How do you sharpen your leadership skills? For a decade of my life, I served on an ‘iron sharpens iron’ collegiate ministry team in Louisiana. Although I may have occasionally griped about the trip to our state’s convention for staff meeting, I knew that I would drive back to Ruston with something new. It was often a new idea for ministry, a book suggestion, a reminder of something forgotten in the busyness of the semester. I was sharpened by being with my peers. You may experience this locally, in your state, in person, or through … [Read more...]
Difference Maker?
Do you ever wonder if you are making a difference? I know I do. Whether you are in school, working a full time job, a stay at home mom, or a top executive we all have it within us to somehow make the world a better place. I have the joy of working within a Christian organization that takes the message of Christ to the world through resources and events and yet I even sometimes wonder what kind of impact I am having in the world. I recently received an email from an old high school friend. A portion of it read, "I also wanted … [Read more...]
College, Young Adult or Both?
This week’s question from our Connect Conferences is an excellent, practical question when it comes to Young Adult Ministry. “How can I tell when I should start a college Bible study group and how should I go about it?” One item to strongly consider is simple geography. Is there an institution of higher learning of any kind anywhere near your church campus? If the answer to this question is yes, then you should be working on a ministry to college students as a part of Young Adult Ministry. Sometimes, we get way … [Read more...]
Your Sunsphere Equivalent
The city I grew up in, Knoxville, TN, was also the home of the 1982 World’s Fair. The Sunsphere was created as the theme structure for the World’s Fair. It is noted for its unique design and highlights the Knoxville skyline. Most of the World’s Fair site is now a public park and a convention center, but the Sunsphere remains. It has become a symbol for Knoxville, appearing in postcards, logos, and just about everything else. When I think of downtown Knoxville, I think of the Sunsphere (and vice versa). Now, … [Read more...]
God’s Will in all Seasons
From the outside looking in, the idea that there is a single Being in the universe who is powerful enough-or arrogant enough in some people's minds-to presume to have a plan for every other being in the universe, amounts to little more than magic or superstition. Christ-followers affirm the truth that the Almighty does indeed have a plan but add that His plan is one of love for His creation. We counter the superstitious assumptions, but many of us seek to find God's will in superstitious ways: "If a blue bird lands on my car during … [Read more...]
How do you lead a class that has a broad range of spiritual maturity?
Jason Hayes and Michael Kelley discuss this question from our 2008 Connect Conferences in this episode of the Threads podcast. … [Read more...]
Why We Can’t Reach Young Adults
When our Threads team met in December to talk about what kind of content we needed on this site for the next few months, we came up with a pretty good idea. We decided to take the most asked questions we received at Connect Conferences this fall and answer them in detail. Here is Question 1: “What would you say was the number one reason programs/attempts to reach young people aren’t successful?” Great question. It’s going to be impossible to boil it down to one key reason, so I will throw out several … [Read more...]
What’s Your Group Strategy?
Whether you call them Sunday School, small groups, connect groups, life groups or discipleship groups, nearly every church I have ever heard of, has groups. The question is, what is their purpose and where are you trying to take people spiritually in these groups? If you haven’t pondered why you do groups, and what different types of groups you may need, January is a great time to tackle that exercise. My friend, David Francis, whose job is to know all about groups at Lifeway, gave us some great information last week I thought … [Read more...]
Defining Authenticity
I remember when I first realized that Hulk Hogan wasn’t really as tough as I thought he was. Suddenly, my world of back suplexes, DDT’s, and submission holds came crashing down around me as I realized that professional wrestling … is … not … real! Difficult? Yes. Physically demanding? Absolutely. But real? In the realest sense of the word? No. Fake. Here’s the truly funny thing—I wonder how many people look at the church in the same way they look at professional wrestling? The question with … [Read more...]
Connecting with College Students over Christmas
Don’t you wish all of life operated on semesters? The natural break would provide great opportunities to get your oil changed, drop off the dry-cleaning, connect with friends, sleep until 8, and eat more than a little pie. Whether your life benefits from a semester break or not, the time between semesters provides a wonderful opportunity to intentionally connect with the college students from your church who are home for Christmas. With Lifeway Research discovering that 70 percent of teens who attended a Protestant church … [Read more...]
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