Millennials love social justice.

Give today's high school students an opportunity to serve, and most will take it. They'll readily fork over their money in support of companies, such as Toms, that benefit others. They'll also wield a hammer, make...

I love to read. Among the books I love, there are a select few that have had a profound impact on my life and faith. Brennan Manning's The Ragamuffin Gospel is one of them.

More than anything else, The Ragamuffin Gospel is a treatise on grace...

Earlier this year, I had the privilege of writing a piece on Sticky Faith – research that I very much admire and respect from Kara Powell and the folks at the College Transition Project - for The Christian Century.

A few weeks ago, Christian...

During our recent mission trip to the Quad Cities, our group attended the Backwater Gamblers waterskiing show. It was everything a small town show should be: Free, community-orientated, fun, and quirky.

My husband was enamored because some of...

My husband and I are blessed to be part of a small group with our closest friends that has withstood the test of time. The group began as part of a church that none of us attend any longer. It's weathered moves, job changes, and the birth of...

Ever since it's release, Heather Kopp's Sober Mercies: How Love Caught Up with a Christian Drunk has been getting great reviews.

Nonetheless, despite the fact that I love spiritual memoirs, I found myself avoiding this book. Upon further...

As is often the case, my students got emotional during the final worship service of our recent mission trip – a meaningful, poignant foot washing service. Tears still streamed down many of their faces as we left the worship space and went to ...

In recent months, I've felt an inexplicable longing to immerse myself in Scripture.

I first noticed this several months ago, at the start of lent, when Margaret Feinberg challenged her readers to join her in being “Wonderstruck by Scripture” by...

Over the last several months, my small group and I have been slowly making our way through Henri Nouwen's The Return of the Prodigal Son , a book that has helped me to better understand and appreciate the story of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32)....

While on a mission trip to the Quad Cities with Youth Works Missions, another trip leader said, “I love Youth Works but do you ever feel like they're just really missing the evangelism piece?”

He went on to explain that while he loved the...

Over the past several years, I've had the privilege of compiling many of Youth Worker Journal's Roundtables. In order to compile these Roundtables, I must first solicit interviews from Christian “celebrities” - authors, pastors, and academics.

...

Four months ago, I sat in my doctor's office and learned I was having a miscarriage.

The months since then have been a whirlwind: I finished my master's degree, wrapped up another school year in ministry, vacationed, and led one of our summer...

History is written by the victors.

Though true, as a person of faith, this idea has always bothered me. If history is written by the victors, then how will the stories of those who are oppressed be told? How can we fight oppression and injustices...

I just returned from leading my first of two trips with Youth Works Missions this summer.

While on our trip in Red Lake, I frequently heard Youth Works staff describe the purpose of their summer ministry using the phrase, “We get to love on this...

Where were you on March 21, 2005?

I'm guessing you may not remember. After all, unlike September 11, this is not a date etched in our collective national memory. It is, however, a date on which another tragedy occurred.

On March 21, 2005, a...

This summer, my student leaders and I are reading and discussing Help! I'm a Student Leader by Doug Fields.

The week before our summer mission trip, we discussed Ch. 3 of this book, entitled “Student Leaders Deepen Their Faith.” As part of our...

When I opened my blog reader Monday morning after a week away, I found blog after blog featuring reactions to the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting of 17-year old Trayvon Martin, an unarmed African-American teenager.

Not surprisingly,...

Occasionally I see something on Twitter that elicits an immediate emotional reaction in me.

Such was the case last week when I saw this promoted tweet from Walden University:

Paul Rusesabagina, Humanitarian & Hotel Rwanda Hero, to Speak at ...

What the book's about: This is a fiction book geared towards Young Adults. It's central character, Colin Fischer, is a high school student with Asperger syndrome. He can't stand to be touched and struggles to read facial expressions. Yet, he has a...

One of my favorite pieces to play on the piano is Nocturne in C-sharp Minor by Frederic Chopin. One of the things I love about this piece is it's use of rubato, a technique in which certain notes are arbitrarily lengthened while others are...