I have just recently started using the website Youth Leader Stash. If you are looking for a place with tons of games to use in your youth ministry, this blog, which was created by Chad and Cat Swanzy, is a great resource. This morning in our youth group, we just utilized the game called Ninja Feet.
I never knew that there would be a day when I thought to myself, I need to buy a thermostat. I had assumed that the next time I would buy a thermostat would be when something caused my current thermostat to fail. And at that point, I would drive to the local hardware store and look for something cheap to solve my problem. I like my house to be the proper temperature, but I don't get excited about temperature control devices. That was until the Nest Learning Thermostat. This week former Apple engineers, who helped create the iPod, unveiled their latest technological creation. Tony Fadell and Matt Rogers announced a thermostat called "Nest" that magically learn your habits.
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The design is incredible. Watch the video and watch how simple and elegant the design is. The user experience appears to be done flawlessly and will be much simpler than any other thermostat that exists. I love good design and this was the first time I ever thought that design even mattered in controlling the temperature of my house.
According to Nest, the thermostat will begin to start to learn your routine after a week of use. It begins to understand what temperature you like in the morning and what temperature you like when you go to bed. As you adjust the temperature, it begins to learn what temperatures it should automatically adjust to in order to suit your needs. It also is built with a motion detector, so when it realizes that no one is home, it is smart enough to switch into an away mode. It also has WiFi built in, so in the situations that I want to control the temperature form my iPhone, I can.
When I explained to my wife the reason we need this thermostat and I made this point, she quickly said, "So that's the real reason you want it." Apple designs great products, so why would I expect anything different from a couple of ex-apple engineers that decided to get into the thermostat business.
[This post is a part of the Creating a Sermon Series series]
In churches all over the world, it is common for the preaching to be organized in groups of sermons called a sermon series. Youth pastors, senior pastors, and children pastors often will look for common threads to organize how they teach the scriptures in a memorable way. As I've worked through putting together several sermon series for weekly programs and retreats, I have found using a sermon series to very helpful for both myself and those listening to me.
Branding matters.
If you look around any department store, spend a couple minutes watching television, or do a couple searches on Google - you will without a doubt be bombarded with brands trying to find ways to make sure you remember their brands and products. The reason they do this is because they learned that creating a recognizable brand is effective.
I'm not suggesting we start advertising in all these different ways, but as we are preaching the Word of God, we are trying to communicate the message in way that people will remember. As you create a sermon series, not only are you opening up the Word of God, but you are wrapping the life-changing content in a context that will hopefully make the message memorable as people listen.
When you use a series, people probably aren't coming to church simply because they are excited about the sermon series. It may happen, but it's not likely. Even if people aren't coming because of the sermon series you are teaching, there is an element of comfort for people to know that you have an idea of where the next few weeks are going. If you want to be effective in your teaching, it is important that people can trust you. If they have an idea that you know where you're going, they are going to be much more likely to trust you taking them there.
If you could spend 1 day or 7 days on vacation with your family, which would have a greater impact on you and your family? In the same way, spending 1 week or 5 weeks, significantly changes the amount of impact that you might have as you talk about a specific topic or book of the Bible. As you spend multiple weeks going to the same book and working through it, momentum begins to build as people hear the words, think about them, live with them, and come back without having to shift their way of thinking.
Whenever I work on a sermon series, on of the things that I have noticed about myself is that creating a theme that I am trying to preach from within helps me creatively. Some might argue that putting yourself in a box, restricts creativity, but I would argue that the clear focus and concepts allows more room for creativity. Having clear goals and definitions allows you to let some ideas sit in your brain and percolate.
What are some reason that you see that using a sermon series can be helpful?
Preaching is an important part of youth ministry. We spend large portions of our time creating, writing, and giving sermons to our students because we believe that God's word is powerful. As you work with students, you likely not only want to preach God's word, but you want to do so clearly and creatively. You want students to be engaged with the scriptures, not bored by something that they think doesn't relate to their life.
One of the most valuable ways, in my opinion, to preach through the Bible is by organizing it in a sermon series. This isn't something mandated by the Bible, so it is by no means the only way to organize your teaching calendar. A sermon series is in essence a way to organize a group of messages that are tied together by some common thread and preach through those in succession and with a similar branding so that the messages are more memorable for the hearers.
The Creating a Sermon Series series is meant to help anyone who preaches. It will discuss topics ranging from the value of using a sermon series in preaching to the practical elements of actually figuring out how to brand your series and package it together in a creative way.
This post will serve as the general Table of Contents for this series and be the place to reference all of the posts that are a part of this series.
1. Preaching Using a Sermon Series
6. Sermon Series Branding Questions
7. Writing Messages as a Part of a Series
8. And more...
If you have any ideas for topics that you would like to see discussed as a part of this series, let me know in the comments.
Photo Credit: Lars Hammar
You may not think of yourself as one, but the truth is you are one. Theology is the study of God; since you are bound to have some opinions, beliefs, or practices related to who God is and what he has done, you are a theologian. Good theology can give a person peace in a time of tragedy, hope when things seem hopeless, and grace when a person should feel guilt. On the other hand, poor theology is toxic for the soul, leading individuals down paths that are dangerous both spiritually and also practically.
In our ministries it is important that we continually evaluate our theology. What does the scripture say about what we are teaching? What does God's word reveal to us about the things that we say are important? How does our orthodoxy influence our daily practices? The danger is that it is easy to fall into the trap of spending more time concerned with what is relevant at the expensive of worrying about what is true. Relevance is critical, especially in youth ministry, but the truth is always relevant.
Theology matters. Concern yourself with handling God's word properly. Try to find the most effective way to teach your students God's word, but don't let the context take priority over the content of the message.
"Let your wife worry about your clothes. Buy books and study. We don't need any more well-dressed, hip, funny, heretics. Who cares how you say it if what you're saying is wrong." - Matt Chandler, Pastor at The Village Church
Photo Credit: Nick Treby
[This post is a part of the Youth Ministry 101 series]
If you are a part of youth ministry, you are also likely in some way involved with leading some type of small group discussion. The conversations that take place in youth ministry are a critical element of any youth ministry. Small group discussions may be built in as a small or large part of a weekly program; they may be something entirely separate from any program. Allowing our students to participate in discussing and discovering the truth of scripture as we lead them through a bible study can be both a difficult process and a rewarding one.
This is difficult. Most leaders want to fill in the spaces and start talking; but silence is not a bad thing. Wait. Allow them to think and process the question. Don't feel the need to move onto something else too quickly if there isn't an answer right away. Perhaps the question just needs to be asked in a different way.
The best small group leaders are not the ones that have a lot of information to share, but the ones who know how to ask the right questions. A good question can set into motion a great conversation. If you are given questions to work through, look for opportunities to ask follow up questions to really dig into the heart of the answer.
This is youth ministry; if your small group is boring, they are not going to want to come.
Youth ministry is all about relationships. One of the best ways to build relationships with students is to be in touch with them outside of weekly youth ministry programs. Call them to follow up with something you talked about previously. Post something on their facebook wall. Attend one of their sporting events. These things mean a lot to a student in your small group.
This probably shouldn't be last, but I didn't put them in any particular order. Everything you do in your small group is ultimately about students growing in their relationship with Jesus. That doesn't mean that everything you do needs to be an in-depth discussion about Him, but it does mean that as a leader you should recognize that the fun you have, even if it doesn't relate to anything, is done for the sake of Jesus. It's all about Jesus; even the stuff that doesn't seem like it is.
Photo Credit: stlyouth
“Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That’s because they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things.” - Steve Jobs in 1995 interview (HT: Austin Kleon)
Being around a group of other middle school ministry pastors for a weekend inspired me to make a list of random generealizations about what is true of many of us who find ourselves working with middle school students. All of these things came from observations that I had about middle pastors while at the campference; they are all at least true of myself.
What should I add to the list?
Photo Credit: Varjakkk
If you work with middle school students, it's always helpful to think back to what life was like when you were in middle school. I spent some time thinking about it, and here is the list that I came up with:
I was recently watching the documentary Objectified, which is all about the design of everyday objects throughout our culture. Design is integrated into everything that we touch and see. From everyday objects that we think little about to the objects that we look at and are blown away by their design. Chairs, cooking tools, light switches, computers, phones, buildings, and so many more. Each item was designed by somebody. And the design of each item speaks to the one who designed it.
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When you last picked up a fork and used it to eat your food, did you think about why it was designed that way? What's the story behind the fork? How did the fork end up the way it did and who decided that it should be the way it is? No matter what object you pick up, there's some kind of story behind it. There's a story of a designer, an object, and a problem to be solved.
"The object testifies to the people that conceived it, thought about it, developed it, manufactured it - ranging from issues of form, to material, to its architecture, to how it connects to you, how you touch it, how you hold it. Every object, intentional or not, speaks to who put it there." - Jonathan Ive, Designer for Apple in Objectified
In the same way everyday objects testify to the stories and people who designed them, our world testifies to the Creator God who crafted it. The universe testifies to the God who created everything. Humanity testifies to a God who designed men and women in his own image. In the Psalms scripture says, "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voicegoes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world."
"Every object tells a story." - Henry Ford
If God is the great designer and every object tells a story, what is the story that your life tells? As you live your life, make your choices, and do life with those around you, what kind of story is being told about the one who designed you. Great design drives people to awe or even better it drives people to want what was designed. When people encounter you, are they in awe of what God is doing? Or better, do they want what you have?
Where do you see God's great design throughout our world?
Photo Credit: Alles-Schlumpf
Throughout history God has used the spoken word to transform lives. Preaching has been an avenue that the holy spirit has worked through for thousands of years. Certainly over these years, many elements of preaching has changed. The context of the preaching is significantly different than it once was, yet at the same time many elements of preaching have held true over time.
The great reformer, Martin Luther was not only a fan of preaching, but specifically of preahcing simple and clear sermons. Luther commonly would not concern himself with spending time educating about Hebrew and Greek words, but instead explain the same words in everyday language. In a time where the wealth of information that is accessible at the click of a button, I think we must be reminded that our goal shouldn't be to say everything we can about a subject, but to teach one thing in a clear, simple way.
"To preach plain and simple is a great art: Christ himself talks of tilling ground, of mustard seed, etc; he uses altogether homely anad similitudes. Cursed are all preachers that in the church aim at high and hard things, and neglecting the saving health of the poor unlearned people, seek their own honor and praise...When I preach, I sink myself deep down. I regard neither Doctors or Magistrates, of whom, are here in this church above forty; but I have my eye to the multitude of young people, children, and servants, of whome are more than 2000. I preach to those." - Martin Luther
I love to preach. I love standing in front of my whiteboard during the week and start writing and sketching out my ideas for the sermon that's in my head. I love getting up in front of our students on a Sunday morning or one of our retreats and opening up the scripture together. When Luther speaks of preaching in a plan and simple way, he describes it as great art. Anybody can come up with something to say, but to say it simply... that's art. Anybody can talk about the hypostatic union of Christ (well, maybe not anybody), but to do it in a way that doesn't put a twelve year old to sleep and instead engages him...that's art.
My hope as I continue to preach to our students is that I don't get caught up into try to spew out all the information that I can learn, but to craft messages that speak clearly and simply. That I can like a great artist leave piles of great ideas behind for the sake of saying one thing really well.
What's the most difficult part for you about preaching plain and simple?
Photo Credit: John14:6
This past weekend I got to be a part of the Middle School Ministry Campference put on by the Youth Cartel. This event was unlike any other youth ministry conference that I've been to. The main reason for this was that it took place at Spring Hill Camps, allowing it to take the best elements of a conference and mix it with the best elements of camp. Because of the camp environment, the conference was less about listening to keynotes, although that was important, and more about spending time with the middle school ministry tribe. I loved to be able to go to breakout discussions, play dodgeball in the gym, hang out throwing pizza boxes into the fire, or just hang out talking about life and ministry, all with other people who love middle school students. Being at camp, all of the speakers hung out with us, which gave us a great opportunity to not only learn from them as they led breakouts or keynotes, but also to learn from them personally and get to know them as friends.
There aren't a lot of people that I know who not only feel called to youth ministry but also specifically students in junior high. In fact, before this event, I couldn't have told you anyone that I knew (at least personally) that is specifically in middle school ministry. Coming to this event allowed me to get to sit down with a ton of different people and get to know stories, passions, and dreams. It was fun to meet other people who are fired up about junior high ministry. It was like getting a bunch of people together who all understand why each other is crazy enough to spend so much time with this age group.
In the last keynote session, Marko briefly touched on something that was really interesting. He talked about the fact that in adolescent years that brain is forming tons of new neural pathways and also shortly later winnowing those down. When this happens, studies have shown that the way the brain decides which connections to eliminate is by getting rid of the ones that aren't used. In middle school, students brains are being hard-wired for how they will think the rest of their life. That is an incredible calling; to help students learn to thing biblically in a time where there brain is being hard-wired for how the will thing for their entire adult life.
Here's a short video highlighting some of the event put together by Tom Roepke.
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Imagine all the fun questions you could ask, just to see how Siri responds?
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