Teen 2.0 by Robert Epstein if a must-read for any parent or youthworker concerned about discipling young people. This book explores why American teenagers act the way they do, the cultural phenomenon of adolescence, and how much trouble the youth of America are in. Although a bit long (over 400 pages, including appendices), Teen 2.0 is very accessible and essential reading material for anyone who cares about the development of teenagers. I highly recommend it, but be warned: it will rock your world. Here’s a brief synopsis: Arguing that adolescence is an unnecessary period of life that...

Interesting study on how short term mission trips make an impact on at-risk youth:   The Barna Group, a research organization that focuses on “the intersection of faith and culture,” recently released a study looking at the impact of short term missions and found what Adventures in Missions has seen in its own participants: short term mission trips change lives.    …According to the Barna study, 85 percent of the youth that were surveyed felt more loved by God and more than 80 percent said they learned new things about God and Jesus. Read more: The Impact...

Here are some interesting reasons for why youth don’t share their faith in Christ, compliments of Brian Ford: They think the youth leadership team will do it for them – If all we do is preach Matthew 28:19-20, but don’t push them to take action they will always expect us to do it for them. They are afraid of rejection – It’s that point when you begin to share your faith in Christ and the person cuts you off before you even have a chance to get into the meat of the gospel story.  They lack the confidence – All of us at some point has and will experience...

A very interesting article in RELEVANT Magazine from last fall asks the provocative question: “Is missions about words or deeds?“ Here is an excerpt: Evangelical youth now hold the term “missionary at arm’s length, afraid of the colonialist connotations of the word. They prefer being involved in “social justice” under the auspices of a more generalized Christian sense of charity rather than operating under anything resembling (groan) “soul winning.” Certainly, this raises the ageless question of whether short-term missions are still effective...

Here is my version of the 10 Commandments for Short-Term Mission Trips (I originally got the idea for this after reading a similar list of commandments for short-term missions on Trevin Wax’s blog). My 10 Commandments for Short-Term Mission Trips1. Remember that the primary function of a short-term mission trip is to partner with God in what he’s doing in a given part of the world.2. Always seek to serve those with whom you are partnering — whatever that may mean.3. Lay down your expectations and be ready for whatever the Spirit wants to do.4. Be flexible.5....

What’s your youth ministry look like right now? Are you slowing down (even ever so slightly) and accessing how your summer and fall programs went? What are some of the things you’re looking to do in 2011 to build disciples? In our ministry, we’re about to kickoff fundraising activities for a small team of youth and adults that will be heading down to Haiti in July (you know, because it’s so nice in the Caribbean that time of year). And we just finished our fall retreat, so the team is focused on continuing to build the relationships with our younger/new students...