Friday Review (1/13/23)
Each week we compile a list of helpful articles from other sites, in a variety of categories, for youth workers to read, reflect on, and/or discuss with parents and volunteers. If you have any articles you’d like to suggest, we’d love for you to share those in the Youth Pastor Theologian Facebook group. That’s a great way to bring them to our attention and to discuss them with like-minded youth workers! (Inclusion in this list does not imply complete agreement with the publishing source, but we have found these articles to be beneficial.)
Youth Ministry
FOBO: Gen Z’s FOMO, by Jerry Riendeau (The Gospel Coalition)
Loving one another across generations comes at a cost to everyone. For Gen Z this may mean a willingness to commit in spite of the fear of better options. For older generations, it may mean practice in patience and empathy.
Why Confession Belongs in Youth Group, by Vince Greewald (The Gospel Coalition)
When I’ve told other youth leaders about our walking-in-the-light practice, most are hesitant. They have a list of concerns…. Here’s how I answer those concerns: it’s far more dangerous for our ministries to be places where students hide sin than for them to be places where students confess sin.
Biblical & Theological Studies
What’s Up with Weird Bible Sex?, by Dru Johnson (Christianity Today)
It may be strange, but that doesn’t mean it’s not important. God is working. And Genesis is laying down fundamental and coherent theology on the body, the family, and the narrative of redemption and restoration. The rest of Scripture, including Jesus’s teachings about bodies and human relationships, depends on this sex talk.
Not Like Any Other Book, by Mitch Chase (Biblical Theology)
As we think about the Bible, we need to think about it like Christians. Plenty of folks might read the Bible without any right conviction about what it is. They may read it as if it’s like any other book they’ve read. But the Bible is not like any other book, so it must not be interpreted just like any other book.
Cultural Reflection & Contextualization
After Answered Prayers for Damar Hamlin, What’s Next?, by Paul Emory Putz (Christianity Today)
While we continue to pray for a full recovery, let’s also pray that in the years to come, when people look back at this historic intersection of football and prayer, they’ll be able to see not just a feel-good gesture of symbolic unity but also a movement of people bearing witness to a God who saves, heals, and restores.
5 Predictions for Social Media in 2023, by Chris Martin (Terms of Service)
Social media has been a volatile cultural crucible for basically two decades. What in the world could the next year look like? Here are five not-too-crazy predictions I have about what the next year could look like for social media as a whole.
Pastoral Ministry
How to Lead Others in a Digital Age, by Jason Thacker (The Gospel Coalition)
We need not be naive optimists or detached pessimists. Biblical wisdom calls us to be rooted in the reality of how technology is shaping us but also to live in light of Christ’s victory and the new life we have in him.
Make Christianity Hard Again, (Another Small Stone)
Now it might seem like the solution to this is to try to make Christianity fun. But I think that is going in the wrong direction. I think that the right move is to make Christianity hard.
What I Want From A Church by Tim Challies
We may roll our eyes at such people and consider ourselves superior to them. But isn’t it possible that we can relate to church in a similar way? Isn’t it possible that we can join and depart churches on the basis of preference more than on the basis of God’s revelation of what a church is and ought to be?
Family & Parents
Generations of Chronological Snobbery, by Adam Salloum (Gospel Centered Discipleship)
One cross-generational friendship is a start, but I recognize how much further I still have to go in respecting God’s gifts in those both younger and older than me. This is no small task ahead of us. Yet in Jesus we have a savior who perfectly honored his parents and gave counter-culture dignity to little children. May we, in him, humbly strive to be the intergenerational family that he died to create.
Ask Alice: Sissy Goff on Mothers, Daughters, and Female Friendships, by Alice Churnock (Rooted)
Until we can help a parent who is anxious, we’re not really fully going to be able to help the child. Because if parents are still anxious, it inevitably spills out when we never intend for it to.
From YPT this week
5 Ways John Piper Made Me a Better Student Pastor by Will Standridge
A new series highlighting preachers and writers who have helped us become better youth workers. This contribution reflects on key themes of John Piper’s ministry that can helps youth workers make disciples who are joyful worshippers.
YPT Podcast Episode 22: Asking Questions to Prompt Deep Conversations with Nick Hartman and Joseph Bradley
Every youth leader knows how challenging it can be to facilitate meaningful and deep conversations. It can be so discouraging to prepare for meaningful ministry only to receive one-word answers and silence. In this episode, we're joined by two of our regular blog writers to discuss how we can learn to ask better questions that prompt meaningful conversations.