Next Wednesday will mark the start of a new, seven-week teaching series in our high school ministry. We’ve created it in house, and I’m very excited.
The series is called “Live Like a Monk” and it asks the question “What would it look like if you applied monastic values to the lives of ordinary high school students?” The series was birthed out of my own preoccupation with the monastic life and my own questions about the role of contemplative practices in my life.
We’re going to use the series as a springboard to talk about classical spiritual disciplines and church history (specifically pre-Luther: church fathers, desert fathers, well-known saints), two topics that are almost never addressed in our church or our tradition. The whole thing represents two or so years of thought for me, and, needless to say, it means a lot to me.
That being said, there’s a hole in the idea. I noticed early on, and a good friend pointed it out to me today. The title is totally gender exclusive.
Early on considered calling the series “Live Like a Monk (or a nun!)”, but it just seemed silly. Beyond that, it felt completely marginalizing, let it was telling girls that they were both parenthetical and kind of a punch-line.
The whole thing has me a little shaken up. I don’t think a title change will do much good, but I do think that some of these ideas should be addressed in the content of the series, perhaps by including stories from great female contemplatives of the past.
Any thoughts? Do you think gender exclusion is an issue in this case? What would you do to fix the problem?
Categories: Youth Ministry
Tagged: gender, ym, Youth Ministry
So it’s been awhile since I’ve posted (the WordPress back-end has a totally new UI since I last logged on), but I’m returning to you with something quality: a word from the Lord Himself.
If you’re like me, you’re tired. And I don’t mean the kind of tired that can be fixed with a night of sleep; I mean the kind of deep tired that sinks into your bones.
I’ve been thinking about this a lot recently and (seriously) God spoke these words to me: “Naps Are a Sacrament”.
Yes, God wants you to work hard and accomplish things. He wants you to be successful and determined. But there’s a pretty good chance that, right now, he just wants you to lay down and get some sleep.
Thus sayeth the Lord.
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: margins, naps, rest, sabbath, sacrament, slow
- Artful Prayers - Excellent starting point for people who would like to take a fresh approach to prayer with their teens. I may use some of these with the students at my church.
- Disarming the Boomers - “Let’s be honest. The distance between the Boomers and Busters isn’t just a generation gap—it’s a generation gorge.” How many more ways can I say that I love Out of Ur? Just start reading it. Seriously.
- Does it Always Have to Be a Sermon? - There must be something in the air…I’ve been working on article dealing with the same topic. (By the way, the answer is “no.”)
- NY Times on Facebook - I’ve been telling you cats this was a big deal. Am I the only one who uses Facebook as the primary way to get in touch with their students? I would wager I’m not.
Categories: Youth Ministry · links
This article also appears here on Youth Ministry Exchange.
Last time we talked about what the Ignatian Examen was and how to apply it in our own lives. This time we’re going to talk about getting your students involved.
First, a question: Why teach your students about the Examen? There are lots of reasons! It is a valuable tool for self-assessment, which is a critical skill for developing spiritual independence. It draws students towards silence and solitude, two disciplines that are nearly non-existent in their worlds. For me, the biggest reason is that the exercise fosters spiritual depth. We’ve found that our students, more than anything, yearn for spiritual depth and authentic experience. If your students are anything like mine, this should be a feast for them.
How do you introduce the Examen to your students?
- Teach them about it. Make the Examen the focus of a lesson. You can give historical background, scriptural support and a detailed explanation of how its mechanics work. After you’ve taught, walk them through the exercise. You may consider giving them a cheat sheet with instructions to take home.
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Sneak it in. While most of the students in our ministry have participated in the Examen, almost none of them know it. I recently walked them step-by-step through the exercise without ever using the words “Ignatian Examen” or “prayer exercise”. I just explained what we were going to do and then did it. Sometimes the details can get in the way of the simplicity of actually engaging in the prayer
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Be creative. The Examen is much more flexible than it may appear at first glance. As long as you stick to the three main guidelines (invite God, review and thank God) you can apply the Examen almost anywhere. For example, try using the examen as a conversational tool when your hanging out with a student. (If you like this kind of stuff, be sure to check out the next part of this series, where I explore some more creative applications of the Examen).
The point is that the only way to learn about the Examen is by actually doing it. Like all spiritual exercises, the Examen is meant to be participated in, so I find it best just to get started.
Make sure that you give them a well-guided experience, especially if it is their first time. I recommend starting the exercise by giving students a brief summary of what they’ll be doing in the exercise. The steps from the first part of this series may be a good starting point. Once you’ve clearly articulated the whole exercise, start talking through it step-by-step, giving them plenty of time and space to pray and reflect. Afterwards, be sure to give them opportunities to further reflect on what they’ve learned. I usually encourage them to write down their thoughts, or share them with an adult volunteer.
A few things to keep in mind:
- You can’t lead them somewhere you haven’t gone - I cannot overemphasize this point. If you haven’t dug deep into the Examen yourself, don’t try to teach others about it. A bad first experience with the Examen could turn your students off to it forever.
- Take your time - This kind of exercise demands patience. It should move slightly slower than which your students feel comfortable. That way you can be sure that you aren’t moving on before your students are ready. It also teaches patience to students who may want to rush through the exercise.
- Don’t predict their response - Don’t assume that your students will react negatively (or positively) to the exercise. Present it to them and let them decide for themselves. If you decide your students are going to think its boring, chances are you’ll be right. I’ve found that if you give your students the benefit of the doubt, they will often impress you.
- Give permission to fail - It is not uncommon for students, especially beginners, to have a hard time with the exercise. For many, sitting still, being quiet and reflecting are new skills that requires practice. I usually wrap up by telling them that it is alright if they didn’t get it, or if they didn’t receive any divine revelations. Additionally, be sure to give them plenty of chances to try again.
We only have a short time with our students, so giving them tools for building their own spiritual lifestyle is essential. The real value in the Examen is that it is a gift that keeps on giving: this one exercise can provide a lifetime of insight into their own souls. Teaching the Examen is a worthwhile investment of your time and, in my opinion, should be a staple in any youth ministry.
Categories: Youth Ministry · examen · prayer
December 17, 2007 · 1 Comment
My friends at Youth Ministry Exchange were kind enough to post an article I’ve written. The article, part 1 of 3, is a basic introduction to the Ignatian Examen. Parts 2 and 3 will focus on specific applications of the Examen in youth ministry. (I’ve written a couple of posts on the Examen in the past. You can read them here and here).
Check it out here!
Categories: elsewhere · examen · ymexchange
I learned this trick from one of our volunteers who works in local government. Every week he sends an email to his supervisors summarizing what he did that week. This could have tons of potential benefits. For example:
- Protection for you - If anyone questions you or your work, you have a written record you can refer to.
- Accountability - It makes it tougher to slack-off when you know your supervisor is going to see a detailed record of everything that you do.
- Supervisor involvement - Getting your boss excited about what you’re doing is almost invaluable. Make sure to convey your own enthusiasm for your work in the record.
There are, however, a few things you should keep in mind:
- Be accurate - If you’re going to fudge in your favor, it would have been better if you never started at all.
- Be consistent - Don’t miss a week. It will make you look erratic and disorganized. It’s better to not do it at all than to do it poorly.
- Be proactive - Don’t wait for someone to ask you to start this habit. Remember, this is more for you than your supervisor.
Got something to share? Let us know in the comments or via email at youthhacks@gmail.com.
Categories: Youth Ministry · reminders
- Defusing a Relationship Bomb - I believe that, as youth workers, we live in an economy of relationships. With that in mind, this article should be required reading to anyone who works with students. This could be particularly useful when dealing with angry parents or supervisors.
- Why Change Fails - Youth workers have a bad habit championing a change, only to see the idea go down in flames a short time later. This article shares places that change can go wrong. Read this before taking on your next big project.
- The Golden Compass as discipleship - I really like this idea. I think the church would do much better to see the Golden Compass (and works like it) as opportunities to learn rather than opportunities to yell.
- Improvise Like a Jazz Musician - I’ve never been in a work situation where I didn’t have to improvise. I love the idea of looking at work through the lens of a jazz musicians (the undisputed champs of improvisation.)
Categories: links
This is part of my on-going series on reminders in which I take a look into my personal reminder system and share the items that have made the biggest impact on my ministry to students.
This has been one of the coolest habits our team has taken on this year. There’s a similarly sized church a few miles up the road from us. After a few years of co-existing, we decided that it was completely stupid that we’ve never met their youth guys. Now, many lunches and coffee-dates later, I’m proud to consider these guys my friends.
Our time hanging out together has done some really cool things for us:
- Let off steam - We all have crap to deal with in our communities, and sometimes we need to talk about it. Its great to be able to do some healthy venting to someone from outside of your community.
- Share ideas - No matter how cool your ideas are or how long you’ve been in ministry, the folks down the road are probably doing some cool stuff. And there might be a couple of things they can learn from you, too.
- Kill unrealistic expectations - Its easy to imagine that other churches have it all together. I was relieved to hear that our neighboring youth workers deal with the same problems that we do. It normalized the problem and helped me to stop beating up on myself about silly things.
- Provide encouragment - Most of us spending a lot of time encouraging others, but may not receive much encouragement ourselves. I walk away from every meeting with another youth worker feeling a renewed enthusiasm for ministry.
- Initiate collaboration - Sometimes two youth groups really are better than one. Teaming-up is a great way to make a bigger impact in your community than you otherwise could.
- End the isolation - Youth ministry can be incredibly isolating. If you work in an accounting firm, you may work with lots of other accountants. If you’re a youth pastor, you are likely the only one on staff at your church. I found it exhilarating just to spend time with someone in my own field.
Looking for more on this topic? Check here. Got something to share? Let us know in the comments or via email at youthhacks@gmail.com.
Categories: Youth Ministry · reminders
