My students are, in a word, obsessed with the 2012 movie version of Les Miserables. Knowing this, I decided to use Les Mis as the basis for our first, three-week series of the year. This series is written as discussions, designed to be...
I am a musical geek.
Much to my husband's dismay, I listen to soundtracks constantly. Day and night, they're what I blast from Itunes.
Since I first got the soundtrack for The Book of Mormon nearly two years ago, one song has consistently...
This post is part of a synchroblog on Loving Nature: "Is God Green?"
Long before being green was a thing, my family was.
My parents have always driven highly fuel efficient cars. They rarely run their air conditioning. In the winter, their...
My first year in ministry, I was 22 years old.
I was young and naïve, incredibly passionate and excited to be in ministry. I was also arrogant, convinced I was God’s gift to the church (or at least to the particular church I was serving in).
...
I am unashamedly a fan of Kenda Creasy Dean. Her book, Almost Christian, is one I believe every pastor, youth worker, and parent should read.
As as result, when my colleague and I decided to use a book as the framework for our adult...
Recently, as I was reading through Scripture as part of Margaret Feinberg's 40 Day Wonderstruck by Scripture challenge, I was struck by the Message's paraphrase of 2 Kings 17:32-33, “They honored and worshiped God, but not exclusively… They...
More often than not, my attempts to recruit adult leaders are met with the recruit saying something like, “You know I’m not a Bible scholar, right?”
So often, I just want to respond, “You know I’m not looking for a Bible scholar, right?” Usually,...
What the book's about: The subtitle of Help! I'm a Student Leader accurately describes what this book is about - Practical ideas and guidance on leadership. It is written specifically for youth serving as leaders in a church context.
Why I...
As an only child, my parents instilled in me the belief that I could do and be anything I wanted. An education at an all-girls Catholic high school reinforced this.
Rather than bemoan my gender, I was taught to embrace it; To not fear...
One of the best things my congregation does to help transition junior high students into our high school ministry is a tradition I inherited: The confirmation home visit.
Each fall, our associate pastor (who runs confirmation) visits all the 7th...