Tag: youth ministry

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CROSS-SHAPED [YOUTH] MINISTRY

#CrossShapedMinistry

Apart from during the FIFA World Cup, ABC 4 KIDS is the number 1 TV channel in our household. Mister Maker is one of our favourite shows. It’s made in England and features a zany host, Mister Maker, who makes all sorts of different crafty items. One of the repeated segments, in an attempt to teach little ones different shapes, is of a few people on screen dancing in circle, triangle, square, and rectangle costumes.

This is what they sing:

“I am a shape… la la la la. I am a shape… la la la la. I am a circle. I am a triangle. I am square. I am a rectangle.” I know this song because it has been repeated countless times by my kids… la la la la!

Now that’s using the word ‘shape’ as a noun. But a definition for ‘shape’ as a verb is “Determine the nature of; have a great influence on” (Oxford).

WHAT’S YOUR SHAPE?

When it comes to your youth ministry:

What determines its nature?
What are the significant influences upon it?
What is its shape?

All youth ministries are shaped by something. It might be the needs of teenagers in your area. It might be the desire to engage in culturally relevant ways with young people. It might be shaped by the expectations of Christian parents.

Of all the different influences on your ministry, what has the greatest influence?

Continue reading “CROSS-SHAPED [YOUTH] MINISTRY”

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SOULIES.NET RECEIVES FACELIFT SURGERY

#SOULIESYOUTH

Not long after I told a bunch of youth leaders how to get their ministry online, the website of our youth ministry crashed! There was some bug in the theme, and while the content was safe, the look/feel/vibe of the site was dead and buried. We then put a temporary (and ugly) template online in its place.

After 6 months of that ugly template, we have finally given the site a more permanent facelift. Check out the new site and the launch video here.

I really like it. The new www.soulies.net theme is simple and with responsive width design it’s much better for viewing on mobile devices.

It’s from Studio Press using the Genesis Framework (those are affiliate links, so I get a couple of dollars if you purchase anything with Studio Press). The current theme and framework on my blog, launched October 2013, is also adapted from Studio Press.

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#HASHTAGS, SELFIES & BEING A CHRISTIAN ONLINE // #KYCK14 RESOURCES

#HASHTAGS

Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat are part of everyday life for teenagers. Are they harmful or harmless? This seminar will help you to think about how belonging to Jesus will impact the way that you connect online.

I recently gave a seminar across three weekend at KYCK 2014 (a Christian convention for youth) seeking to help young people consider how to think about how they behave and relate online.

This post is jam-packed with resources useful for youth, youth leaders, parents, pastors and echidnas.

Continue reading “#HASHTAGS, SELFIES & BEING A CHRISTIAN ONLINE // #KYCK14 RESOURCES”

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HOST A TAKE LOVE EVENT // #TAKELOVE

ANGLICARE Sydney and Fervr.net invite you to host a TAKE LOVE EVENT in June 2014!

Host an event in your youth ministry, school or Christian group and join us as we pray for ASYLUM SEEKERS and REFUGEES and the issues they face in our world.

For more information and to register go to: takelove.com.au

I love some of the youth initiatives that are coming out of Anglicare. At Soulies we plan on hosting a #TakeLove event on Friday 20th June and then following it up on the Saturday with some #TakeLove projects.

More related links:

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LEVEL-UP // #ESCAPETOREALITY

LEVEL-UP

Movies, entertainment, celebrity culture, video games, digital media and social networks are often used to escape from reality. The goal of this 4-part series is to consider how to escape to the reality that comes in knowing Jesus.

Part 4 of #EscapeToReality

THE GAMIFICATION OF LIFE

I recently learnt about an emerging trend called the gamification of life. It’s basically turning life into a game complete with points, incentives and levels. 1 point for cleaning your teeth. 5 points for taking rubbish out. 10 points for inbox zero. 20 points for doing your most dreaded tasks. After a certain number of points, you can reward yourself or somehow move onto the next level.

From the examples I’ve read online, it looks like a useful way to get things done!

Using little incentives is not just for those “gamifying” their life, we use all sorts of little incentives in different ways. Maybe if you complete a certain amount of study you’ll get to go for a surf. Or if you achieve this goal, you’ll treat yourself to something special.

When it comes to the Christian life, followers of Jesus don’t need to create little incentives and rewards. There is a bigger incentive and motivation.

DO NOT LOSE HEART

In 2 Corinthians 4 the big goal of the Christian life is to “not lose heart”. It’s the idea of preserving until the end in the Christian life. Like a runner lasting to the end of the race, the Christian is to keep going and keep trusting Jesus.

In this series ‘Escape to reality’ I have argued that movies, entertainment, celebrity culture, video games, digital media and social networks are often used to escape from reality.

My biggest goal has been to show that we all need to escape to the reality that comes in knowing Jesus.

This passage one of best “escape to reality” passages in bible. It will help us to see the forest from the trees.

It’s easy to get caught up on the here and now. We are so easily distracted by the things in front of us: the smartphone, gaming console, the guy or girl you’re interested in. But we fail to see the bigger picture of eternity.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 will help us to see the big picture and give us the ultimate level-up.

There are three things that we see will give us the persecutive so that we will not lose heart.
Continue reading “LEVEL-UP // #ESCAPETOREALITY”