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Jen Bradbury
Aug 31 · 5 min read

8 ways to help mission teams conclude more than “poor people are happy”

“But they're just so happy.”

I’ve lost track of how often I’ve heard someone—either a teenager or an adult—use this phrase to describe someone they served during a summer mission trip.

It doesn’t matter whether you go to a Native American...

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#justice #Leaders #Missions #culture of welcome #processing #worship

Jen Bradbury
Aug 03 · 5 min read

The fantasy youth ministry candidate

Popular youth ministry author and speaker, Doug Franklin, who I greatly respect, recently posted this on social media:

I often get calls from churches seeking great youth ministry candidates for their open positions. They are all looking for the...

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#breastfeeding #marriage #motherhood #parenting #Missions #youth ministry

Jen Bradbury
Jul 06 · 5 min read

What students need most when they’re stuck spiritually

On the first day of swim lessons, the lifeguard asked my nearly four-year-old daughter, Kendall, to put her head underwater and much to my shock, she did. This immediately advanced her from Level 1 (for anyone who can’t put their head underwater)...

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#apologetics #toddlers #parenting #faith formation #discipleship

Jen Bradbury
Apr 11 · 5 min read

The tearing of the curtain

Several years ago during an overnight event at the church I served, my high school youth ministry filed into our sanctuary and participated in a prayer ritual around the altar that involved lit candles. Unbeknownst to me, the wax from the candles...

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#Prayer #church #communion #worship #culture of welcome #discipleship #faith formation #scripture #Holy Week #youth ministry

Jen Bradbury
Mar 16 · 5 min read

How do you not hate them?

I preached on March 5, when the lectionary text of the day was John 3:1-17. This passage includes the beloved (or despised, depending on who you are) John 3:16.

As part of my sermon, I talked about how while I was in college, my friends from the...

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#Women #ecumenical #justice #baptism #privilege #marriage #worship

Jen Bradbury
Feb 22 · 5 min read

Messy Ashes

It’s Ash Wednesday. I was supposed to be serving at church today, imposing ashes on people for an hour this afternoon.

Strangely, I was looking forward to it. While Ash Wednesday is morbid, there’s also a sacredness to it that I appreciate.

...

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#church #Pandemic #Jesus #youth ministry #liturgy #justice #Community #Lent

Jen Bradbury
Apr 19 · 5 min read

What it means to be a Bradbury

I first met Grandpa Elmer when I was 19. After a summer apart from each other, my then boyfriend, Doug, invited me to join him for Perry Pioneer Days - a local festival that included a parade that he and his Grandpa always walked in.

As clowns.

...

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#identity #story #church #marriage #culture of welcome

Jen Bradbury
Sep 12 · 5 min read

The (false) unity of 9-12

As we've approached the twentieth anniversary of 9-11, I’ve seen this picture on social media a lot:

In some ways, I get the sentiment.

Our country is divided, certainly more than I’ve seen at any other point in my lifetime.

And yet, every time...

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#refugee #racism #privilege

Jen Bradbury
Sep 04 · 5 min read

Notes from the pandemic: The plight of young (unvaccinated) children & their parents

Last Tuesday, exactly one week after the girls started school, we got the dreaded call that 6-year old Hope had been in close contact with someone at school who tested positive for COVID.

Because of the close contact, Hope had to quarantine for...

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#toddlers #children #education #grief #Pandemic #privilege #parenting

Jen Bradbury
Aug 11 · 5 min read

Jesus & justice

Is it easier to bring Jesus to the progressives or social justice to the evangelicals?

This is the question I’ve spent most of my professional life wondering, as I’ve alternated between evangelical and progressive settings, respecting both for...

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#Jesus #ecumenical #justice #church #worship #culture of welcome #hospitality #communion

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Latest Posts

  • 8 ways to help mission teams conclude more than “poor people are happy”
  • The fantasy youth ministry candidate
  • What students need most when they’re stuck spiritually
  • The tearing of the curtain
  • How do you not hate them?
  • Messy Ashes
  • What it means to be a Bradbury
  • The (false) unity of 9-12
  • Notes from the pandemic: The plight of young (unvaccinated) children & their parents
  • Jesus & justice

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