If you were to try to take a wholistic picture of your life, what would it look like? How would you try to capture the nuances of your life - accounting for the spiritual, relational and emotional aspects of “where you are?” I’ve thought a bit about this. I have been putting together a retreat especially designed for youth workers and one of the key things I would like to guide individuals through is taking a picture of “where are we right NOW.”

So how do we capture this? I think one place to look at capturing this snapshot, so to speak, is in the discipline of the fine arts (poetry, drawing, sculpting, painting, lyrics and music). Here we can capture in a distilled way an authentic picture of the good and bad; the paradox and mystery; the highs and the lows; a whole look at where we find ourselves in any given moment.

One of the musical artists I have followed for years and one I seem to have “grown right along with” is Michael Roe. As guitar slinger with the 77’s, a member of the indie americana bluesy folk quartet the Lost Dogs and an amazing solo artist in his own right - the music of Roe has been a major part of the “soundtrack of my life.” He may not be anywhere near a “household” name - but in my household he is in constant rotation. He also provides the perfect illustration through his honest lyrics of one who has shared his moments of “where he is at” with his rabid “fan base.” By looking at two tunes he has penned - we can see two different snapshots of Roe’s life in Christ.

In 1986 (hey, I said I have been listening for a LONG time!), he wrote a song entitled, “The Lust, the Flesh, the Eyes and the Pride of Life.”

Well, I feel
Like I have to feel
Something good all of the time
With most of life I cannot deal
But a good feeling I can feel
Even though it may not be real
And if a person, place or thing can deliver
I will quiver with delight
But will it last me for all my life
Or just one more lonely night

The lust, the flesh
The eyes
And the pride of life
Drain the life
Right out of me

Well, I see something and I want it
Bam! Right now!
No questions asked
Don’t worry how much it costs me now or later
I want it and I want it fast
I’ll go to any length
Sacrifice all that I already have
And all that I might get
Just to get
Something more that I don’t need
And Lord, please don’t ask me what for

The lust, the flesh
The eyes
And the pride of life
Drain the life
Right out of me

And I love when folks
Look right at me
And what I’m doing
Or have done
And lay it on about
How groovy I am
And that I’m looking grand
And every single word
Makes me think I’ll live forever
Never knowing that they probably
Won’t remember what they said tomorrow
Tomorrow I could be dead

The lust, the flesh
The eyes
And the pride of life
Drain the life
Right out of me

© 1986 Fools Of The World, LTD. (ASCAP)

Above we see a man fighting the temptations of excess and wrestling with the struggle of doing what he knows will never satisfy. We see one who knows the right way to go - but finds himself allured by the false promises of pleasure, acquiring more, and fame. It’s an honest snapshot of a person who is conflicted, struggling, and unsatisfied. It is a picture of one who is drained, tired, and ravaged by tasting sin and becoming it’s slave.

Fast-foward 16 years… and we see a different picture of the same man. From his wonderful 8 song ep/lp “Say Your Prayers” Mike penned a beautiful song that provides another snapshot of his life. The song is entitled, Sunshine Down.

I marvel as I sip upon my sweet tea
I’m popeyed at the sweetness of my sweet peas
The blooming of my trees
Why does the sun shine down on me?

I’m grateful for the greatness of your soft hands
And thankful for the cleanness of my pressed pants
You part the clouds still I don’t see
Why does the sun shine down on me?

Sometimes I hear, sometimes I listen
Most of the time I’m stubborn and indifferent
Often I’m sad, knowing what I’m missing
And all the time I’m wishing things were all so different

Thinking of asking that the end don’t come too soon ‘cuz
I’ve got a friend or two
Could use a friend like You ‘cuz
It’s getting cold and now I see
Just why the sun shines down on me

Upon my friends, down on my daughter
A beam of light to walk upon Your water
Shine on and bless my mother and my father
Praying for me when I could not be bothered

If my house goes up in flames give it a dowse, please
But never let the flame You lit inside my heart cease
I cannot live without the heat
From Your sun shining down on me

© 2002 7 & 7 Is Music (ASCAP)

Clearly a better day than the one 16 years before, we get a glimpse of one who has a different set of priorities, one who is grateful, and one who while has no way “arrived” is on The Way. There is a recognition in this lyric of a person who can see themselves in the light of the Father of Lights - seeing the positive and the negative facets of their character and priorities in an authentic and honest way.

Where are we? If we took a snapshot - how would our song go? Or if you painted a picture what colors would fill the canvas? Would it reflect the struggle of staying faithful or the solitude of being at peace with creation and the creator (or some such place in between)? I think periodically it is helpful to take stock and to “paint a picture” of where we are, not to freeze us there - but to give us a sense of where we are in light of where we need to go. Just as it is hard to find ourselves on a map at the mall without the red, “YOU ARE HERE” arrow - we can struggle with the same ambiguity in our spiritual life. So take a risk and paint a picture, or write a poem or pen a lyric that reflects a snapshot of where you are today. Then allow it to become a prayer and ask God to make it a launching pad for moving you on toward where he is leading.

It is pretty amazing isn’t that we come out of the womb, breathing. Merely seconds old and we instinctually gasp for breath. We don’t even know what oxygen is at this point (and probably won’t until a lesson on plants in 1st or 2nd grade) but our moments-old lung scream out and we inhale. Following this line of reasoning one would think that we would naturally understand how to “breath” when it comes to basking in the presence of God.

For me I have had to “work” at “breathing spiritually.” It has taken mistakes and intentional exercises to help me care for my soul and ensure that I am authentically in relationship with God and others before I call others to follow Christ. If you have struggled in continuing to grow in your relationship with Christ while in ministry - you are not alone. In fact, the majority of folks I have talked to (in their most honest moments) have confided in me that it has been a struggle to have a growing and intimate relationship with the Mystery of the Universe.

One major way I try to stay mindful, aware and attentive to God throughout the day is through a habit many refer to as, “practicing the presence of God.” This phrase is derived from a 17th century Carmelite Monk named Brother Lawrence (a book entitled The Practice of the Presence of God was published from his journal after he died). The practice is one which is pretty simple in thought - a bit harder to actually do! In short it calls us to recollect our thoughts, in the midst of daily routine, back to the Giver of all good gifts. So, for example, we can turn to God during the routine of say, brushing our teeth. As we brush our teeth we can recollect our thoughts to God thinking, “You alone make me white as snow.” We just allow this thought to pass through our mind gently the entire time we polish our pearly whites. That is just one example.

I try to infuse my life with spiritual breaths by practicing God’s presence in my routines. As a gentleman, suburban horse farmer - when I am cleaning the horses stalls I practice the Presence by inviting God to reveal and remove my sin. When I am filling buckets, I rehearse the thought of, “refresh.” When I am caring for the horses, I thank God and remember God’s perfect and attentive care for me. It makes those moments sacred, and our stable a sacred-place for me. I am trying to find other places in my routines where I can incorporate this holy habit.

Do you have routines that you regularly find yourself in? Is there a way to make that a time to recollect yourself and re-connect with your Heavenly Father? Is this something you already do? Can you share and encourage others with your practices? We may not need to learn to breath when we come out of the womb, but after we are born again it seems we need breathing lessons. May we encourage and help one another in this way.

You know the drill… after watching a very full flight go through the necessary hustle and bustle of shifting carry-on’s in the overhead and people get latched into their seats, you finally pushback from the gate. Then the real “entertainment” begins either live or on memorex - how to latch your seatbelt, the seat becomes a flotation device, yada yada yada.

We can become so jaded to this presentation of life-saving instruction. There are lessons that stretch into many areas of life from this observation. The one that I have been thinking about lately is when they say, “in the unlikely event of temporary loss of cabin pressure, oxygen masks will descend; secure your oxygen mask first, before helping others.”

Secure your oxygen mask first, before helping others. Boy, why didn’t I think of that? Why did I think that I must take care of everyone else, before I tended to my own soul? How did I overlook that from the very beginning we have been admonished to ensure we were “well” before we cared for others? I Tim. 4.16 is very clear on this idea of securing your oxygen mask first,

“Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.”

May we save both ourselves and others. Take time time to breath. Take time to be with The Mystery. Take time to care for your soul. As we are diligent to care for ourselves; we ensure we can faithfully finish “the race” that is before us.

To reach a desired goal, we must begin with the end in sight. Sort of an obvious statement, but a thought that can get lost in the shuffle of meeting the demands of daily activity. A question we need to keep forefront in our minds and need to continually revisit in youth ministry is, “What are we helping teenagers become?” What are the qualities, virtues and tasks that we desire to see formed in and shaping the young people in our local churches and communities?

One of the first things about youth ministry I learned as a college student was from a lecture by Glenn Ludwig. What I learned was also one of the issues Glenn wrote about in his book, Building an Effective Youth Ministry, where he addresses the five tasks of adolescence. The five tasks of adolescence that he identifies are:

Independence

Identity

Intimacy

Investment

Inspiration

If these are the tasks that each adolescent must settle to become a healthy adult; then it might be important for those in youth ministry to consider how the Christian tradition helps a young person in meeting these tasks.

Are we helping teens “own” their faith (gaining independence)?

Are we focused on shaping a young person’s understanding of themselves and their place in God’s Kingdom (forming identity)?

How are our ministries addressing the issue of giving and receiving love and our relational connections/obligations in the local church (discovering intimacy)?

Are we helping young people explore their vocational callings and providing opportunities to discover and develop their giftedness (investigating investment)?

What tools and experiences are we providing to ensure that young people are encountering God and finding Him to be real and at work in their world and lives (experiencing inspiration)?

Maybe these questions will help to spur you to further define and refine how your ministry can help to shape students as they address the work of maturing into young adults. As youth workers we can and often do play a crucial role in helping our teens become more like Christ. My hope is that we will approach our role with foresight, well-informed and well-equipped, to help the students in our local churches become the persons that God intended.

I know that for too many folks picturing youthworkers as theologians is not an image that readily comes to mind. Despite that I am encouraged because I believe that more and more youthworkers ARE thinking theologically. This is a trend I want to celebrate and one I want to encourage. For far too long youthworkers would be approached by kids asking advice on the latest video game cheats and music reviews, not seeing their youthworker as a viable spiritual director. But, again their seem to be signs that in many churches and among a growing number of our constituency this is changing (the deepening discussions at YS Conventions, the latest publishing titles on Youth Ministry proper, and the dialogue I have with youth ministry colleagues are the anecdotal evidence I can cite). May the youthworker as theologian tribe, increase!

Those who work with youth in the local church must come to embrace and become experts in the practice of theology. One of my former professor’s, Dr. Kevin Vanhoozer, defined theology as, “Bringing God’s Word to bear on the world.” I really like that as a working definition for this discipline we call theology. It embraces the “two worlds” that a theologian must straddle - the world as revealed in and through the Living and written Word and the context we now find ourselves in. It is the work of a theologian to rightly understand both worlds and help the church live out a Word-embodied response in our setting. Will we do the difficult work of becoming experts of both biblical and historical theology, as well as, our culture? Will we become known as a person in our community of faith as a theologian? Will we faithfully and reliably bring God’s Word to bear on our community and world?

One such person who has been a model of “youthworker as theologian” is Kenda Creasy Dean. From where I look, I think she is one of the finest examples in the discipline of youth ministry of bringing God’s Word to bear on the world of students. As evidence of this one needs only to read her latest book, Practicing Passion: Youth and the Quest for a Passionate Church. In her treatment Kenda does an amazing job of providing a theological basis for engaging youth, as they are - as passionate people. I recommend this book highly if it is your desire to grow in your theological thinking as a youth worker. Kenda’s book sets the standard for what youth ministry can look like when it is treated as a theological discipline.

Take up, and read.

Over the past 8 or so years I have made regular use of a prayer book. It has probably been the one thing that has most influenced my spiritual life in a positive manner. I often still struggle with the discipline of prayer, but through the use of a prayer book I have seen my prayer life both deepen and broaden. A prayer book is really a liturgy (or worship outline) of written prayers and readings (primarily taken from the Book of Psalms) which are meant to be said (recited and prayed) at set times during the day (morning and evening most often). It is a practice that Christians adopted from Israel, so followers of the Living God have been following this ritual of prayer for millenia.

I discoverd this practice from an Episcopal Priest. When I mentioned, I was struggling with the prayer habits that I was taught in my evangelical traditions (talk to God, like a friend or use the ACTS outline as a guide to spontaneously speak with God) he recommended I try the Book of Common Prayer. I did and it led me on a study of this practice referred to as, “praying the hours,” “the liturgy of the hours,” and/or “fixed hour praying.” Maybe this is an area of struggle in your life - praying regularly, intelligently, sincerely, and fervantly. If so, I would encourage you to look into the simple practice of using a prayer book.

Scot McKnight has written a great introduction to this practice in his book Praying With The Church. I highly recommend it as an introduction to the “whys and hows” of using a prayer book.

Two of my favorite prayer books for practicing liturgical prayer are:

Phyllis Tickle’s, The Divine Hours

(This is a three volume series to cover the entire year for morning, evening and night-time prayers. It is extremely well-organized and written from a protestant perspective. I can’t recommend this highly enough as a resource for those who want to go full-immersion into this practice.)

Northumbria’s Celtic Daily Prayer

(This is a one volume manual for prayer that includes a liturgy for morning, mid-day, evening, and night-time prayer as well as daily readings. It has a wonderful language and feel - some of my favorite prayers and readings can be found scattered through this beautiful manual of prayer.)

Finally if using a prayer book is an entirely new idea that you have never tried… I can’t do any better than pass on the advice I recieved. Don’t try anything I suggested follow the advice an Episcopal Priest shared with me, “Have you ever tried the Book of Common Prayer, that might be a real help to you.”

One of the blogs I frequent written by Mark Riddle had a great post on the role of the youth pastor. I felt a profound sense of relief and resonance with Mark’s thought on the topic. I am praying that this kind of thinking will become more prevalent in our churches and more of a non-negotiable among those called to be in youth work.

I remember one day on a retreat writing down all the different roles I played as a youth worker. It was out of control. I didn’t save the list, but I know that the following were on it - roles I fulfilled over one months time.

The roles didn’t include other things outside of my job - like father, son, husband, friend…

To say that the calling on youth workers can get confusing is an understatement. There are many expectations among those we serve and among those we work for. Youth Workers themselves don’t always make it easy either, they can bring a bit of baggage to the role, as well (another set of competing hopes, dreams and expectations!). What I see when I look at such a list (like the one above) is that we can think in terms of the calling to youth ministry as something we fulfill by what we DO rather than something of the person we ARE BECOMING. When we think in terms of youth ministry we seem to act like the greatest thing we can offer others is something we DO for them - and honestly this is where things get mixed up. We find outselves on a hamster wheel of youth ministry activities and events. I believe those in youth ministry need to rethink the activity assumption. We need to consider that the calling of youth ministry might be a calling to offer others who we are becoming.

What if the call to youth ministry is a call to offer others the very thing we see Jesus offering the disciples, an offer to be with Him (Mark 3:13-14). The sharing of our life. The glimpse at our flaws and at God’s gracious work taking shape in us. To share our journey of becoming more like Christ. To offer commentary on how God is shaping our story.

Responding to God’s call to minister with/for youth by being who we are in the midst of a community of students is a profound new way to think about the primary role of youth pastor. This doesn’t mean we DO nothing; but it does mean we don’t DO everything. It means that lots of activity doesn’t necessarily mean that ministry is happening. It means rethinking the shape of youth ministry staffs, programs, and traditions. It means re-pacing the ministry seasons and years. It demands a review and revision of the typical job description and enlarging our vision of the skill set and demeanor of a youth ministry candidate. It requires that churches seriously consider the priorities of what the church should offer it’s youth. It requires a team approach - it is the church body’s obligation to minister to it’s people, not merely a church employee’s. Much more could be said about this, and over time I am sure (and hoping) that it will be said, by more and more who love the church and love her youth!

Thanks Mark for your thoughts and for inspiring me to give this some thought. I hope this new picture of the youth pastor begins to fill the vision of our churches.

The past couple of days I have been out on the road for some meetings. It got me thinking about the way I too often approach the old “hitting the road.” It has definitely changed over the years. I remember the days of “road trips,” heading out on the open road and reveling in the “feeling” of roaming and the excitement of seeing new things with fresh eyes.

Fast forward to yesterday, driving a familiar stretch of road I reflected on the “difference” between hitting the road with a “road trip mentality” and as merely a means to an end. I often drive and travel only as a means to an end. As I drive, I calculate how long I have to go, I think about the next milestone I can look forward to, I rehearse conversations of bygone times, I plan ways to solve problems or “get ahead,” I watch the clock to ensure I am making “good time,” etc. In the meantime, I miss the moments and scenery that surrounds me - they passby at 70 mph without any awareness, acknowledgement or appreciation.

Not engaging in the now, instead I either retreat to “relive” the past or focus on what’s next. The road trip dissolves into merely a means to another end, the beauty and present moments are lost as I careen across the landscape.

The painful realization doesn’t stop there. I face the truth that road trips degenerating into a means to an end is symptomatic of a much larger blindspot. I can often slip into this same way of living in general — skimming through my everyday life. I often am found living at the surface of life. Not engaging the moment, instead becoming distracted or unaware of the NOW by rehearsing the past or anticipating the future. Not allowing the present moment to get past my skin.

Maybe this resonates with you. Being too “busy” or too distracted to go beyond the surface of things. Unable to engage the present with our whole selves - with our mind, heart, and soul. Unaware of the present tense because the “now” is only a means to some other more “desireable end” or is less preferable to some greener grass over the next knoll.

These thoughts really challenge me. I want to be more present to the present moment. More available and aware of what is going on now, allowing the past to be that - past; and trusting God with tomorrow (cause you know what Jesus says about that, see Matthew 6:34). I want to be more emotionally, spiritually and physically aware and available to what is taking place right now - alive to creation, people and The Mystery. Living beyond the circumferences and edges and plunging into the heart of the moment, present to the presence of others and the Other.

From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ (Acts 17:26-28)

How do we move from skimming through life to get to some desired end; to plunging whole-heartedly into the present moment? One suggestion is to use a “breath prayer.” A breath prayer is a short statement directed toward God we can easily say and return to regularly from memory. It is a prayer that helps us remember the Sacred and the sacredness of every moment. Remembering and reciting this prayer pulls us from the circumference to the center. We can practice this simple prayer by regularly rehearsing the words from Acts 17, “For in him we live and move and have our being.” Or we can pray the Jesus prayer which is one I find very helpful. There are a number of different versions of this oft prayed prayer, the one I recite is from the Angiican tradition. I find myself praying this many times during any given day, “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me a sinner.”

Praying a breath prayer as a discipline throughout the day has a way of stopping us and helping us enter the present moment. We become aware of the now; we acknowledge with our heart, mind and soul the moment we are in, and we stop anticipating, worrying or being concerned with “what’s next.” As we use this practice of a breath prayer, God can help all of us be more present to what He is doing in the moment and what He might want us to learn in this moment. Slow down and punctuate your life using a breath prayer that we might all catch the beauty of where we are, right now.

There are other antidotes to our skimming ways; to our, “are we there yet?” mentalities of tripping through life. If you are inclined, take time to share other antidotes you have found - add them to the comments; or shoot me an email, I would love to dialogue further on this topic! In the meantime, I hope you will find the breath prayer as one helpful suggestion to accompany you as you travel life’s highways. So road trip through life - enjoy the scenery - be present to the now. The now is where I want to be, where I can be present to The Presence.

“The work of Jesus was not a new set of ideals or principles for reforming or even revolutionizing society, but the establishment of a new community, a people that embodied forgiveness, sharing and showing self-sacrificing love in its rituals and discipline. In that sense, the visible church is not to be the bearer of Christ’s message, but to be the message.”

Stanley Hauerwas

Over and over we hear this truth, and maybe even repeat it, you know the one attributed to Francis of Assisi, “Preach the Gospel always, and when necessary use words.” I think this is a beautiful statement. I wonder though, does our ‘knowing’ this innoculate us from being the truth it presents? Have we somehow allowed our cultural bias for ‘knowing something intellectually to be equivalent to mastery of the truth’ to deceive us? In other words - since we know, for example, that eating too much fat is harmful, we can still get along fine eating fatty foods (since after all we know it is detrimental). In many instances - this could be defined as a mental illness; but in some of our churches this is the status quo. We seem to shrug off many of our obedience obligations with a “Oh yeah, I know that” or “we know that.”

Really? Do “I know that?” Do we know something if we only know it, but fail to live it? Don’t we have an obligation to transform truth into life? Isn’t the incarnation of Jesus the model of such a transformation; the Word made flesh and tabernacling among us (John 1:14)? Isn’t our faith to be an embodied faith? Where did we get the idea that Christianity could be solely an intellectual enterprise (a theological science of doctrine and dogma)?

Our students are not content with a Faith that is merely discussed (important as that is - there are things we must understand and comprehend - but it can not stop there). Our youth will make an exit for the doors and be on to the “next thing” if all they find in our churches as it pertains to God is: words, ideas, and intellectual concepts. Our young people are hungry for something that they can die for, something to be passionate about, something that is worthy of their life, something that will help define their identity, inspire them, and something they can invest there time, energy and passion in. Youth need more than ideas and talk; they are longing for living and breathing examples of truth and the Gospel.

The good news is that the message of Jesus is chock full of such adventure and an endeavor that invites us to come with our whole life. The truth in God’s Word is not offered for us to talk about - it is presented that we might be it and act upon it. We are called to be a third testament or a fifth Gospel. May we be diligent to understand that truth is not meant to merely be understood or believed - but to be known and lived. Somewhere along the line I stumbled across this statement, “Truth that has not been lived is stolen.” Let’s stop breaking the eighth commandment.

How are we doing with modeling a lived, embodied truth? How are we doing in calling our community to value not only being diligent in pursuing a knowledge of the truth, but also sharing and showing God’s truth to one another?

May we make the very heart of our vocation, to convert truth into life.

With great regularity… Wednesday (or Sunday) night appears. The current ministry I volunteer with has a Sunday Night meeting - although those “in the know” tell me Wednesday Night is still the most popular meeting night for youth. I am the primary communicator which is fancy for, “I teach the lesson!” for our ministry. So every week I carry around that nagging feeling, the persistent question in the back of my mind, “what am I going to say this week?” I often have to admit that the hour or day after I teach I wonder, was it worth it? Did anyone listen? Does it matter? (It doesn’t last long… cause that nagging question returns, “what am I going to say this week?”)

But, does it matter? Is it worth it? Oh no, it’s Wednesday night, again! One of my early mentors in youth ministry was Mark Senter* and I have never forgotten what he called the first three axioms of Youth Ministry (axiom is a $3 word for “assumptions” or “a starting point that is undertood”). According to Mark the first three axioms are:

1. Youth Ministry begins when an adult finds a comfortable way to enter a student’s world;

2. Youth Ministry continues as long as the student is moving toward spiritual maturity;

3. Youth Ministry ends when either the relationship is severed or spiritual growth ceases.

(disclaimer: the axioms are not direct quotes, Mark is much more careful and nuanced in his language - but I think I captured the spirit of his axioms)

What I love about this definition of Youth Ministry is that it makes every potential meeting between youth and adults who are called to youth ministry a potent and meaningful opportunity. There are no “regular” times. There are no “off nights.” If we have the right understanding of this crazy vocation - then we see that as we serve God by loving, encouraging, challenging, listening, and being present (really present) with students - this encounter, this moment might be the defining moment in a kids life.

What matters is not the most innovative game, or perfect illustration, or a program without a glitch - what matters is:

Am I cognizant that I have the privilege to enter another persons life and take that honor responsibly, gratefully, and faithfully? Am I seeing the opportunity that our God has called us toward and am I entering into this relationship sharing and imparting my life with grace, authenticity and love? Am I helping a team of adult volunteers see through their pouring into others that they can have a part in transforming a life (and thus our world)? Am I aware that God may use my faithfulness to radically transform a students life through what I may only percieve as a simple statement, or a common courtesy or a regular Wednesday night?

It’s Wednesday night, again. And it matters. And, yes, it’s worth it.

*I would recommend getting your hands on just about anything Mark has written - he is a great mind to tap in the area of youth ministry… check his titles out here.