The truth is that while my wife sits beside me and cheers for Rocky along with me, as a man I take something different from his story. It’s in Rocky’s internal strength, his refusal to stay down, his unyielding will and resilience to keep moving forward – against all odds and against far superior opponents – that I relate most to him not only as a man, but as a Christian, as a husband and father.
By now, anyone who has, or who works closely with teens has undoubtedly heard about the “Why I hate religion but love Jesus” video that has gone viral on YouTube. Forgive me for not linking to it… my Mom taught me to keep gasoline away from matches (after my brothers and I almost launched our riding mower into outer space in 1982). Incidentally, my mother also taught me not to use the word “hate,” but that’s a different story for another day.
What are your hopes for youth ministry?
I want to help change the perspective of teenagers. When teenagers get involved in their faith in a youth group or when they come to an event like this, they think that they’re seeking God. They think they’re going out of their way for God, but very seldom do they pause to realize that God is already at work. God is seeking them. What God desires from them is that encounter, that sacramental encounter, which really is rooted in intimacy.
I’m not the smartest guy on the block. God, in His mercy, is constantly reminding me of how little I know. He does this through marriage, parenthood, ministry, and, well, just about every facet of my life. I do know movies, however – at least I thought I did. So imagine my surprise several years back when I plopped down on our sofa for our “Family Movie Night” and ten minutes into the Disney classic Bambi I come to find out that Bambi is male.
Their shoulders slump from fatigue. Their eyes are bloodshot. Their stoles are a beautiful, albeit disgusting, blend of countless young souls’ tears and snot. It’s a not-too-uncommon sight in youth ministry, actually: priests sitting in persona Christi capitas, offering mercy and absolution to an endless line of adolescent sinners ardently desiring sainthood. The scene repeats [...]
My already bad day had immediately gotten worse. It was just “one of those weeks” in ministry where everything I did was wrong in someone’s eyes; I had a stack of annoyed emails to prove it. As if that weren’t enough, it was also the week that everything in our house broke almost simultaneously: dishwasher, garage door…even the coffee maker. Forget Murphy’s Law, this was straight up lunacy with a heavy side of spiritual attack.
I’ve always liked the phrase “contrary to popular belief”. It gets your attention. It challenges your knowledge. What follows it can leave you feeling sheepish at your own ignorance or quite edified in your own intelligence. Traveling the globe doing ministry these past 15+ years, I’ve noticed a lot of – we’ll call them “trends” – in conversations with youth ministers. While some of what follows is bound to strike a chord (and probably a nerve) with some of you reading it, remember our primary goal: holiness. If our desire is to grow in holiness and improve the quality of the ministries we offer, we must constantly evaluate where we need to die to ourselves, our short-sightedness and our pride.