I am 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...

As he dipped his fingers into a bowl of rice and beans, one of my students whined, "Why do you always have to mess with our food?"

At the time he made this comment, this student, along with the rest of our mission team, was busy participating in a...

What the book's about: Thin Places by Jon Huckins explores six postures for creating and practicing missional community. Here, the word, "posture" is significant as it blends action with contemplative practices that teach dependence on the...

As I mentioned last week, one benefit of taking the summer off is that it gives leaders the time to invest in other things. One of the things I routinely invest in during the summer is our youth ministry’s space.

Roughly every other year, we hold...

During Holy Week, my congregation holds worship on each of The Great Three Days: Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday.

Though I grew up in a church that held a Good Friday worship service, the concept of worshipping on each of these...

For many years, my husband and I led a small group we affectionately called the Palatine misfits. The group earned it's name because of where we met and who we were. Our group could not easily be categorized as singles, couples, or families....

As my senior pastor says, "At our place, we do church. Especially this time of the year. Holy Week." I had the privilege of preaching on Isaiah 50:4-9a, Hebrews 12:1-3, and John 13:21-32 during Holy Wednesday worship. The reflection I shared...

Earlier this week, Josh posted a poll about taking the summer off saying, “I’m not talking about changing it up a bit in the summer, I’m talking about largely taking the summer off.”

My youth ministry definitely falls into the category of “largely...

Yesterday, I talked about how to use positive reinforcement to handle disruptive students. I wrote this post in response to a question posed on an online youth ministry forum I'm a part of: “How do you handle disruptive students during a lesson or...

Recently, someone posted this question to an online youth ministry forum I'm a part of: “How do you handle disruptive students during a lesson or sermon?”

One of the most helpful ways I've learned to “handle disruptive students” is actually...

The other day, my teens and I attended a workshop during which we had the opportunity to practice contemplative prayer. After doing so, the facilitator asked people to share their experience with 2-3 people near them.

My teens’ body language...

There's only one group I know that thinks it's OK to kidnap people: The church.

While most of the world scorns kidnapping, churches use it as a promotional tool.

Just last week I read a blog post from Taylor Bird about helping 5th graders become...

In December, I loved participating in the Great Christmas Exchange. This winter, I also enjoyed the We {Heart} Books Virtual Exchange. Naturally, when Elizabeth at Oak and Oats mentioned the Etsy Swap, I decided to give that a try...

As a youth worker, I know that relationships matter far more than any talk I'll ever give or any discussion I'll ever lead. 

I know this based on my own life experience. Even so, over the years, there have been three talks that have...

A few weeks ago, my congregation’s associate pastor preached her farewell sermon. During it, she confessed a few doubts about her faith to us.

Afterward, one of my students – who’s been in the midst of her own spiritual crisis – talked about how...

A few weeks ago, my congregation held it's annual Youth Sunday, a tradition I have the ultimate love / hate relationship with.

For years, I've heard people describe this Sunday as the one in which our youth “take-over” worship. Even though I...

Yesterday, I had lunch with one of my youth group graduates who’s now in college. As our time together drew to a close, this student pondered, “So how long can we keep getting together like this?”

In processing her question, here’s what I think...

Today, I'm linking up with Lisa-Jo Baker‘s Five Minute Friday. The rules: Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking.

This week's prompt: Joy. 

In the dead of winter, teens from my youth ministry delivered a...

What the book's about: Unexpected Gifts is about the formation of community. In it, Christopher Heuertz explores 11 things that often inhibit the formation of community. He then reframes these tensions by exploring the unexpected gifts that...

As a former youth pastor, Micha Boyett has a special place in my heart. I've followed her blog for years and was eager to get my hands on her book, Found – A story of questions, grace, and everyday prayer.

Though I feared Micha's book would be...