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...
I’ve lost track of the number of times in my career in youth ministry when a high school senior has confronted me because they don’t like the direction our ministry is going. This confrontation always comes after a transition – usually within the...
In the church world, people talk about being “called” a lot. But what exactly does it mean to be called? Mark Labberton attempts to answer this very question in his book, Called: The Crisis and Promise of Following Jesus Today.
According to...
My new book, A Mission That Matters: How To Do Short-Term Missions Without Long-Term Harm, is out! As a youth worker, I wholeheartedly believe that mission trips have the ability to impact teens in an incredibly transformative way. However,...
As a youth pastor, I am a leader.
I lead students, adult and student leaders, parents, and in a variety of ways, colleagues.
As such, I constantly want to grow in my leadership skills. For that reason, I was excited to read Aubrey...
I’m currently writing a part of a book called Four Views on Talking to Teenagers about Sex for The Youth Cartel (It'll be available in January, 2019). As part of my preparation for this, I’ve been reading all I can about sex… from as many...
Today, I'm linking up with Five Minute Friday. The rules: Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking.
This week's prompt: Done.
My boss, Joe, walked me up to my office at the end of a long Sunday. It was a good...
According to author Rachel Held Evans, “Those who say having a childlike faith means not asking questions haven’t met too many children.”
What I love about that sentiment – and about Rachel in general – is that she embraces questions of all...
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...
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...