“When you’re a straight, white male, your privilege bracelet looks more like a necklace,” one of my high school students told me after making a privilege bracelet at a booth at the recent ELCA Youth Gathering.

The activity was great – exposing...

“Do you wish one of the daily themes of the Youth Gathering had been ‘Jesus Changes Everything’?” one of my adult leaders asked me on the final day of our denomination's triennial youth gathering of more than 30,000 students.

She’d spent the week...

I spent last week at the ELCA’s National Youth Gathering with a group from my church that included two other adult leaders. As part of this event, teens from across the country came together to worship, learn, and serve. We invaded a city and...

Today, a friend asked me how my family’s vacation last week was.

I replied, “It was awesome!” to which he replied, “Tell me more about this place you went to.”

He knew we’d gone to an all-inclusive family-friendly resort in New York State –...

As a youth pastor, I frequently ask teens what they want to discuss. Often, teens – both men and women – will suggest we discuss women of the Bible. For the most part, teens feel as though they know the stories of the male characters in the Bible...

I first gained exposure to Kristen Welch when my husband gifted me with a subscription to Fair Trade Friday, a ministry of Mercy House, which Kristen is the founder of. When I saw Kristen had a new book out, Raising World Changers in a Changing...

‘Tis the season for summer camps and mission trips, which means that this time of year, youth ministry discussion boards explode with questions about swimwear dress codes. Typically, questions go something like this:

What do you require girls to...

If there’s a seasonality to hiring in the church world, it’s now. Churches work hard during the spring and summer months to ensure that they have a full staff in place before the program year begins in the fall.

A common part of the interview...

This time of year, youth ministry discussion boards are filled with posts about what to get seniors for graduates. My ministry also gives gifts to graduating seniors: Prayer books.

I started this tradition several years ago. I solicited prayers...

At one of the congregations I served as a youth pastor, our youth ministry made care packages for our college students. In return, the college ministry made a giant “Fruits of the Spirit” tree for us out of paper. Although we hung the tree in our...

Over the past few years, media coverage has made me increasingly aware of the opioid epidemic plaguing the United States. As a youth worker, I believe I have a responsibility to educate myself about issues that affect teenagers in the United...

As a leader in the church, I want to be above reproach. For me, this has and always will be a matter of integrity. However, amidst the needed #MeToo and #ChurchToo movements, being above reproach is perhaps more important than ever before.

As...

“Let’s play church,” said my two-year old daughter, Hope. She then proceeded to seat my husband and I, hand out songbooks, and push two ottomans in our living room together to form a makeshift altar.

“I’ll be Pastor Wende,” she said,...

For years, my husband has said that if he were ever to write a book, it’d be about being called to create. He - and I - strongly believe that because we are made in the image of God, we are called to create.

Because of that, when I saw the title...

“I’m thinking about killing myself.” 

It’s a phrase no youth worker ever wants to hear. But stay in ministry long enough and you will. 

I remember the first time I heard it. I felt panicked and in many ways, frozen. I was unsure what to...

In high school, one of my favorite history teachers, Mr. Mazzullla, was a Vietnam Vet. As a result, for the first time in my academic history, we actually spent time talking about the Vietnam War. Hearing Mr. Mazzulla's first-hand accounts of the...

I love my youth ministry’s adult leaders. They’re the backbone of my youth ministry. They’re people I’ve recruited, equipped, and mentored. Some have served with me for almost a decade. I take caring for them seriously.

In my context, adult...

Most youth workers I know are familiar with the 30 Hour Famine. Many have even done it… at least once.

Maybe that’s you. Maybe you did the Famine years ago but then, for whatever reason, stopped.

That’s what I did.

For over a decade, the 30 Hour...

I was first introduced to Skye Jethani when my small group read The Divine Commodity: Discovering a Faith Beyond Consumer Christianity nearly a decade ago. The Divine Commodity was a thought-provoking read that made for excellent discussion fodder...

I'm a big believer in the power of experiential learning. To this end, instead of giving a talk about prayer, I'd much rather create a series of prayer stations designed to give students the opportunity to pray in a variety of ways.

Over the next...