There seems to be three archetypes of men in the church.
Mr. Rogers – Soft and gentle. But mostly soft.
Tim the Tool Man – He’s got a tool for everything. And he loves to fix stuff when he’s not out hunting.
Mr. Invisible – You hear great things about this guy from his wife. But you’ve never actually met him.
I’ve been part of churches with lots of men. I’ve been part of churches with almost no men. But most of my life, I’ve been part of churches who paint a confusing portrait of what it means to be a man.
It’s a book by my friend Brian Berry. Brian has been in youth ministry for 20 years. Literally, his kids know no other life than being the youth pastor’s kids. Speaking of kids– Brian has 5 of them! My kids LOVE going over to their house and seeing them at church. Somehow they managed to have 3 kids between Megan and Paul’s age. (OK, so 2 of them are adopted!) Somehow– not accidentally– Shannon and Brian have figured out how to keep their sanity while serving in ministry. I’m not saying the Berry family is perfect or problem free. But they have figured some things out and are worth learning from.
Who is Brian…
Brian is my compatriot, high school guys co-small group leader, and generations pastor at my church. He’s got a great big job, a great big family, and the biggest pick-up truck you’ve ever seen. Seriously, I drove it and it was as big as a short bus. More important than all that stuff– Brian and Shannon have great big hearts. They’re the kind of people you meet and want to hang out with more. If you’ve been to NYWC, SYMC, YS Palooza… or read a youth ministry magazine in the past 3-4 years than you’ve probably met Brian. (Read between the lines: I think Brian is legit. Does it show?)
Why I like it…
It’s a shame that this book has mostly been marketed to youth ministry people. Sure, Brian is a youth ministry dude. BUT this book is important for any Christian family trying to figure out how to balance life. Brian is an excellent communicator. I call his style “staccato.” When he’s got something to say it comes quick, in bite size, highly comprehendible bursts.
There’s a ton of books in the “Christian family” category at any Christian bookstore. There is a lot of crap on the market in this category, we all know it. Everything Brian does is “anti-crap.” This book is no exception.
You get the idea, I like this book because I like Brian.
How to get it…
BUY IT… Head over to Simply Youth Ministry and buy a copy. You can either download it in your favorite eReader format or pay $2 more to get a printed version.
WIN IT… Leave a comment on this post by midnight tonight and you’ll be entered to win a free copy. Check back on this post tomorrow, I’ll edit the post to announce the winner.
WINNER... James Hauptman – hey James, email me your address and we’ll ship it out!
It’s the first book by my friend and co-author, Jon Huckins. If you’ve ever thought of integrating fictional storytelling into your teaching this is the book you need. (You realize this is what Jesus did with the whole parable thing, right? Yeah, totally biblical.) It’s a great resource– it flew under the radar a bit because he was a first-time author.
Who is Jon…
I first met Jon a couple years ago when I was in Berkeley, CA promoting NYWC. He came to a lunch we hosted and we met briefly. Then a few months later he moved down to San Diego to work with Nieucommunities in Golden Hill. Since August he and I have shared office space, done some life together, and worked our tails off on the Good News in the Neighborhood curriculum. Later this summer I’m fully stepping into Jon’s world by going on his trip to the West Bank. (More on this later.)
Why I like it…
I think fictional storytelling is a vastly under-developed communication skill. Even if you don’t use it as a primary teaching tool you need to have this in your bag.
This is right out of his ministry. This isn’t an idea that Jon had and he built content around it to support the idea. This started as something he refined in his ministry and then became a book. He’s sharing his secret weapon for capturing the hearts of hard-to-reach teenagers. You need this.
How you can get it…
BUY IT. Head over to Jon’s site and pick up a copy. (Also available on Amazon)
WIN IN. Leave a comment to this post by midnight tonight (May 22nd) and you’ll be entered to win a free copy of Jon’s book.
In our journey of faith there are moments that produce a certain amount of anxiety. Often anxiety or worry is seen as an evil or un-Christian feeling to have, but The Anxious Christian conveys the message that anxiety can actually be helpful in our spiritual formation. In fact, God can use anxiety to move people forward in their life of faith. Anxiety’s gift is that it allows us to face our fears, understand where those fears come from, and then make intentional choices about important issues—such as career, marriage, money, our spiritual lives and much more—rather than getting stuck
Let’s re-think our shame about anxiety by realizing that anxiety can be a catalyst for growth that moves us closer to who God created us to be.
Who is Rhett?
I met Rhett Smith in February 2010 in the Miami Airport. Rhett and I went to Haiti together shortly after the earthquakes in 2010. Rhett has the theology and smile Joel Olsteen only wishes he had. Through the years Rhett has done a lot of youth ministry but is now focusing mostly on his marriage & family therapy practice in Plano, TX.
He’s a great dude and if you aren’t familiar with his work you should check out his blog and follow him on Twitter.
In fact, I think Rhett’s work is so important that we’ve asked him to come present a talk at The Summit called, “The Anxiety of Teenagers.” Super excited about that!
Why I like it…
Christians, especially those in church leadership, are an anxious bunch. There’s not enough stuff out there from a Christian perspective. (That isn’t weird, flowery, or bad advice veiled in Bible verses.)
It’s approachable. This isn’t a text book. It’s written for you and me as a help and source of hope.
How you can get it…
BUY IT. Head over to Amazon and pick it up in print or Kindle.
WIN IT. Leave a comment on this post by midnight PST on 5/15/2012 and you’ll be entered to win a free copy of Rhett’s book.
WINNER: Schnerples – Send me your address and I’ll get you that book. (Either email to mclanea@gmail.com or use my contact form!)
Full disclosure: Rhett’s publisher sent me a copy of this book. And if you click either of the Amazon links above and buy his book, I’ll make about 45 cents. But I was not otherwise paid for this post.
Love is an Orientation DVD is a video curriculum based on The Marin Foundation’s ground breaking work in the LGBTQ community. The byline is, “Practical ways to build bridges with the Gay Community.” I’ve heard amazing things from adult small groups and church leadership teams who have worked through this content together. Andrew’s ministry and work is truly a revolutionary approach.
Who is Andrew…
I first met Andrew in the lead-up to the 2008 National Youth Workers Convention. He was the guy coming in to talk about the hot-button topic and I was the guy trying to build buzz around the convention. During the 3-city tour we became friends and our friendship continues to grow.
Yup, some people don’t like Andrew. Either they think his approach goes too far or they think it doesn’t go far enough. That’s the tension The Marin Foundation lives in each day. And something in me says that this tension is just about right. (He’s speaking at The Summit on the topic of, Ministry within Theological Tension, see the connection?)
Why I like it…
3 reasons I like this.
I’m in it. Ginny Olson and I teamed up on the youth ministry portions and I love how it turned out.
There’s nothing out there as good. Andrew has presented this content to hundreds of churches, to hundreds of thousands of people, and in a bunch of countries. It’s really, really good stuff.
It breaks the ice. I’ve talked to a few leaders who have used it and they love that it gets people talking about ministering in the gay community in a fresh, hopeful, loving way. Like any good teaching it causes great self-reflection and personal change.
How you can get it…
BUY IT. The more direct way is to head over to The Marin Foundation website and buy it.
WIN IT. Leave a comment of any kind to this post and you’ll be entered to win a copy of the DVD and a participants guide. (Comments close at midnight tonight, winner announced tomorrow.)
WINNER! SarahD92 – You’re the winner! Send me your mailing address and I’ll get it out to you.
Jonathan McKee (The Source for Youth Ministry) just released a 4-week video based curriculum that’s all about how to have real conversations about sharing your faith. (Which is cool considering it’s called, Real Conversations.) As a youth leader, this is one of those plug-n-play options that would be cool to have on your bookshelf. Each week there’s a 12-14 minute video and a participants guide to help drive it home. For instance, let’s say most of your team is going to take August off and you’re solo teaching? Bam, press play and let Jonathan do the work. It isn’t quite that simple but the videos and the guides make it pretty simple.
Who is Jonathan…
If you know Jonathan and you know me you might not see the connection. He’s more conservative on some things than I am, approaches life a little differently than I do, and he’s from NorCal while I rock the fish tacos down in SoCal. But,while we often have a different approach Jonathan and I have one important thing in common: We long to see the church get better at reaching people right where they are… and we are putting our necks on the line to try to make a dent of a difference. I think that’s one reason we get along so well… we care first about people.
Another reason, and this shares something I don’t talk about a lot, is that I connect well to people who hustle. Jonathan works hard. Yes, he’s talented. But his stuff does so well not just because he’s talented, but also because he flat out works harder than a lot of other people in our world. He and I worked on a project earlier this year and he was RELENTLESS! He wanted to not just get it done and on time… he wanted it to be great and put in the work to make it great.
Why I like it…
I dig Real Conversations for a number of reasons. I think that there are a lot of youth groups looking for this type of training. It’s consistently choses to stay practical when a lot of similar curriculums get lost in theory and apologetics. I like that its Gospel-oriented without limiting the Gospel to a message. I like that it’s funny, really… I LOL’d a couple times. And I like that it was shot and edited real pretty. (The crew at Zondervan did a real nice job.)
In the end, I see a lot of similarities between Real Conversations and Good News in the Neighborhood. They are two-sides to the same coin. As I’ve tried to figure out and live into the realities of becoming Good News on my block I’ve had several instances where someone, completely out of the blue, has asked me… “So, I know you believe in Jesus and there’s something about how you’re living that makes me want to know more. What is that Jesus thing all about and how do I get me some of that?”
So you can think of it like this. The Good News curriculum might teach you how to live for Jesus on your block. But Real Conversations will actually help you answer the natural questions that will come up as a result of partnering with Christ to become good news to your neighbors.
WIN IT. Zondervan was nice enough to send me a copy of the DVD & Participants guide to review. The simple reality is that I watched the DVD and flipped through the book, but I’d rather give it away to someone who might actually teach it than stick it on my bookshelf to collect dust. It’s brand new! So, leave a comment on this post on 5/1/2012. And I’ll pick a random winner to get my copy. To enter… just leave a comment of any kind. I’ll announce the winner on 5/2/2012.
WINNER: Jeffrey Dyson – send your mailing address to mclanea@gmail.com
Let’s do this again next week! I’ll be giving away a DVD/participants guide for Love is an Orientation next Tuesday.
Contest: Submit a Craigslist-styled ad for the video above. (Entries closed, see entries here)
VOTE! Read the three entries below and cast your vote. Winner announced Wednesday morning.
Finalists
A: Middle-Management Position – Submitted by Kevin A.
Middle-management position has recently become available to oversee a quiver of ground-floor executives hungry for leadership. The selected candidate will demonstrate the ability to think quickly on their feet while maintaining order in chaos. Experience in sorting socks preferred but not required.
In accordance with our company’s new-hire policy, employee’s first check will be held for two weeks.
B: Animal Caretaker Wanted – Submitted by Jason B.
Tired of the rat race? Like working outside with interesting animals? We’re looking for a reliable, venturesome, hands-on person who will clean and maintain an exclusive over-sized worm farm. Previous experience HIGHLY recommended, but not required.
Excellent Benefits include: A swig of whiskey to start each shift properly relaxed. All the Easter egg shells you can find are yours to keep. The company may opt to purchase life insurance on Caretaker (came in handy with last employee).
High-quality broom and pooper-scooper provided. Must supply your own sandals and first aid kit.
Serious inquiries only. Don’t let this opportunity slither away!
Location: Conveniently located just 43 miles from local hospital.
C: Volunteers Needed to Help Stop Impended Cobra Infanticide – Submitted by Matt C.
Are you passionate about cobras and their babies? Does it sadden you to witness the rampant cobra infanticide we see in the news all over the world? Now you can do something about it!
See one cobra infanticide in action here. (warning, this may disturb you) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIMigVo1pyA
Wouldn’t it be great if a great big PAPA cobra stepped in to rescue those baby cobras?
That could be you! You can rescue the baby cobras in your neighborhood! If you are interested in volunteering in a high-density cobra zone like India or Indonesia, please indicate that in your email. We have some wealthy PAPA COBRA donors who’d like to help you fly there to help thousands of baby cobras this summer!
Contact us today by responding to this ad or visiting our website: www.helpbabycobras.com
VOTE – Voting closes Tuesday at midnight (PST)
Note: Winner to receive a $25 gift card from Amazon.com.
The launch of Beyond the Zoo has gone great so far. We’re adding new reviews weekly and we’re even hoping to add a couple contributors to capture some various genres of stuff in and around San Diego.
At the same time we thought it’d be fun to kick things up a notch and have a fun contest at the same time. This Sunday we’re giving away $50 in PayPal cash to one fortunate person chosen at random. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post to enter. Anyone with a valid email address and a desire for $50 can enter.
There seems to be three archetypes of men in the church.
