Giving students a stake in their ministry

Tonight, our jr. high ministry did something incredibly awesome. We brought in a group of 7th and 8th grade students for a brainstorming slash focus group session in which they were given free reign to share their ideas about the ministry. Topics included our weekend services, our teaching curriculum, jr. high culture, issues that jr. highers struggle with and care about, and specific ways students can bring Christ's love to the community. We also had dinner and played a couple intense games of Spoons.

The feedback the students shared blew me away. The depth of their thinking and the sincerity of their hearts revealed themselves in so many powerful ways, and I can't wait to see their ideas put into action. I was pleasantly surprised by how articulate some of their comments were. This was definitely one of the best experiences I've ever had in youth ministry. We've utilized students on the front-end of our ministry before, but this will open the door to student involvement in bigger and more exciting ways. After all, who understands the world of jr. high better than jr. highers?

Top 5 Things to Do on My Day Off

As fun and rewarding as it is, working in full-time youth ministry can be exhausting. Luckily, our church gives all high school and jr. high staff Mondays off. In fact, working on a Monday (with the exception of a few unusually-busy weeks each year) is so discouraged that even checking our church email inbox is frowned upon. We're taught to "keep Mondays sacred." God didn't create us to be at 100 percent, 7 days a week. If you never give yourself a break and end up burning out, your ministry will be much less effective.

Since it's Monday, here's a list of my top 5 things to do on my day off:

5. RELAX. Sometimes it's OK to lay around the house all day, especially on the heels of a busy weekend. I'm a big fan of watching TV seasons on DVD and Netflix. Read a book. Update your blog. Or, if you're the gaming type, a few hours with your Xbox 360, PS3 or Wii is great, too. Do whatever helps you relax and recharge your batteries.

4. Exercise. For some of you, exercise might sound like one of the least fun ways to spend a day off. But if you enjoy exercising, your day off is a great opportunity to keep up on your routine.

3. Spend time with people I don't work with at church. It's real easy to exclusively hang out with my friends from work. While developing your relationships with your co-workers is important for the success of a ministry, your day off gives you the chance to spend time with those you rarely see.

2. Spend time with my family. I'm not married, but I'm sure this one is even more crucial when you have a spouse and kids. If you have any family that lives nearby or if you're still at home, don't miss the opportunity to grab a meal or have a significant conversation with the people who matter the most to you.

1. Spend time with God. This is something I value but I don't do nearly enough. On your day off, spend some intentional time with God. It could mean getting away from the house or just having some extended prayer time. No matter what line of work you're in, you'll be more effective if you take some time to recognize God's control and presence in your life.

Christians shouldn't hate religion

If you logged in to Facebook last week, you probably had a friend or two (or 30) who shared the spoken word video "Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus." If you haven't seen it, check it out here. The video has more than 15 million views and seemed to resonate with Christians of all shapes and sizes. I agree with much of what Jefferson Bethke says in the video, but not all of it; a more proper title would have been, "Why I Love Jesus but Hate Spiritual Hypocrisy."

Today, a couple of my Facebook friends posted an interesting response video titled "Why I Love Religion, And Love Jesus." It was made by a Catholic spoken-word artist named Phatmass, who argues that the ongoing dissemination of the Gospel requires a context of religion grounded in the Church.

"You clearly have a heart for Jesus," Phatmass says to Bethke, "but it's fueling atheistic opinions. You see, what makes this religion great is not errors of wars and inquisitions; it's that broken men and women get to participate in His mission."

I'm not Catholic, but I love what Phatmass is saying here. Christians should not blame religion for the evils done in Jesus' name. It would be like hating Toyota because a drunk driver crashed his Tacoma and killed two people. It's less black-and-white than the portrait Bethke paints. Still, it's encouraging to see this kind of dialogue emerging on YouTube and in social media.

 

What I learned at Staff Camp

Our church's student ministries teams (jr. high, high school and college) returned today from a three-day "Staff Camp" retreat in the mountains. Several intense games of Monopoly Deal, Oh Heck and disc golf transpired during our stay, but the trip's primary purpose was to bring all of us together so we could take a look at our current ministry strategies and brainstorm, collectively and in teams, ideas for boosting the way we share the Gospel with students. Although I had heard many of these concepts before, it was super constructive and uplifting to reaffirm why and how we do ministry.

Several months ago, I heard Rick Warren mention something called the "Nehemiah Principle," which states that a leader must restate purpose and vision every 26 days to keep the church moving in the right direction. I don't believe that student ministries should have a Staff Camp every month (although I could really use some disc golf practice), but it's critical for church leaders to remember that casting a vision isn't a one-and-done deal— it's something that must continually be restated and re-injected into the lifeblood of a church and its staff. Overall, it was an awesome and refreshing three days and I'm stoked to see what God has in store for us during this next season of youth ministry.

John 3:16 Commercial Airs During NFL Playoffs

An unusual commercial aired during Saturday's NFL playoff game between the Broncos and the Patriots. Paid for and created by Focus on the Family, the ad is a recitation of John 3:16 by a series of children.

In case you're like me and you missed it, here's the ad.

The following day, Yahoo! News ran a column by Andrew Riggio that said the John 3:16 ad was in poor taste. "It seems un-American to push a religious and political message during a professional sporting event," Riggio writes. "The NFL should probably avoid appearing to promote a particular religion in preference to others. The professional football league is not a religious advocacy group."

Several people disagreed with Riggio in the comments section, pointing out that a commercial about John 3:16 is no more offensive than many of the other ads that air during an NFL game, such as those promoting beer, male enhancement drugs or Victoria's Secret lingerie. What do you think?

Street Sweeping for the Glory of God

This is a re-post of an entry I wrote in 2010. In honor of MLK Day, I thought I would bring it out of the archives.


"If a man is called to be a streetsweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the host of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great streetsweeper who did his job well." 

--Martin Luther King, Jr.

What if we lived our lives according to this principle? Imagine how much the world would change if we started to realize our seemingly mundane jobs and responsibilities were more than jobs and responsibilities— but that they were each a divine calling, purposefully given to us by God and worthy of our greatest effort. We would never settle for mediocrity or "just good enough." Any dread, boredom, or negativity we normally associate with these activities would succumb to joy, enthusiasm, and the determination to give our all. Except for sin, every part of our lives is an opportunity to serve God faithfully and diligently. We should tackle even the most insignificant or undesirable of tasks with the same fervor Beethoven brought to a composition or Michelangelo brought to an easel. Using the abilities God has given us, let's strive to make everything we produce a masterpiece.

"I want to thrive, not just survive"

That is the final line in the chorus of Switchfoot's song "Thrive," from their album Vice Verses, which came out in November. One of the reasons I love Switchfoot is their ability to craft lyrics that inspire listeners to trump mediocrity and lead lives of excellence and significance. In "Thrive," frontman Jon Foreman laments about his tendency to drudge through life, putting in the bare minimum to survive. As a follower of Christ, Foreman knows he has the calling and the ability to flourish, to thrive; but so frequently he succumbs to the temptation to merely exist.

I think all of us can relate. For whatever reason, our human condition causes us to fall into the trap of "just good enough." It's a constant battle to wake up each day with a passionate mindset. But Ephesians 3:20 says, "Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think." Not only is settling for "just good enough" sinful, but it completely wastes the potential of the power of God within us. We weren't created to just survive— we were created to thrive. 

A steering wheel don't mean you can drive,
A warm body don't mean I'm alive.
No, I'm not alright
I know that I'm not right
Feels like I travel but I never arrive
I want to thrive, not just survive.