When I was in grad school, author and professor, Steve Gerali, taught me about how important rites of passage are in the faith formation of young people. Since then, I've been a big fan of including these experiences in my youth ministry. I'm also...
Sarah Bessey is a writer's writer. Her words are beautiful; Her language, poetry. She's someone I read when I need inspiration.
Needless to say, my expectations about her second book, Out of Sorts, were incredibly high, so much so that I...
I first heard Brenda Salter McNeil speak when I was the Youth Pastor at a multi-ethnic congregation in the suburbs. Knee-deep in the (often) painful reality of cross-cultural ministry, I found her words both challenging and inspiring.
Now, in a...
I majored in Electrical Engineering in college – a major that seemed logical for me since I was good at math and science and knew engineering could lead to a lucrative job.
The only problem was that engineering was definitely not the career God...
Reading inspires me. So as part of my work on my next book – a devotional for teenagers about Jesus based on the research published in my first book, The Jesus Gap – I picked up Tony Jones' Did God Kill Jesus?: Searching for Love in History's...
As a young child, I much preferred playing with stuffed animals to playing house with dolls. As I grew older, I had far more dreams related to careers than motherhood. It took my husband several years to convince me that parenthood was something...
For the last several years, I've participated in the One Word 365 project, selecting a word to anchor my year. My word for this year has been hope – chosen during a scary pregnancy related stint in the hospital in January.
In addition to...
As a youth pastor, I'm privileged to walk with teens as they transition from high school into college. Typically, teens leave high school with huge dreams and aspirations, feeling as though they can conquer the world. All too often, four years...
I first heard Becca Stevens speak several years ago at the ELCA's Youth Ministry Extravaganza. That year, she also spoke at the ELCA's triennial Youth Gathering. I was intrigued by her work. She's an Episcopal priest who founded a non-profit, ...
I used to believe there was such a thing as a perfect church. Then I became a youth pastor and started working for the church. I quickly realized just how imperfect the church is.
Of course, this shouldn't be surprising. The church is made of...