Over the weekend, I was part of a killer conference for teenagers from the Townsville and Cairns region of Queensland. It was very good! Danny Mitchell from Youthsurge joined me for the trip, he is better than a game-show host! We had a great time.
There were a whole bunch of young crew that became Christian, and a bunch more recommitted their lives to following Jesus. Stay tuned for the talks. Here’s some twittering that I did over the weekend (reverse-chronological order):
here’s the latest episode. hayesy tells me we’ve made it to #1 on iTunes!! haha
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The good life presented in Lily’s Alen’s The Fear is filled with money, clothes, diamonds, fame, good tan, good looks and more! Lots of people think that once they’ve got those things – they will have made it – they’ll have the good life. What’s your idea of the good life? Sometimes what we think is good… may not really be that good. You hear of famous people all the time who seem to have it all – yet their lives are empty, their relationships suck, they are miserable. What’s the good life? The really good life? How do you get it?
The crucifixion of Jesus is an unlikely place to find the answers. In Luke 23:32-43, there are two ways that people respond to Jesus. The rulers, soldiers, sign-writer, and one of the criminals being executed alonside Jesus all make run of Jesus. They reject him.
I’ve been reading and researching George Whitefield since hearing a biography by John Piper (gold!!!) Stay tuned for some blog posts about the way that he was used by God.
Hayesy has started Praying for Revival. I gave a bit of an intro to Whitefield over there.
Dan (my brother-in-law) and I have a new online project, ON THE VODDY. It’s a killer new Vodcast. After only 2 weeks, and minimal distribution, we’re number 11 in the iTunes Religion & Spirituality Video Podcasts rankings. Look out Mark Driscoll, Joel Osteen, Rob Bell and Brian & Bobbie Houston!! See also On the Poddy…
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All people just want to be accepted. That’s why we form into groups with people like us. Sub-cultural groupings are all about being accepted and fitting in. Emo, surfer, nerds, pony club, rugby boys, etc. Wanting to be accepted is ultimately about wanting to be loved. How do you know that someone loves you? How do you know that you are really accepted? The biggest question you can ask: does God love me?
In Luke 15:11-32, we meet a father and his two sons. The first son is a tool. He says to his dad that he wants his share of the inheritance now. He’s basically saying: “I wish you were dead!” His dad gives him his share of the estate and then he goes off and parties it all down the toilet in wild living. When Rebel Kid comes to his senses, he comes home and he’s accepted by his loving father.
I don’t want to keep talking about twitter, but… It’s been getting stacks of media coverage! I’ve had friends who don’t do computers ask me what’s the deal with twitter. Watch this video, and then it will all make sense! The Twouble with Twitter:
Facebook has changed their front page. It looks more like Twitter. I now find it easier to not waste time on facebook. Less grabs my attention and you have to go there too often to keep up with the stream of information. Break it down:
high energy episode of on the voddy. adhd. we spoke about raising and killing animals. popping caps. dan sang about a nerd stealing his girlfriend. dave spoke about easter, jesus and 2 cor 5:21. VIEW THE ORIGINAL ON THE VODDY POST
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Justin Moffatt has just finished a 4 part series of tips for young travellers. It’s sound wisdom and helpful advice, essential reading for Christian 20-somethings with the travel bug! Go read the full posts: one, two, three and four. Here are his headings:
Read the whole series.
(pic from caribee website – sweet backpacks!)
Next weekend I’ll be heading up to Nth QLD for their first ever Megasurge. It’s sponsored by the Pressies and Youth Surge. I’m really looking forward to the weekend. Stay tuned over the next week as I post some prep notes for the talks.
If you stumbled here and you’re involved in youth ministry in Nth QLD, make sure you take your youth group!! Here’s the rego form (pdf).
This is MC Shamrock (Mark Earngey) busting some rhymes with his former hip-hop crew 206collab. Mark is a good fella – he’s into old skool (liturgy and prayer books) and he’s into nu skool (hip-hop and synchronised swimming). He’s got some skillz.
Shammers has agreed to give me some hip-hop lessons – so look out!
Took some snaps along King St this arvo. Don’t forget to send in SNAPSHOTS.
[click for high res]
This is my 1000th blog post. Wow! Incredible! Amazing! Sublime! I started blogging properly (false start #1 + #2) about 1050 days ago, so it’s just under 1 post a day during that period. I’ve averaged 3.6 comments per post. Thanks for reading.
On the whole I’m still trying to be concise, colourful, original and insightful with how I blog. Here are further thoughts on why I keep blogging:
Sound Relief was a unique music event held simultaneously in Sydney and Melbourne. It raised about $5Million for victims of the Victorian Bush Fires and Queensland floods. We listened on and off during the day via triple j. Lots of great music moments!
The concert reminded me that group singing isn’t that weird. Lots of Christians claim that group-singing is something foreign to non-Christians. I disagree. Generation Y are happy to sing in a group. They sing heartily at karaoke, sporting events, football change rooms and live music concerts. Give them a cause and a reason to sing and they will. Churches could tap into that – don’t just song as a filler – but sing with purpose and passion. (See nath + dan for related ideas).
yesterday, we started a new vodcast: on the voddy. it’s hot! here’s the first epsiode:
dan and I started a new vodcast today it’s hot. seriously. check it. episode 1.
The way that we use technology shows that friendship matters to us. Social networking is about keeping in touch with friends and making new friends. Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, MSN Instant Messenger, SMS – all of these are about friendship, sometimes the friendship is superficial, but in the very least our use of these technologies shows that connecting with others and friendship matters.
Families were once the bed rock of our society. Our families would always be there. But for many people there is greater stability in our friendship group than there is in our family. Some studies have shown that teenagers today will prioritise their friends over their boyfriend or girlfriend. Boyfriend/girlfriend relationships bust up. But out friends are constant.
Connect 09 is getting jiggy with it! Connect 09 is about helping churches to connect with their communities, and people to connect with Jesus. Exciting stuff. It’s a good opportunity for youth ministries to think through how they can connect with teenagers in their area. Here are some ideas: bring a friend youth night; band night; combined churches event; pancake breakfast in schools; hot chip lunches in schools; skatepark evangelism; LAN party; youth camps; interactive website; facebook/myspace; study camp; free homework club; 3-on-3 basketball comp; soccer clinic. Any more ideas?
Have you got a connect09 youth event* coming up? Looking for a speaker? I might be able to help. I can either speak at your event or suggest someone else who may be suitable. Check out my speaking page for some sample talks and availability etc. Contact me if you want to hook up.
Don’t know Jesus? Go read the 2nd half of one of his biographies.
*doesn’t have to be exclusively “youth” or “connect09″ – any suitable event
