Theology for Urban Streets

Dean Borgman is a  professor of youth ministries at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He is also founder and general editor of the online Center of Youth Studies. He was involved inYoung Life’s first urban work on Manhattan’s Lower East Side and Young Life’s Urban Training Institute in New York. His teaching now is primarily located in…

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Confessions of a Hypocrite Youth Pastor, Part 1

The knots in my stomach tightened. As the distance between us grew, I could feel the color leave my face. You hypocrite, I thought. So busy with ministry that you pretend not to notice? Truthfully I had noticed. In fact I saw her so vividly that I crossed the street so she wouldn’t see me…

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Going Global – Part 1

“Going Global” has become the coined phrase used to describe the moment when one has achieved a level of influence that has the potential to affect the world. Going global has been used in athletics, literature, entertainment, even in the financial realm. When you have gone global, you have finally reached a place of influence…

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10 Ways To Plan for Success in Ministry & Life for 2012

This is Part 3 in a series by Maina Mwaura.  Read Part 1 and Part 2.  “Ask me and I will tell you some remarkable secrets about what is going to happen.”  Jeremiah 33:3 NLT+ If you’re like me, every year you start off with a list of goals you’re going planning on accomplishing and…

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Simple Is Better

I recently had a conversation with a great friend who called me in an effort to inundate me with his list of ALL the things he desires to accomplish in 2012. It was a great conversation but the truth of the matter is that I hung the phone up and found myself perplexed about whether…

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Refresh a Youth Worker in 2012: Dip Into the Well

  “Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon. “When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, ‘Will you give me a drink?’” – John 4:6-7 It’s hard to imagine Superman tired. Harder still to imagine the creator of the universe exhausted…

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Reflecting and Looking Ahead

This is Part 2 in a series by Maina Mwaura.  Read Part 1 here. “One of the greatest moments in anybody’s developing experience is when he no longer tries to hide from himself but determines to get acquainted with himself as he really is.” ~ Norman Vincent Peale As we approach the New Year, I encourage…

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Reflection + Goal = Success

Christmas, New Years Day, holiday parties, travel, and all kinds of activities seem to  run together during this time of the year. If we’re not careful we can forget to stop and Reflect before the New Year begins.  I would like for us to Reflect on what God has done this year and reflect on…

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Barnyard Births in the City: Wishing you an Unconventional Christmas

When we were kids, people called us little devils. So when we grew up, we called ourselves Satan’s Sinners. – Cochise, founder and president of Satan’s Sinners gang; incarcerated since December 1993; incarnated since January 1994 It was a typically hot and humid July afternoon in New York, but about to get hotter. Several dozen members…

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