by Mark Taylor Before some people see the word "flexible" and immediately think "relative" or "ambiguous," let me quickly define what I mean by a rigid faith and a flexible faith. A rigid faith is a stubborn, eyes-closed, arrogant, unwilling ...
Theological Foundations for Youth Ministry is one of our core Master of Arts in Youth Ministry courses. Just one day in Theological Foundations will dismiss the idea that youth ministry is simply about fun, games, and devotionals. This course introduces ...
by Andrew Zirschky As a junior political science and philosophy major at a Christian college on the West Coast, Laura looked to be the paragon of devoted and vibrant faith: she prayed and read her Bible daily, spent her weekends ...
Editor's Note: This article stems from the author's final paper in Theological Foundations for Youth Ministry, a graduate course offered through the Center for Youth Ministry Training and Memphis Theological Seminary, taught by Dr. Andrew Zirschky. by Andrew Mochrie I ...
Editor's Note: This article stems from the author's final paper in Theological Foundations for Youth Ministry, a graduate course offered through the Center for Youth Ministry Training and Memphis Theological Seminary, taught by Dr. Andrew Zirschky. by Neal Wilkinson “God ...
by Andrew Zirschky The last thing anyone needs is another article on leadership. We’re a culture obsessed with the topic as any trip to the local bookstore will reveal. Faced with a declining Christian culture, church leaders in particular have ...
by Carlisle Jones What does it mean for the church to really care about or DO youth ministry? How important is it for the whole church to be involved in the youth ministry? During the fall semester of 2013, second ...
by Erin Hicks I want to share two things that led to me write this article: On Twitter recently, I noticed that Harriet Tubman was trending. After clicking on the trend to read some of the tweets, I saw that ...
by Andrew Mochrie I entered into youth ministry when I was between eighth and ninth grade. I stumbled my way awkwardly into a youth group because of an invitation to a summer camp from a friend. I have followed Jesus ...
During the 2000s, youth ministry became increasingly enamored with contemplative practices. Many ministries traded disco balls, comfy couches, and messy games for candles, centering prayer, and a little lectio divina. Now, roughly a decade into this renaissance in spiritual practices, ...
What if the real question in communicating the gospel isn’t how it’s communicated, but in fact is the very gospel that we’ve communicated? To take a liberation approach to communicating the gospel to youth is to take seriously the gospel ...
When it comes to youth ministry and adolescent faith, “We’re doing a better job of getting them to show up than helping them to grow up,” says Duffy Robbins.[1] Determining how to best help youth develop in faith is the ...
“A life is no more than a biological phenomenon as long as it is not interpreted,” said French philosopher Paul Ricoeur.[1] Indeed, it’s an inescapable human habit to narrate the events and experiences of our lives by giving them meaning. ...
Where does youth ministry happen? If you jot down a list of three answers to that question, chances are some variant of “youth room” is in the mix. Your terminology might be cooler or more relevant, but the odds are ...
The first approach we’ll consider is the instructional approach, a paradigm familiar to most youth workers because it’s the dominant approach of published curriculum. The goal of the instructional approach is to help students understand scripture so that they can ...
Editor's Note: This is an overview of our "youth ministry course in a nutshell" series, Communicating the Gospel to Youth, taught by Rev. Andrew Zirschky as part of CYMT's Master of Arts in Youth Ministry degree program through Memphis Theological ...
by Gary Wake If someone’s driving and they have no idea where they are, it’s helpful for them to stop and figure out where they went off track, so that they don’t move further from their intended destination. There are ...
Andrew Root's A Theological Journey through Youth Ministry book series is one of the most exciting things to come off a youth ministry press in years. Thank you to Youth Specialties for turning an off-handed conversation into vibrant, essential theological conversation ...
by Courtney Blacksten Editor's Note: When Courtney Blacksten and her husband Brandon were in their first year of marriage, they were excited to begin to create their own holiday traditions as a new family. They chose to focus on celebrating ...
Editor's Note: This is the second in a two-part series. Click here to read Part 1. These approaches to parental involvement were discussed and developed at CYMT's Preparing Parents for Spiritual Leadership Summit in May 2012. by Andrew Zirschky Involving ...
