DAVEMIERS.COM
Fun finish to City Youth for the year last night with #cityyouthmelb #cityyouthgeel & #cityyouthwest!
Pool party in Geelong bookended by memorable road trip with #MariahCarey’s ‘All I Want For Christmas’ on repeat the whole way there… and a flat tyre on the side of the M1 on the way home!
#cityonahill #cityonahillmelb #cityonahillgeel #cityonahillwest #cityonahillbris #knowjesus #makejesusknown #vsco
Tim Hawkins is a youth ministry legend! In a short time, he will be moving to be part of training leaders in Africa. Our City on a Hill Generations team are stoked to be hosting Tim at one of his final mentoring sessions in Australia.
It’s this coming Thursday, do whatever you can to be there!
Here is all the info and registration details from Tim Hawkins’ latest newsletter:
Continue reading “MELBOURNE YOUTH PASTORS’ MENTORING DAY WITH TIM HAWKINS”
Next week I will be speaking at what looks to be an excellent event – the Haemorrhaging Faith Conference – hosted by Baptist Union of Victoria.
At only $50 for 2 days, it’s ridiculously good value. But even more important is the topic. The Haemorrhaging Faith Conference will be “revealing important research into why youth and young adults are leaving the church and what we can do to arrest the trend.”
If you’re in Victoria and involved in youth ministry, get along! If you’re outside of Victoria, I think the content is worth the flight.
On the first day I will be on a panel discussing what is happening in Australian churches. And then on the second day:
Check out the website for more info about the other speakers and register ASAP! I hope to see you there.
The Pastor in this video failed rule #1. Bam!
To be fair, he has come out since this video went viral with the following apology:
Continue reading “RULE #1 OF YOUTH MINISTRY: DON’T PUNCH KIDS IN THE CHEST”
This is part 1 in the 6 Questions Every 18 Year Old Must Answer series
Katy Perry is one of the most famous people on the planet. In fact, she is the most popular person on the internet with 144 million followers collectively on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!
With legions of online fans, she has the world at her fingertips. When she sings, stadiums listen. What she wears, defines fashion. When she performs, Sasha and Malia Obama join in. When she campaigns for a cause, people donate. When she uploads, people download (she has the most digital sales of all time).
Fan or not, you can’t deny her influence.
But fans, fame and fortune don’t keep you immune from troubles. Katy Perry hit rock bottom when her husband, Russell Brand, broke up with her on New Years Eve 2011… via a text message. In an interview, Katy revealed that this heartbreak caused her to ask the deeper questions of life.
It’s often at moments of transition, change or loss that we get reflective. We ask, “What’s the deal with life?”
So, you’ve finished school? Well done. It’s a massive achievement to stick at anything for 13 years. This may not have occurred to you at the age of 5 when you began school, but it’s a big achievement nonetheless.
Now what?
The first few months after you finish school can be a make or break time for your Christian faith.
For some who have grown up in a Christian family, there’s a risk that as they graduate from the church youth program, they’ll keep walking straight out the door and graduate from Jesus too. It’s heart-breaking when that happens.
Conversely, it’s massively encouraging to see young people graduate from high school and make godly decisions to keep following Jesus into adulthood.
This blog series is all about the “now what?” question. Most of your life has probably just happened up until this point. I’m not suggesting you have been totally unreflective in how you’ve lived your life. But, in Australia at least, school is compulsory, so you just roll with it until it’s over.
Now what? For some time now, the trajectory of your life has been moving away from your parents’ authority, as you increasingly taking responsibility for yourself. Now is a great time to stop and ask yourself some honest questions. Here are six questions every school leaver should ask and answer:
How you answer these questions will shape how you live your life. The answers to these questions will answer the “now what?” question.
I’ll be upfront. I believe Jesus should be central to each of these answers. So please follow along if you are a follower of Jesus, or if you’re simply curious to see why Jesus really matters.
—–
Follow the series via this tag or check back to this post. I’ll also tweet and facebook when new articles go live.
I just scrolled through 1219 photos on Instagram tagged with the #SOULIESYOUTH hashtag. Reality has started to sink in. Today is the 17th July. Our last Sunday is 17th August. One month!!! I really hope it goes slowly! I will miss this community.
My final series at Soulies is called ‘CRUX: The Heart of Christianity’
1) The NEED for the Cross
2) The PAIN of the Cross (Guest Speaker Matt Sparks)
3) The FRUIT from the Cross
4) The LIFE under the Cross
I have tried to keep the cross of Christ central to my ministry at St Faith’s. My hope is that this final series is a way to underline that desire.