God lift us back onto it. --February 2006, Dragon Tales (the newsletter of the Church of St. Michael & St. George, St. Louis, MO)
1.07.2007
Good (odd) Read
You know you have to click on a headline like this:
No, no, I said to NOT lick that
It's only a little funny, by the end, but the headline sounds like something you'd have to say to a middle school student (HS Sophomore on my retreat...?) so go for it!
No, no, I said to NOT lick that
It's only a little funny, by the end, but the headline sounds like something you'd have to say to a middle school student (HS Sophomore on my retreat...?) so go for it!
1.06.2007
Hi from the retreat!
So great that places are discovering how wifi keeps people happy when you're staying at their facility... here we are at Trout Lodge, one of the very best retreat sites I've ever been to, and today I was once again reminded how grandiosely high school students think of their abilities. One of our guys was on the high ropes for the first time this afternoon, and he reached the highest point. I was on the next element over, and called to him, "Hey, Michael-- how do you like it?"
He looked at me, put his arms out wide and said, "It needs to be bigger!"
We did a moonlight zip line just a little while ago, and it is one of the most amazing feelings in the world-- running into the darkness, feeling the harness slowly lift you off the ground until you're flying across deep nothingness... try it!
He looked at me, put his arms out wide and said, "It needs to be bigger!"
We did a moonlight zip line just a little while ago, and it is one of the most amazing feelings in the world-- running into the darkness, feeling the harness slowly lift you off the ground until you're flying across deep nothingness... try it!
1.05.2007
References
When a student comes to you to ask for a reference, for a job or some kind of special fun cool program you wish you'd been offered when you were in school (just a little bit of personal baggage there...) what's the criteria you have for offering the reference?
I generally have a very open-door policy about giving recommendations, because I really want these kids to have a lot of great opportunities. At the same time, writing a couple of references has put me in an odd position. In one case the student had asked after not being anywhere near me for a couple of years, and I wrote it hoping the position she was applying for would be exactly the challenge she needed to get her life organized. In a second one, the kid's mom said to me, "Thanks for writing the reference, but I don't think he's living up to it."
Most of the references I've written haven't caused any trouble like this, but these two stick out in my head as ones I sort of wish I hadn't done.
How do you handle this, and how can I better handle it in the future? Are references a good chance to challenge students, or should they only be given when a list of conditions (and what should be on the list?) are met?
I generally have a very open-door policy about giving recommendations, because I really want these kids to have a lot of great opportunities. At the same time, writing a couple of references has put me in an odd position. In one case the student had asked after not being anywhere near me for a couple of years, and I wrote it hoping the position she was applying for would be exactly the challenge she needed to get her life organized. In a second one, the kid's mom said to me, "Thanks for writing the reference, but I don't think he's living up to it."
Most of the references I've written haven't caused any trouble like this, but these two stick out in my head as ones I sort of wish I hadn't done.
How do you handle this, and how can I better handle it in the future? Are references a good chance to challenge students, or should they only be given when a list of conditions (and what should be on the list?) are met?
1.02.2007
The Rookie Reviews: Night at the Museum
PLEASE NOTE: This review contains plot spoilers for the movie "Night at the Museum."
I was in college when the first "Lord of the Rings" movie came out, and my sister wanted to see it. Each Christmas break, when the movie started and I arrived back at home, we'd go to see it. This year, I flew home as a surprise for the family, and one of my first questions was, "What's our Christmas movie going to be this year?"
There were a few movies we wanted to see with specific people, and one I'm still saving to see with the mission trip crew (We are Marshall; we stayed at a church in the town where the story happened and movie was filmed) so we settled on "Night at the Museum" a movie I'd just seen the ad for in the Minneapolis airport.
Movies that come out during the holidays sometimes get overlooked. And that's sad, especially with a treasure like "Museum."
Here's the outline: A guy with a thousand good ideas, none of which quite ever work, has to find a steady job to keep from being evicted from his apartment and have to move, with his young son, yet again. Told that his resume is too unique (aka useless) to land him a job, he does find one slim possibility: night guard at the Museum of Natural History.
Which, he learns, has a secret. You'll see this part in the previews, so it doesn't spoil anything to say that all the exhibits, big and small, come to life during the night, so the watchman's real job is to corral them and make sure they don't escape.
What do you do when you're in possession of a secret like this? You try and restore your son's confidence in you, help a gorgeous grad student who's stuck on a thesis, and make peace between warring dioramas, of course!
This is a film that could have taken itself way too seriously, but didn't. It's a fun story, with mostly good messages about responsibility, family, cooperation and the value of history. Check this out with family or youth group-- I think you'll enjoy it!
I was in college when the first "Lord of the Rings" movie came out, and my sister wanted to see it. Each Christmas break, when the movie started and I arrived back at home, we'd go to see it. This year, I flew home as a surprise for the family, and one of my first questions was, "What's our Christmas movie going to be this year?"
There were a few movies we wanted to see with specific people, and one I'm still saving to see with the mission trip crew (We are Marshall; we stayed at a church in the town where the story happened and movie was filmed) so we settled on "Night at the Museum" a movie I'd just seen the ad for in the Minneapolis airport.
Movies that come out during the holidays sometimes get overlooked. And that's sad, especially with a treasure like "Museum."
Here's the outline: A guy with a thousand good ideas, none of which quite ever work, has to find a steady job to keep from being evicted from his apartment and have to move, with his young son, yet again. Told that his resume is too unique (aka useless) to land him a job, he does find one slim possibility: night guard at the Museum of Natural History.
Which, he learns, has a secret. You'll see this part in the previews, so it doesn't spoil anything to say that all the exhibits, big and small, come to life during the night, so the watchman's real job is to corral them and make sure they don't escape.
What do you do when you're in possession of a secret like this? You try and restore your son's confidence in you, help a gorgeous grad student who's stuck on a thesis, and make peace between warring dioramas, of course!
This is a film that could have taken itself way too seriously, but didn't. It's a fun story, with mostly good messages about responsibility, family, cooperation and the value of history. Check this out with family or youth group-- I think you'll enjoy it!
An Exciting Announcement
I realized last year that I don't do enough actual work... so 2007 will be the year of the Podcast here on Rookie Youthworker. That's right, the first episode of a weekly podcast, "Rookie on the Radio" is out now, and you can subscribe by pointing your music program here:
http://rookieyouthworker.podOmatic.com/rss2.xml
Or go here and listen online:
http://rookieyouthworker.podomatic.com
The RYW blog will also get a bunch of new material and attention this year, as it's also the year of Wasting No Time.
Hope God blesses you incredibly this week, and that the RYW blog and podcast continue to count in the column of blessings in some small way!
http://rookieyouthworker.podOmatic.com/rss2.xml
Or go here and listen online:
http://rookieyouthworker.podomatic.com
The RYW blog will also get a bunch of new material and attention this year, as it's also the year of Wasting No Time.
Hope God blesses you incredibly this week, and that the RYW blog and podcast continue to count in the column of blessings in some small way!
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