Friday Review (5/6/22)
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
Dear Youth Pastor, Your Ministry Reached Far Beyond My Youth by Mary Madeline Schumpert (Rooted)
Your ministry reached far beyond my youth. It infused my adulthood with grace and love, and the memory of it still leads me as I walk into eternity.
10 Things Christians Should Know About Kids and Anxiety by Stephen Grcevich (ERLC)
In light of these recent events, what should pastors, church staff, parents, and grandparents know about the effects of anxiety on our children and youth? Here are 10 important pieces of information.
Biblical & Theological Studies
What to Ask a Passage Before You Preach It by Mark Becton (Sola Ecclesia)
When we take our time to observe a text—withholding immediate application—we can apply it in broader and deeper ways. One way to do this is by asking good questions about a text.
Cultural Reflection & Contextualization
This Is and Isn’t the Moment Pro-Life Evangelicals Have Waited For by Kate Shellnutt (Christianity Today)
Bolstered by Alito’s arguments, the pro-life faithful are looking to the post-Roe horizon, when they hope fewer and fewer young lives will end due to abortion. Yet, their reactions are tempered with questions over whether the draft reflects where the high court will finally land, when the decision will be made official, and how the draft was leaked.
Twitter Anger and the Righteousness of God by Doug Eaton (Fight of Faith)
It is flawed to think that God needs our passion and fury to fight his battles. He is much better served when we are meek and mild like Christ himself. It may be time for us to put away the anger and wickedness that besets much of our online existence and instead spend more time receiving the word of God with meekness, which can save our souls.
Apocalypse Now: How the Left and Right Get Danger Wrong by Michael Wear (Christianity Today)
In politics today, apocalyptic thinking on the right and the left is based on an apocalypse that is sure to harm us—but is not so unwieldy that our total control could not avert it. Meanwhile, the Christian idea is nearly the opposite: Embracing apocalypse would not only prepare us for the reality of the world to come, but it involves an acceptance of the world as it is and our role in it.
Pastoral Ministry
How to Fall in Ministry (and What to Do When You Do) by Jared C. Wilson (For the Church)
I don’t know if pastors fall at a higher rate today than they did, say, 30 years ago, but our social media age certainly makes it seem that way... Ministry post-mortems tell us so much, but it would be great if we could see the falls coming. But can’t we?
In Praise of the Boring, Uncool Church by Brett McCracken (The Gospel Coalition)
When we misconstrue faith as just another thing in the consumerist stew, it too becomes a flash-in-the-pan fashion, as fragile and fickle as the latest viral trend on TikTok. The life of Christian faith should be altogether different: a long obedience, a slow burn, a quiet diligence to pursue Jesus faithfully, with others in community, in good times and bad, for better or for worse.
Family & Parents
Graduation Countdowns and Count-Ups by Steve Argue (Fuller Youth Institute)
The countdown to graduation is real. We all experience it. Just know that parenting-investment-time doesn’t end at “zero.” Instead, a new clock emerges—one that lets you count the time you get as you journey with your young adults through their new seasons of significant transitions, new beginnings, and surprising possibilities.
Helping Kids Prepare for Goodbyes by Kaila Thomas (Rooted)
Safe adults are there to help children work through their emotions and simultaneously remind them that the peace of the Holy Spirit is real and true too. We can use endings as an opportunity to help kids know that goodbyes are part of living in our fallen world, but to also know that someday, Jesus will return from his own “big goodbye” to make all things new and put an end to goodbyes forever.
From YPT this week
Give Graduates the Gospel by Mike McGarry
It can be incredibly meaningful for the Church, Youth Group, and Parents come together to bless our high school graduates as they prepare for the next season life.
Reflections on My Ordination as a Youth Pastor by DeAndre Williams
Not every youth pastor will get ordained - but here’s a glimpse into one youth pastor’s recent ordination process as he reflects on what it meant to him.