Friday Review (1/21/22)
Each week we compile a list of helpful articles from other sites, in a variety of categories, for youth workers to read, reflect on, and/or discuss with parents and volunteers. If you have any articles you’d like to suggest, we’d love for you to share those in the Youth Pastor Theologian Facebook group. That’s a great way to bring them to our attention and to discuss them with like-minded youth workers! (Inclusion in this list does not imply complete agreement with the publishing source, but we have found these articles to be beneficial.)
Youth Ministry
It’s the Jimmys and the Sues, Not the Ones and the Twos by Steve Eatmon (Rooted)
But what if we could reframe the discussion around numbers? What if instead of asking, “how many students came?” we asked, “who came?” Instead of looking at the ones and the twos, we look at the Jimmys and the Sues.
Biblical/Theological Studies
Gender Questions Should Send Us to Scripture by Thomas Schreiner (Christianity Today)
There are social and cultural forces operating on both sides. No one is exempt, and no one inhabits a neutral space when it comes to gender dynamics… Every argument for every perspective should send us back to the biblical witness.
Dr. Martin Luther King and the Mud in Our Eyes by Ben Sciacca (Rooted)
As we, like the blind man, “come back seeing,” we can pursue action from a humbled and open-hearted posture that is far more concerned with winning a brother than it is with merely winning an argument.
Cultural Reflection/Contextualization
Is It Ethical to Transplant a Pig Heart into a Human? by Joe Carter (The Gospel Coalition)
While we need to continually be cautious about abusing our roles as stewards of the animal kingdom and avoid crossing obvious interspecies barriers, we should also give thanks to God for the lives that may be saved by such transplants.
Gen Z, Creators, and Our Mental Health Tipping Point by Rex Woodbury (Digital Native)
Gen Zs have grown up in a world of constant scrutiny, comparing the messiness of their own lives to other people’s airbrushed selfies and curated highlight reels. This takes a toll.
Everything Is Downstream of Content by Chris Martin (Terms of Service)
What does it mean for life to be “downstream of content”? It looks like online content happening first and offline reactions/commentary happening second.
Pastoral Ministry
Who in the World Am I Preaching To? by Andrew Roycroft (Thinking Pastorally)
Answering the “who in the world am I preaching to?” question is of central importance to the task of ministering God’s word. It delivers us from formalism, foolishness pride, and pretended expertise. It levels us back into the life of the local church, into the experiences of those in common covenant with gathering of God’s people in our area, and challenges us to preach in such a way that we love our neighbour and speak with the goal of gaining hearts through the gateway of the mind.
The Other Side of the Race Debate: Four Ways to Disagree Christianly by Scott Hubbard (Desiring God)
With a topic as fraught as race in the American church, almost everyone has an “other side,” a group whose thoughts and sentiments feel not only troublesome but threatening — and therefore a group we struggle to hear, much less learn from… Healing such dysfunctional engagement would not heal all our divisions, not by a long shot. But it may soften our various prejudices, nurture deeper understanding, and (on the micro scale if not the macro) lead us toward a less fragile unity.
Family/Parents
Three Overlooked Aspects of Family Discipleship by Mike McGarry (Rooted)
These three areas (failure, time, and money) are probably on parents’ radars, but it can be easy to treat them as life lessons rather than as discipleship opportunities. As you have these conversations with your teenager, first do your own reflection on how you view failure, time, and money as opportunities to grow in the grace of Jesus Christ. When you can humbly confess your own struggles in these areas then you’ll be better equipped to have these conversations with your teenagers, and possibly recalibrate some family priorities for the coming year.
When a Pastor’s Child Strays by David Gough (9Marks)
Ministry is hard enough when things are going well. But it becomes doubly difficult when the path chosen by our prodigals withdraws from the Lord and weighs heavily upon us.
From YPT this week
Teaching Students About Natural and Special Revelation by Alex Tufano
Students live in a world where they are encouraged to view multiple paths to truth as equally valid. How can youth workers help students grow in confidence in the special revelation of Jesus Christ while affirming God’s truth that has been revealed more generally?
Essentials of a Biblical Youth Ministry by Mike McGarry
As churches continue to prayerfully discern how to pass the faith from generation to generation, it’s important to ensure we are building on a biblical foundation.