All Issues articles – Page 30
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IssuesDo we all worship the same God anyway?
We know that interfaith discussions are important and that we should respect people of all religions. But how should we encourage our children and young people in their own faith, while helping them interact with those of different faiths? Interfaith expert Andrew Smith has some ideas...
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IssuesHomosexuality: are our ministries LGB-friendly?
In many ways, homosexuality isn’t an elephant in the Church’s room; it feels like every time the Church gets any press coverage it focuses on its attitude towards gay people. But what does all of this mean for youth and children’s ministry? Helen Crawford investigates…
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IssuesWhat if evangelical youth ministry has got it all wrong?
Like many other people reading this magazine, I’ve invested well over a decade of my life into youth ministry. And while I’m increasingly uncomfortable with the label, there’s no doubting that I’ve done so as part of a broadly evangelical movement. Some key phrases seem to sum up that approach: we want to “reach and keep” teenagers; to “make disciples”; see them “filled with the Holy Spirit” and ultimately to get them to move from being “unchurched” to “churched”.
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IssuesFirst Word - August 2017
An old friend of mine recently asked my wife and I to be godparents for her and her husband’s child. “Nothing particularly notable there for a Christian couple in their late 20s, hardly worth the anecdote, Jamie,” I hear you say. Well, not quite. You see one of the other godparents was a woman called Laura, who, as it happens, is an ex-girlfriend of mine. Now, for full disclosure, it wasn’t the longest of relationships, it happened quite a few years ago and while it had been a few years since we’d seen each other, we are both very much ‘over it’; nevertheless it still added a certain frisson to proceedings. The question was how to approach things: avoid each other? Smile and nod? Engage in only the most superficial of banter? I took a different approach, saying at the first possible opportunity (in front of my wife for good measure): “Well, we finally have a (god) child of our own; I dreamt this moment would come.” I think I just about got away with it. She laughed. My wife laughed. I sighed with relief and we could all move on with the day.
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IssuesNehemiah: Session 4
Meeting aim: To see how God begins to gather his people back together after the 70 years of exile.
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IssuesDaniel: Session 3
Meeting aim: To see how some of God’s people were faithful to him in exile.
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IssuesJeremiah: Session 2
Meeting aim: To see how God sends warning to his people to give them the chance to turn back to him – but they don’t always do so.
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IssuesLessons from the higher tour
Over the last decade, it seems as if the Church has backed away from big-scale evangelism. But as J John brings the gospel to the Emirates Stadium, The Message’s Tom Butler reflects on last year’s Higher Tour and asks whether large evangelistic events have a place in 2017
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IssuesMentoring: Faithfulness
I was about 10. We were on holiday and my brother and I were playing on the campsite playground. Throughout our childhood we were like cat and dog, always bickering and fighting. Being four years older he always won. On this occasion, however, some random kid picked up my bike as if to take it and was intimidating me. My brother waded straight over and well and truly told him where to get off, until the kid backed off and left us alone. I was gobsmacked. I realised that, underneath everything, my brother loved me - which meant standing by me when things got serious. It was a picture of what it means to be faithful to someone.
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IssuesParable: A cake of mistaken identity
Xander loved baking. Whenever he had any spare time, he was in the kitchen, giving new recipes a go or trying to get the hang of piping buttercream. He drove his dad spare - there were never any eggs left for him. And Xander was terrible at clearing up. Whenever he hit the kitchen, he would leave behind a trail of flour, dirty bowls and crusty cake tins. However, Xander’s dad had to admit, the cakes were amazing.
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IssuesReal Life: “I felt God press the pause button on my full-time ministry”
I grew up in a loving and caring Christian home, where the Bible was valued and praying together as a family was a regular occurrence. Through Sunday school, the kids’ and youth work at the Keswick Convention and regular Bible reading at home, I grew to love Jesus from a young age. I knew that one day I wanted to be one of those youth leaders who looked cool, dressed confidently and could teach the Bible one moment and be completely daft the next.
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IssuesBridging the gap
The transition point between primary and secondary school is where the church loses so many children and young people. So what to do about it? Rev Bob Mayo has some ideas
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Issues
Between hell and high water
I’d like to talk a bit about… hell. Specifically, how we talk to children about it. Let’s be honest, this is tricky and might be the end of my career, but, well, here we go!
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IssuesNehemiah: Session 4
Meeting aim: To remind young people thatGod’s promises endure, even in times that feel hopeless.
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IssuesDaniel: Session 3
Meeting aim: To explore what it means tostay close to God in difficult circumstances.
