As we live in a world with daily, unlimited access to clean water, it is hard for us to imagine what it is really like to walk miles to the only water source available and then to have that source be contaminated. But our Life Teen family has done more than just imagine, we have been moved to respond to the needs of our brothers and sisters. The living water of Christ is moving through us!

I have been deeply moved as email after email has arrived over the last week. Give It Away Now: Thirst for Change has grown beyond our expectations, beyond our hopes and dreams. God is moving and together we are awed at what he has done!

As I write this, the Life Teen family has raised over $63,000. Our goal was $50,000, enough to build 4 wells at $12,500 a piece. We thought 4 wells was ambitious. We are now at 5 wells with no signs of slowing down!

As daily updates of totals are being emailed between Life Teen, W.A.T.E.R. and Catholic Relief Services, know there is much rejoicing and thanking God for all of you and all you have contributed. For every teen that dug through their car, purse and pockets for change: thank you. For every parent, teacher and parishioner who contributed and supported the work of the teens: God bless you. For every youth minister and Core Member who organized and implemented the Give It Away Night: thank you for your continual gift of serving teens.

For the parishes that have sent in their photos and totals – be sure to check out www.lifeteen.com to see your parish’s photo! If you haven’t yet, please send them to giveitawaynow@lifeteen.com. In addition, please share your stories – how did you collect change? How did this effect your teens and your parish?

Keep checking back to l see how many wells we end up building! We’ve only just begun!

In September 2008, Life Teen hosted the first global Life Night. As one family we donated more than 450,000 pounds of clothing to charity. In September 2009, we moved from clothing to food and were able to donate more than 200,000 food items to local food pantries and soup kitchens. This year we are at it again. This time we are joining together to “give drink to the thirsty” (another corporal work of mercy). We are asking all our Life Teen parishes to do the same Life Night and Edge Night on the same night – September 26, 2010. This time we are collecting change (and bills) to help bring clean drinking water to villages in Africa.

Give It Away Now – Thirst for Change Poster

This year, we are asking parishes to host a “change drive.” The money collected will be donated to W.A.T.E.R., an organization that works closely with Catholic Relief Services to build and maintain water wells in Africa. As in years past, this type of service project will take a lot of advance planning and advertisement. At least one month before the Life Night, let the teens and the entire parish know about the change drive. Use Facebook, bulletin announcements, emails and phone calls to get the word out. Encourage the teens and their families to collect and save all their extra change. Challenge the teens to make a bigger donation by setting aside some of their allowance and/or paycheck to donate to this cause. At each Life Night leading up to this night, remind the teens about the change drive. If possible, make an announcement (and pass out flyers) at each of the Sunday Masses the week before the change drive. Encourage the entire parish to get involved. Set a parish goal of a certain amount and see if the parish can surpass the goal!

Drag and Gary “Give It Away Now” from Life Teen on Vimeo.

In the coming weeks, we will have more information for you to use in your Life Night or Edge Night. We pray that this night will be a blessing to your parish family and to our brothers and sisters who suffer in Africa.

Life Night *Free Download*

Give It Away Now – Thirst for Change

Edge Night *Free Download*

Give It Away Now – Thirst for Change

The memories surrounding that Life Night are very vivid. I remember the group of freshman boys snickering because kneeling, praying and being quiet made them uncomfortable. I remember giving looks to kids who were trying to sneak a few text messages in when they though no one was looking. I remember the Core Team trying really hard to make this an awesome prayer experience but being distracted by the clueless looks on most of the kids faces. Most of all, I remember feeling defeated because we were not able to prepare our teens to encounter the living God in Adoration.

Following the Life Night, I was inundated with questions about the use of incense, the lighted candles, the “outfit” the priest was wearing and more. I even had a parent call and ask if I had the kids worshiping idols at Life Night. I remember searching online and through the resources I had in my office for a clear guide to Adoration – one that explained Adoration in plain language and called the reader to a powerful experience of Christ in the Eucharist. Needless to say, I drew a blank on that search.

When I found out we were putting together a teen guide to Adoration, I was elated. And when I read the book, I was prayerfully thankful – it was exactly what I wished I had that night several years ago. We proudly announce the release of Come Adore: A Teen Guide to Adoration. It is the same size as Come Clean (our guide to Reconciliation) with the same straightforward explanations and teen-friendly language.

Whether or not you and your Core Team are “old hats” when it comes to Eucharistic Adoration, not all your teens are. This guide can be used in Life Nights, during conferences and retreats, or simply in conversations with teens. Use it to enhance your own prayer experience. Share it with the parents of teenagers. Use it in sacramental preparation. Share it with your Core Team and parish staff.
While I can’t guarantee that Come Adore will keep a group of freshman boys from squirming during their first Adoration experience, but then again, it just might. It is God who transforms hearts in Adoration; Come Adore simply sets the stage for teens (and adults) to receive His abundant grace.

Order your copy (or several copies – bulk pricing available) today!

Our brothers and sisters in Haiti are hurting, the teens in our own parishes are questioning. While we might not know how to restore what was lost in this disaster or even how to answer all the questions, we do know that we are called to prayer and to action.

We at Life Teen have created a Life Night for you and your teens to help respond to this tragedy in love, hope and prayer. We pray that this resource will help you empower your teens to live out our Gospel call and respond with prayer and action to our brothers and sisters in Christ.

In solidarity and hope,
Your brothers and sisters at Life Teen

UNSHAKEABLE FAITH: Haiti Earthquake Response Life Night

Download and use in your ministry. Share with your friends in ministry.

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Goal of the Life Night

The goal of this Life Night is to discuss the recent events in Haiti and help teens understand why it is important that we, as a faith community, respond. The night will help the group process the event, the needs of the community in Haiti and plan a group response.

About this night

This Life Night was written to provide youth ministry programs a means to discuss the situation in Haiti after the January 12, 2010 earthquake and to assist teens in responding to the situation. The night starts with a sense of world turned upside down, literally. Images from the Haiti – prior to the earthquake and afterwards can be displayed. In the teaching, teens will learn why our faith calls us to respond and how that response is an outpouring of Christ’s love for others. There is time in the night for small groups to discuss the situation in Haiti and offer ideas and plan for how they can respond. The night closes with a prayer service for all those affected by the earthquake.

While we know that this should be a time of joyful anticipation for the celebration of the birth of our Lord, the reality is this countdown inspires just as much trepidation as jubilation. And for those of us in ministry (whether that ministry happens in a youth room, classroom, or living room), there is another factor to add into the mix: how to maintain consistency and depth in your programming without burning out the teens or the adults.

Life Teen has just released a brand new resource that can help! In Focus: A Movie Guide for Catholics is a valuable resource to help bring Christ and the Truth of His Church into popular culture. This book breaks open 25 popular movies with complete synopsis, Scripture and Catechism references, discussion questions, and activity suggestions. You can watch the entire movie or just a scene, each setting the stage for engaging and thought-provoking conversations. In every movie, there are opportunities for teens to look at culture and media through a Catholic lens.

This resource provides a perfect programming option for the times of the year when extra time and resources are scarce. Below is are just some suggestions on how to utilize In Focus in leading teens closer to Christ:

1. Life Nights during Christmas Break. Instead of just canceling Life Nights during Christmas break, have a low-key gathering for your teens. Pick a movie (I recommend It’s a Wonderful Life), break out the popcorn, and see where the Spirit leads. This will keep the consistency of gathering on Sunday nights as well as help the teens keep Christ the center of Christmas.
2. Weekly Gathering. Choose 4-5 movies (maybe some action-adventure films like Indiana Jones, Spiderman, or Pirates of the Caribbean) and create a month-long movie series. Choose a weeknight and encourage the teens to bring their friends. This a great opportunity for the youth minister to delegate the “mini-series” to a Core Member.
3. Teen Take-Over Night. Wondering how to keep Juniors and Seniors involved in the ministry? Give them the chance to take ownership! A great way to do this is to allow them to plan and execute a “teen-takeover” Life Night. Let them choose the movie and how they want to break it open during the night.
4. Family Movie Night. This resource isn’t just for youth ministers! This can also be a great way for families to come together. Choose a movie the whole family can enjoy (i.e. The Wizard of Oz or The Princess Bride) and discuss the themes and lessons found there.
5. Classroom Movie Discussion. Each movie guide comes with a list of key themes. Clips from these movies can be a catalyst for discussion and teaching in a classroom setting. For example, teaching on the history of Catholic missionaries in the Church? Show a clip from The Mission and use the discussion questions to bring the topic to life.

Those are just a few ways this new resource can be used. We pray that this will help you in your mission to evangelize and form young Catholics. We at Life Teen remain committed serving you with quality, Catholic resources – but more importantly, we are committed to praying for you as part of the Life Teen family.

May this Advent and Christmas season be filled with abundant blessings!

~ Purchase In Focus from our online store

~ Want to see a sample of In Focus? Check out the Free Resource section for a the movie guide on The Incredibles

If you are one of the 21,000 people expected at this year’s National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC), stop by the Life Teen booth (#614-619) in the exhibit hall and say hi! We’d love to chat with you, hear how your ministry is going and pray with you. Come by and see all the goodies our store has for you as well!

Randy Raus, Mark Hart and Matt Smith will all be giving concurrent sessions at the conference so make sure you have those in your schedule. Plus, there’s Eucharistic Adoration and XLT with worship led by Matt Maher and the band.

We’ll be keeping the conference and everyone attending in our prayers. And do come by and say hello, we love having the chance to see you!

204,499 non-perishable food items!

166 parishes reporting in, those items were donated to over 50 St. Vincent de Paul Chapters and over 100 individual organizations!

Top 5 Parishes:

1. St. Charles, Lima OH–14,978 items
2. St. Frances of Assisi, Traverse City, MI–9,279 items
3. St. Vincent de Paul, Rogers, AR—6,658 items
4. St. Anne, Youngsville LA–6,300 items
5. St. Joseph, Cottleville, MO–6,000 items

In addition to food items, some parishes collected cash and clothing. Over $2,000 was donated to food pantries for use in buying grocery store gift cards plus over 500 lbs of clothing were given to organizations specifically needing teen clothing.

As a family, this night allowed us to truly make an immediate difference in the lives of so many people of all ages. Most parishes found their local food pantries to be almost completely bare. Many teens were so inspired that they are continually collecting food each week or month.
Here are a few of the stories we’ve heard from parishes:

• Teens in Henderson, NV brought food and clothing to homeless teens living in a tunnel in downtown Las Vegas.
• Teens from two parishes in Belding, MI collected food only by going door to door during Life Night. They collected 784 cans of food in 45 minutes, enough for five days of the local food pantry’s needs.
• Teens from St. John Newmann in Strongsville, OH organized a movie night to raise money to fund their food drive so they could buy cans and be the parish with the highest amount collected. However, once they learned that the local food pantry really needed cash or grocery gift cards to for perishable items, the teens scraped the idea of becoming the top collector. Instead they raised $246 in donations, along with 1505 cans for the food bank.
• Teens at St. Francis of Assisi parish in Traverse City, MI challenged their parish to donate enough food to fill a school bus. The parish responded and filled that bus one and a half times!
• Teens at Mary, Queen of Peace in Sammamish, WA collected 300 jars of baby food in their collection of 1,501 items. Baby food was much needed at their local food bank.

What great things we can do together! Thank you to everyone who took part in our global effort to feed the hungry. What a blessing and comfort your efforts are to so many. Check out Lifeteen.com for group pictures and maps of all the participating parishes.

See you again next year for the next installment of Give it Away Now.
“Amen, I say to you. Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” Matthew 25: 40

Armed with my cup of coffee, laptop and Bible, I’d set myself up in a visible location and work while I watched parent after parent come in on their way to work, after workouts, on their way to volunteer somewhere or to meet up with a friend. A couple of inviting smiles and hellos later, the extra chair at my table became a revolving seat for parents who started a conversation with “Oh since you are here, I was going to call (email, stop by, etc) but now I’ll just ask instead.” Questions would range from the details of an event or project (do they need a sleeping bag? Did I get all the forms filled out?), to the deeper questions about our faith, and then moved into deeper discussions about the challenges of raising teens, especially Catholic teens in today’s world.

Parents are the primary catechists for their children. As a church, we honor that role and respect it. We supplement and encourage their work by offering religious education classes, family activities, sacramental preparation and community activities. In youth ministry, we support parents by communicating topics discussed at Life Nights, inviting them to pray and support the ministry and, if possible, offering parent nights or a parent ministry. Comprehensive youth ministry MUST support parents in their role as primary catechists. It is not an option.

As a youth minister, your role is not just to lead teens closer to Christ, but to support whole families on their faith journey as well. Whether it’s listening to a parent’s concerns about activities or answering their own questions about the faith, you minister to adults as well as teens. Parents need our support and encouragement to be examples of faith for their children. From the parent who wants to attend every event to the parent who hasn’t been to church in years to the parent who tirelessly supports your ministry, all parents need our loving support and encouragement as they raise their teens. Listen to them, answer their questions, communicate what is happening in your programs, provide them information and resources and pray for them and with them.

Our relational ministry with teens should extend to the parents of the young people as well. We need to communicate with parents often, challenging and affirming them in their role.
Last June we introduced Parent Life, a ministry for the parents of middle school youth and high school teens. In a desire to support and encourage parents, we are proud to introduce a brand new book specifically for Catholic parents. Rocking the Cradle Catholic by Mary Moore give real world insights and ideas for raising little saints in a lukewarm culture. This book would serve as a fantastic book study for Parent Life groups or a gift for the parent volunteers in your program.

Total # of parishes reported: 78
Total # of food items: 101,941

Top 3 Parishes:

1. St. Charles, Lima OH–14,978

2. St. Anne, Youngsville LA–6,300
3. St. Joseph, Cottleville, MO–6,000

As a Life Teen family, we are accomplishing great things together. Most parishes collected under 500 canned food items, but those 500 or so items go directly into communities to help those who really need it. With just the parishes who have reported in, together we have put food on the shelves of over 45 different ministries and over 20 St. Vincent de Paul chapters. Many of those ministries were in such desperate need that their pantries were literally bare. Like the fishes and the loaves, God provides – and He uses us to do so! Not only did we fill shelves with food, but many parishes also collected clothing and monetary donations for these organizations as well. What a blessing!

If you haven’t sent in your totals yet, please do so by emailing giveitawaynow@lifeteen.com. We want to know your parish name, city, state, how many items you collected and where the items were donated to.

Life Teen’s Basic & Edge Conference, taking place Oct 18-21, 2009 at St. Mary’s in Dedham, MA, is the place to be this fall. Are you in need of a refresher? Are you new to youth ministry or new to the Life Teen model of youth ministry? Did you just open your Life Support box but were unsure how to use the materials? Do you work with middle school youth? If you responded yes or maybe to any one of those questions you need to register today!

Our training conferences are unique. They are experiential. They are relevant to your ministry and up to date on current youth culture. They are prayerful. You have the chance to speak directly with Life Teen staff and other youth ministry leaders. You’ll go home with practical tools, ideas and resources to implement immediately.

What are you waiting for?

Learn more and register for the 2009 Life Teen Basic and Edge Training conference.