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Money, Love, Money
Chip, stash, bank roll, Benjamins, C-Notes. Whatever you call it, teenagers love to get & spend money— on concerts, clothes, shoes, food, and of course, music. But when it comes to giving money, the love affair dwindles. Teenage giving should be a priority, not to have money in your budget, rather to teach young people to…
Read MoreMotivational Monday- Young and Bold
Found this verse and thought it would be useful as we encourage our youth: “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.” 1 Timothy 4:12 No matter how young, how inexperienced, how large the task, let’s empower our youth…
Read MoreDunk Tanks and Digital Downloads
By Chris Lassiter After pelting me with a barrage of whip cream pies, the group of teenagers I took to summer camp knew exactly how to clean me up….The dunk tank. I trudged back to our dorm room, soggy but happy. I hopped in the shower and got ready for bed. And that’s when it…
Read MoreYouth Look up to YOU… Lecrae’s “Just Like You”
Lyrics: “I grew up empty cause my daddy wasn’t with shoot. I wasn’t picky I’ll take any male figure… you.” Believe it or not, your youth are watching! The rarity of positive role models increasingly infects our urban communities. Let’s make sure we, as ambassadors for Christ (2 Cor. 5), bare witness to the…
Read MoreThe Help: Part Two
This is Part 2 of a series by Lee Wilson on recruiting a great ministry leadership team. You can read Part 1 here. In the movie, The Help, one of the main characters, Skeeter decides to write a book from the perspective of the African-American maids in her community. In order to do this,…
Read MoreThe Help: Part One
Recently, I went to minister in Kenya, Africa. While taking the longest, most grueling flight from Syracuse, NY to Bungoma, Kenya, I decided to do something I rarely get to do – watch a movie. And I am so glad that I did. I ended up watching the award winning film, “The Help.” This movie…
Read MoreNatalie Warne: Being Young and Making a Difference
Veteran UYWI speakers like Harvey Carey challenge urban youth workers that, “youth ministry is not about ministering to youth but about empowering youth to minister.” (Download, for example, Harvey’s “Legacy People” general session talk at UYWI 2008). UYWI has attempted to model this idea by integrating “Plus-1” proteges at various Reload events (watch “Homegrown: The…
Read MoreHope Help Heaven
Every youth leader knows that the summer is one of the busiest times of the year. Your students are out of school, free for activities and expecting you to provide some amazing programming for them to take part in. How you share the vision for your summer events will determine how involved your students become,…
Read More“Protest and Invest” and Other Marketplace Lessons for Youth Workers
d UYWI friend and frequent co-conspirator Rudy Carrasco has championed market-oriented solutions to youth poverty and joblessness for years. He summarizes his call for holistic economic justice as “Protest and Invest,” where we broaden our call for justice beyond assigning blame about the causes of poverty to asset creation and control. He’s been writing and…
Read MoreFirst Things First
by Pastor Lee Wilson I thought I would take a break from the norm and blog about one of the most important things in youth ministry. It has nothing to do with programs or budgets. It doesn’t involve camps or big events. I’m talking about marriage. And here’s why. As I reflect on the success…
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