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Tag Archives: Love

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They’ll Know We Are Christians By Our Skinny Jeans?

By | February 28, 2011

I may take some heat for this with some of my close ministry friends, but here goes. I have attended several Catholic and non denominational youth leader gatherings over the past couple of years and I am always amazed at “the uniform” that many youth leaders and musicians utilize. Skinny jeans, plaid shirts and hip glasses are the rage. A lot of people can pull off wearing them and look great. Unfortunately, there are many who appear really awkward and fall into the group of “trying too hard to fit

Liturgy Planning Guide

Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity – 06/19/2011

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I Hope You Get To Experience That Kind of Love

By | December 19, 2010

The only detail left to close the deal was if the car dealer could have the car ready for his son to pick it up in time for his senior prom. You see this dad wanted his son to know he loved and trusted him. This dad loved buying new cars and this one was special, a brand new Lincoln Continental…..

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Somebody Steals Baby Jesus Every Year

By | December 13, 2010

My wife’s aunt and uncle used to put up a large “over the top” light display for Christmas at their house. People would stop their cars and get out to look at and take pictures of the hundred’s of thousands of lights….

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C’Mon Man! – How Catholic Men Can Keep it Real!

By | November 2, 2010

There is a sports pre-game show that has a feature called “C’mon Man”. I love this feature as it shows various athletes, coaches, officials and team owners caught doing something either lame or foolish. The premise of the show is that the featured C’mon Man personality hasn’t kept it real and created a “what are you thinking?” moment. So I thought as Catholic men we could translate this into how we live our faith authentically.

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A Small Crack in the Window of Your Soul

By | October 8, 2010

We who work in youth ministry need to be aware of how the devil is trying to disrupt our ministry. We can’t fool ourselves into thinking that what we do in the dark, doesn’t affect what we do in the light. One small crack in the window of your soul is all the devil needs to start messing with you.

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The New Busy – Is it Impacting Your Ministry?

By | July 23, 2010

I have talked to a lot of youth leaders and pastors this summer and I have grown keenly aware of a trend or direction in ministry. At a youth conference last weekend after I had complimented his choice for youth minister, a pastor of a parish attending shared a concern that his youth minister was spending a lot of time with teens at camps and conferences this summer. The pastor went on to tell me how the youth minister needed to realize that he needed to be careful not to let things like email and administrative aspects fail or to let the perception of the other parish staff seem like he wasn’t working. It immediately made me aware that even though the youth minister was really doing a great job in relational ministry (what we pray every youth leader will be doing a great job with) he was still being primarily or at least equally evaluated for his administrative skills or worse yet how it appeared to other staffers? It made me think of how our system of ministry can fail or be at odds with the one of the primary ministry postures of spending time with teens, not to mention spending time in prayer. It made me wonder if there is a “New Busy” that is zapping all the energy out of well intentioned youth leaders?

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Are You a Jan Stock?

By | June 23, 2010

You know, you have met them, people who go above and beyond and make things happen. My family and I visited Bryce Canyon National Park yesterday and we met a park ranger who really was impressive and stuck out – Jan Stock! She was amazing, her enthusiasm, dedication and communication skills were astounding. Here is 5 things that Jan Stock does very well! See how well you are doing in these 5 areas in regard to youth ministry: 1.) Connecting with People – Before she started her presentation on

Life Teen Retreat

In Reverse Retreat

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“The prayer to Our Father is inserted into the mysterious mission of the Son and of the Spirit.” – Catechism of the Catholic Church 2766 A quick overview This retreat focuses on the Lord’s Prayer. The sessions, if done in order, will actually unpack the Our Father, but in reverse. We begin by focusing on the final petitions of personal temptation and deliverance and work our way back through the prayer until we arrive as one united body beckoning “Our Father.” Many of the ideas

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Stuff – In the Best (Catholic) Sense of the Word!

By | May 3, 2010

Let’s face it – teens like stuff! Teens lives are filled with “Stuff” – but is it the best stuff or stuff that merely clutters an already busy life? Teens want the fullness of our faith and one of the treasures the Catholic faith offers are rich traditions and symbols. Make sure that you fill your youth rooms and retreat centers with Catholic items. Items like rosaries, prayer cards and Saint Medals all reinforce the faith for young people. If you can, try to incorporate giving teens religious items when you can. It’s graduation and Confirmation time for many of us so here are some keys to gifts that can transform!