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Jen Bradbury
Dec 22 · 5 min read

Review: Defiant by Kelley Nikondeha

Filed in Book Review

I’ve had the pleasure of hearing Kelley Nikondeha speak a couple of times, first at the women’s’ retreat she mentions often in Defiant, and more recently at Evolving Faith. Having heard Kelley in person and experienced first-hand her heart for the...

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#hope #justice #scripture #books

Jen Bradbury
Nov 04 · 5 min read

The morning after: Why I'm weeping on this post-election day

This morning, I’ve been thinking a lot about the story of the Walk to Emmaus, which Luke tells at the end of his Gospel. The line I find most compelling in this story is when two disciples tell Jesus (whom they do not yet recognize) about Jesus'...

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#politics #hope

Jen Bradbury
Oct 02 · 5 min read

What teens need from their youth ministries right now

Yesterday, my student leaders and I were talking about a chapter from Bob Goff’s Everybody Always and wrestling with how we can spread hope & courage within our ministry – now, during a time when we’re meeting virtually, in a season when...

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#student leadership #books #hope #brave #Pandemic #youth ministry #scripture #church

Jen Bradbury
Jun 18 · 5 min read

Is this the end of short-term missions?

Filed in Missions

I was supposed to be on a mission trip last week.

With the exception of the two summers I was on maternity leave, this is the first time since 2003 that I haven’t spent my summers leading mission trips.

Mission trips are – for so many junior...

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#grace #hope #justice #A Mission That Matters #pregnancy #Pandemic #Missions

Jen Bradbury
May 22 · 5 min read

Life from death

Img 8313

As we stood at my mother-in-law’s casket, my nearly two-year-old nephew chased my four-year-old daughter around the empty funeral home room – something they could do since, thanks to the COVID-19 restrictions, the room was empty except for us.

...

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#Pandemic #children #babies #joy #hope #Holy Week #scripture #Jesus #death

Jen Bradbury
Apr 03 · 5 min read

Notes from the Pandemic: The God I Believe In

Yesterday, I stumbled onto this Facebook post:

In three short months, just like He did with the plagues of Egypt, God has taken away everything we worship. God said, "you want to worship athletes, I will shut down the stadiums. You want to...

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#Community #hope #church #grief #Pandemic #Jesus #worship

Jen Bradbury
Mar 20 · 5 min read

Review: The Eternal Current by Aaron Niequist

Filed in Book Review

I live in Barrington, in the shadow of Willow Creek. I’ve long been familiar with the service they offer called, “The Practice”. As a youth worker in the ELCA, I’m intrigued by an evangelical community dabbling in a more liturgical style of...

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#hope #church #youth pastor #Jesus #liturgy #books

Jen Bradbury
Oct 19 · 5 min read

Why you can't sell hope

The man from Food for the Hungry walked onto the stage.

“Do you believe in hope?” he yelled.

The crowd of Christian concert goers replied with raucous cheers.

That’s when he said it - The line that made me sink down in my seat and cringe.

“...

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#refugee #hope #Rwanda #A Mission That Matters #Jesus #Missions

Jen Bradbury
Sep 14 · 5 min read

Review: Grace Like Scarlett by Adriel Booker

Filed in Book Review

In the days following my miscarriage, several friends sent me links to people they’d found online who were writing about miscarriage. Adriel Booker was one of those people. Her words were like a lifeline to me. Not surprisingly, her book, Grace...

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#grace #hope #miscarriage #grief #Jesus #books

Jen Bradbury
Jul 10 · 5 min read

Jesus Changes Everything

“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...

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#Youth Gathering #youth ministry #Jesus gap #Jesus #atonement #grace #hope #Leaders

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Latest Posts

  • Review: Defiant by Kelley Nikondeha
  • The morning after: Why I'm weeping on this post-election day
  • What teens need from their youth ministries right now
  • Is this the end of short-term missions?
  • Life from death
  • Notes from the Pandemic: The God I Believe In
  • Review: The Eternal Current by Aaron Niequist
  • Why you can't sell hope
  • Review: Grace Like Scarlett by Adriel Booker
  • Jesus Changes Everything

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