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If You Want to Learn to Do Youth Ministry…

By | September 8, 2010

I know of no more important ministry at a parish than youth ministry. Current statistics reveal that teens that are not involved in their parish have over a 90% chance on not being a practicing Catholic later in life. Youth ministry plays a critical role for our Church as a main way to have teens involved at a parish. So if you feel a pull or calling toward youth ministry here are some things to consider.

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The 3 Keys – What a Pastor Should Look for When Hiring a Youth Minister

By | September 7, 2010

At Life Teen we are so blessed to have so many holy men serving parishes as priests. I often get the questions from pastors about hiring the right youth minister. For example – could I recommend anyone for them to hire as a youth minister for the parish? I also frequently get asked what to look for in a new youth minister. So here are the 3 things that I tell them to look and listen (key into) for when considering a candidate for youth minister: I call them “The 3 Keys”

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Icebreakers 101

By | September 6, 2010

If you don’t know the wonders of using icebreakers in Edge and Life Nights, then let me be the first to tell you! Icebreakers are games intended to relieve mutual shyness or ease tension or formality. In youth ministry, icebreakers are typically used to break open a night’s activities. Icebreakers can be very simple, such as riddle games, requiring no extra materials. They can also be complex, requiring instruction and materials in order to complete the given task.

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Step 1 – Pray. Step 2 – Repeat.

By | September 1, 2010

The ministry that I coordinate, The REAP Team, has just begun its 22nd year of presenting retreats. Our longevity can be attributed to the fact that we haven’t given up on teenagers, and any success we might have in reaching teens for Christ can be attributed only to God’s grace. I am absolutely convinced, though, that one big reason that God’s grace flows so freely through our efforts to His kids is that we are rooted in prayer.

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Can You Really Watch Your Language?

By | August 30, 2010

Is it just me, or is profanity becoming more and more acceptable in modern culture? I’ve had a few recent conversations with middle and high school youth about why profanity is not even seen as something bad! They told me that cursing isn’t a big deal because it pales in comparison to more destructive habits, such as drug addiction or alcoholism. The continued use of profanity can, in reality, lead to other types of destructive behavior.

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Transforming Youth Culture, Part IV of IV

By | August 27, 2010

Here are 7 points to focus on if you wish to transform Youth Culture and build the Kingdom of God. Be Holy. When asked what the greatest problem in the Church is, Pope John Paul II responded, “We don’t have enough saints.” Teenagers are starving for truth, but they live in a false reality and they do not know what truth looks like. They need people to witness to holiness. If you become holy, the youth will naturally follow you because you will stand above the lies of their world. Someone once asked, “Why is it that spending ten minutes with Mother Teresa can change someone’s life more than spending ten years with me?” We need to be holy if we want to transform youth culture. Youth ministers need personal prayer time, sacramental grace, spiritual direction and community more than teenagers need it. We need to make sure that we are pursuing holiness if we wish to make teenagers pursue holiness.

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Four Tips for Remembering Teens’ Names

By | August 23, 2010

God calls us by name. Our names, whatever the reason our parents chose, are important. Knowing our teens and calling them by name is an important part of youth ministry.

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Give It Away Now: Thirst for Change

By | August 20, 2010

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.

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Principles of Youth Culture, Part III of IV

By | August 20, 2010

If you have been following along with my previous blogs, I have discussed why it is important to study youth culture and what we can learn from the history and development of youth culture. In studying the current youth culture that we live in, here are 10 principles that can be observed: Youth are driven [...]

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The Bible: God’s Original Text Message

By | August 19, 2010

Many adults today tell me that the “average teenager” couldn’t care less about the Bible. Extensive firsthand experience, however, demands that I humbly reply, “LOL” (“laugh out loud” in text-happy vernacular). I led my first teen Bible study almost 20 years ago and, while teen culture has dramatically changed, their desires have not. Teens want truth, and the Catholic Church has it.