the youth cartel:a revolutionary student ministry “weapon”

July 18, 2011 in culture, leadership, student ministry, thoughts with 2 Comments

i’m excited for this revolutionary announcement.

rev·o·lu·tion·ar·y–adjective

1. of, pertaining to, characterized by, or of the nature of a revolution, or a sudden, complete, or marked change: a revolutionary junta.
2.radically new or innovative; outside or beyond established procedure, principles, etc.: a revolutionary discovery.
3. of or pertaining to the American Revolution or to the period contemporaneous with it in U.S. history: Revolutionary heroes; Revolutionary weapons.

two good guys i’ve gotten to know as personal friends and mentors Mark Oestreicher and Adam McLane have joined forces to leverage their collective hearts and heads for the Kingdom to impact student ministry workers… and its going to be a really good thing called “the youth cartel“…and maybe the word “weapon” may offer some reserve, but their work and effort should be added to anyone’s “arsenal” in ministry.  we do live in a world that is in a spiritual battle, right? john 10:10!

according to their blog here’s what they’re about:

This is about finding a way to elevate the voices and ideas of a new generation of youth workers from the fringes. This is about promoting new youth ministry voices to the world we know and love, and about helping organizations connect with the amazing tribe of youth workers.

serving, our part in the Story & harry potter

July 15, 2011 in adventure, student ministry, thoughts with Comments Off

 the amazing d2s11 team!                                                                                        

i’ve not made it to the final chapter of Harry Potter Story, but hope too. and in the last couple of days have finished up several projects including four days of Kingdom work in mansfield with Dare2Serve11. i guess i’m trying to weave together some random thots on why there is such engagement with the fictional harry potter and our own lives and especially in the lives of our students.

wrapping up the week-long serving opportunity with an incredible group of 140 students and adults it was clear, as we worked together we all want our stories to matter. there was conversation about the final release of HP coming. and in our small group times the similarities to another epic story – the lord of the rings rung out as we talked about living life fully for the Kingdom.  thot this post over at red letter christians : Why We Are Drawn to Harry Potter Theology by Danielle Tumminio offered some sense.

As movie theatres reel the final film, and as we reflect on the years we shared with members of Dumbledore’s Army, perhaps this is the takeaway: Seek.

Seek with all your heart and all your soul and with your closest friends by your side.

If you do, you may find yourself on an unpredictable path to places you never knew existed. You may meet people so unlike you that they could be properly called a centaur and you a house elf. You may walk into a dark and forbidden forest. You may battle your greatest enemy.

we all want our lives to matter.  when we risk stepping out and serving, wherever, huge things can happen…and its as clear as the  text message i received from andie, a freshman and one of the students on the d2s11 trip…before i was even home from dropping everyone off to step back into their regular lives...yep!

the story of everything – now and yet to come

July 14, 2011 in culture, student ministry with Comments Off

the struggle we all find ourselves as part of as we journey through life…can be better understood when we see that our story is part of a larger Story. love this really creative video that gives a concise picture of God’s story. enjoy. ht johnny baker.

is student ministry killing the church?

July 13, 2011 in books & reviews, culture, student ministry, thoughts with Comments Off

hmmm…not sure what to think about this new documentary. i stumbled on it today and have watched the movie. its free till sept 1. click here.   there’s some useful conversation that it begins, but i’m thinking it may be too narrow. there’s some stereotyping and some assumptions that i’m not fully in agreement with. that said…if you’re in ministry – vocationally or not…its worth the watch and a conversation about it. would be interested in your thoughts.  please leave a comment…and lets begin the conversation.

how champions lead:serve

July 13, 2011 in leadership, student ministry, thoughts with Comments Off

ht tony steward - thor hushovd #51 in the pack at the tour de france

one of the brightest guys i know…tony steward has a really good post on his cycling blog today(actually all of his posts are great). lots of good take aways…but one quote in particular from his post about the current road race world champion thor hushovd who in this image from the 2011 Tour de France is shown carrying water bottles for his team.  as a (leader)champion

I wonder if the rest of us, if in our best moments, would be as ready and aware of our chances to serve and help our team mates as Thor has shown he is?

there’s something here for any leader…lead by doing…serving.

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