Similarly to allowing students to doubt (part 2 of this series), we ought also to allow students to discover truth on their own. I am not saying that we allow them to discover their own truth. Rather, I am saying that we allow them to come into truth via their own understanding and practice. I contend we are far better off in the shepherding of our students if we allow them to believe that something is true in their own time and through their own unearthing and articulation of the particular truth.

Truth is not something that can be understood and practiced simply by passing on what we have come to know through words alone. I mean, how have we ‘come to know’ what we do? Was it simply because someone told us that a particular thought or concept IS true and so we believed them? C’mon. There is no way have you come to the place you are with God right now in this present moment because someone convinced you that something was true simply by using words. Language (words that give meaning) is very important in the process of discovering truth but it is not THE process. The process of practice, reflection, observation making, abstract correlating and tested experience all come together to help students ‘come to know’ what is true. (i.e. Kolb, Experiential Learning).

Therefore, the environments that we create and sustain become essential. Without an effective environment or a collection of various environments we are simply left to assume that just words that define ideas and concepts about God help students ‘come to know’ what is true. So, as youth workers, we are not solely the passer on of truths as we are environmentalists that help create a culture where truths can be unearthed and applied. We, as youth workers (parents, coaches, teachers, etc), are key to the entire unearthing truth process but our role ought not to be the carrier of what is “right” as much as it ought to be the designer in which the truth that we have come to know might also come to be known by others.

The inevitable question I get asked when I talk about this is always something like… “So… then… what constitutes an effective environment?” My answer is usually something like this… “I think there are three critical elements of an effective environment. The three elements are time, space and content.”

Time — moments to discover God and instances to punctuate the time.
Space — freedom and breathing room to discover God in the time the individual feels is exact.
Content – the substance or the material used to help the individual do the things I have already stated are important. Things like practice, reflection observation making, abstract correlating and testing by experience.

(BTW- I am not sure where I got those three elements. I can’t remember if it was one particular author or seminar speaker or who but they are something I have been using as a template for a while now.)

My premise (for those of you who are confused by these ramblings on) is quite simple. Here it is… Don’t tell students what is true and expect them to just live it (truth) out. On the contrary, guide or shepherd your students into environments comprised of time, space and content that allow them to ‘come to know’ what is true through their own understanding and practice. Be and environmentalist as much as you are an evangelist.

We have (Youthfront/Sonlife) been doing some work with Barefoot Publishing. Barefoot is what I (a non-expert in the pub world!) would call an emerging publisher. They have been around for a while but I think some of their most recent products have really helped them emerge from being viewed as an average publisher to a innovative, expanding publisher.

I really love their new series of products for students called, Undercurrent. HERE is a link. Most recently I read, “Living Justice” by Jamie Gates and Jon Middendorf. This is a great book to give to your students on the topic of justice. Along with the product they have a free download — a discussion guide for small groups, etc. — on their website.

The book is only about 80 pages and it covers a lot of ground in a very engaging way. I love how the book begins. Within the first two pages there is a lasting tension created using two, very to the point and relevant examples of divergent perspectives on God, justice, and our role in God’s mission. Very thought provoking…

I have become good friends with Jeff Edmondson, the publisher. We are working together on a couple projects — one in particular I am really excited about. We are launching a new weekend missional living training experience for students in 12 locations across North America in the Fall called, Reveal: Joining in the Activity of God. Good stuff. More on that later. Anyway, in the meantime, you might want to check out Barefoot’s line of products for your students.

Walter Rauschenbusch was a theologian and baptist minister. His theology, specifically around the subjects of biblical literalism and atonement, have always concerned some folks and have been held in question by many. Whose theology isn’t in in question by someone somewhere?

Never-the-less, Rauschenbusch is most remembered for his outspokenness against a word-based sharing of the gospel. Instead, Rauschenbusch and many of his friends (known as the Brotherhood of the Kingdom) preached a gospel filled with words but built upon Christlike actions of compassion and justice.

In his book entitled, Christianity and the Social Crises (1907), Rauschenbusch says,

“…no man shares his life with God whose religion does not flow out, naturally and without effort, into all relations of his life and reconstructs everything that it touches. Whoever uncouples the religious and the social life has not understood Jesus. Whoever sets any bounds for the reconstructive power of the religious life over the social relations and institutions of men, to that extent denies the faith of the Master.”

In doing some reading/research for my current book project I came across one of Rauschenbusch’s prayers. I thought I would share it with you all as I found it very inspirational and compelling.

“O God, we thank you for this universe, our home; and for its vastness and richness, the exuberance of life which fills it and of which we are part. We praise you for the vault of heaven and for the winds, pregnant with blessings, for the clouds which navigate and for the constellations, there so high. We praise you for the oceans and for the fresh streams, for the endless mountains, the trees, the grass under our feet. We praise you for our senses, to be able to see the moving splendour, to hear the songs of lovers, to smell the beautiful fragrance of the spring flowers.

Give us, we pray you, a heart that is open to all this joy and all this beauty, and free our souls of the blindness that comes from preoccupation with the things of life, and of the shadows of passions, to the point that we no longer see nor hear, not even when the bush at the roadside is afire with the glory of God. Give us a broader sense of communion with all living things, our sisters, to whom you gave this world as a home along with us.

We remember with shame that in the past we took advantage of our greater power and used it with unlimited cruelty, so much so that the voice of the earth, which should have arisen to you as a song was turned into a moan of suffering.

May we learn that living things do not live just for us, that they live for themselves and for you, and that they love the sweetness of life as much as we do, and serve you, in their place, better than we do in ours. When our end arrives and we can no longer make use of this world, and when we have to give way to others, may we leave nothing destroyed by our ambition or deformed by our ignorance, but may we pass along our common heritage more beautiful and more sweet, without having removed from it any of its fertility and joy, and so may our bodies return in peace to the womb of the great mother who nourished us and our spirits enjoy perfect life in you.”

Walter Rauschenbusch (1861-1918)

I have known Doug Jones over at Perigrinatio (www.perigrinatio.com) for a bunch of years. We first met when we were both serving on a Sonlife event team we held in Baltimore at The Johns Hopkins University.

We have become very close friends since that time we first met. I can honestly say that Doug is a friend. You know how it goes… there are friends and then there are friends — the ones who support you, advocate for you, love you enough to call you out, tell you the truth no matter what — yeah, that is the kind of friend that Doug is.

Doug was a youth pastor for a bunch of years. Now he volunteers at his church near Pittsburgh and is one of our facilitators for our Enroute experience. He also speaks at retreats a bunch and does some consulting with churches and youth ministry organizations. I am not sure why I am telling you all of the above — other than I want Doug to know how much I love him back!

Anyway, Doug has a very cool resource that you might find helpful available on his blog called Journey with Jesus. Here is the link: http://www.perigrinatio.com/downloads/

The resource won’t WOW you by its design — but look over it closely.  Get beyond the simple design and read the outline of what Doug has put together.  I think you will find it to be really helpful as you lead your students toward learning more about Jesus and lead them toward experiencing Holy Week.

My good friend Doug Jones is blogging again!  I love Doug’s blog!  He has very thoughtful, inspiring, challenging and relevant posts.  You can check out his blog here:

http://www.perigrinatio.com/ 

Enjoy!

We have all been in meetings we didn’t like. Some weeks it seems as though that is just what we are supposed to do — sit in meetings. While some meetings can be very helpful and energetic others can be quite the opposite. Over the past two days I have sat in meetings from 8am-6pm with virtually no breaks and very limited discussion or interaction of any kind. These meetings have been the “other” kind of meeting… one of the kind that isn’t all that helpful and doesn’t bring all that much energy.

Henri Nouwen (1932-1996)

As I reflected on the last two days, I was reminded of this wonderful bit of wisdom, inspiration and challenge from Henri Nouwen. A statement that Nouwen made after many years in ministry…

“More and more, the desire grows in me to simply walk around, greet people, enter into homes, sit on their doorsteps, play ball, throw water, and be known as someone who wants to live with them. It is a privilege to have the time to practice the simple ministry of presence. Still, it is not as simple as it seems. My own desire to be useful, to do something significant, or to be a part of some impressive project is so strong that soon my time is taken up by meetings, conferences, study groups and workshops that prevent me from walking the streets.

It is difficult not to have plans, not to organize people around an urgent cause, and not to feel that you are working directly for social progress. But I wonder more and more if the first thing shouldn’t be to know people by name, to eat and drink with them, to listen to their stories and tell your own, and to let them know with words, handshakes, and hugs that you do not simply like them but truly love them.”

My flight to Kansas City was fogged in on Sunday so I had some extra time to finish reading The God-Hungry Imagination: The Art of Storytelling for Postmodern Youth Ministry by Sarah Arthur.

Here is the bottom line with this book… I think it would be super helpful for you to read. Like most books, not every page is going to leave you with something to underline, highlight or immediately implement. However, I think that there is enough good stuff in this book for your thinking to be stretched and enough for you to think and talk about with your peers and volunteers.

I feel like Arthur has hit on a really important and a largely missing element to the spiritual formation of adolescents — the use of the imagination. Not only does Arthur make a proposal for the employment of the imagination she leaves the reader with a solid understanding of what it is, what it isn’t and how to help our students engage it more.

I really like how Arthur ties the imagination and the use of story together. She does a very good job of helping the reader understand what story is and why story works and give some (not enough) examples of how to use it.

Arthur says that clichés are “dead metaphors”. I really like that thought… I also really like this quote:

“If we embrace the classical definition of the imagination as a faculty of the intellect, it would certainly seem plausible to suggest that someone could have imaginative intelligence, here defined as the intuitive ability to discover and express meaningful relationships and patterns between otherwise unconnected ideas, images and experiences — or the ability to put things together.”

To me, this is the central idea of Arthur’s book — to learn to help students connect through the imagination what would otherwise be left unconnected through the typical methods and techniques. In other words, the imagination helps students connect all of life to the story of God therefore helping to shape a new and transforming life.
Here are some things that I didn’t particularly care for or wished for…

• I didn’t care for Arthur’s definition of “missional”. I felt like it was very weak. I also felt like she connected her definition of missional (”the evangelism of the postmodern culture”, page 145) strictly to a very misunderstood concept. That concept being that the church needs to “reinvent itself if it is going to be culturally relevant.” Being “missional” is a whole lot more than being culturally relevant. That might be a by-product of it, but it isn’t solely that.
• I wish that Arthur would have taken more time to dive deeper into the “meta-narrative” allowing readers to get a better and bigger picture of God’s story.
• I wish Arthur would have included the importance of observation (watching peers and adults live out the story) along with the importance of using the imagination.

At the end of the day, The God-Hungry Imagination: The Art of Storytelling for a Postmodern Youth Ministry is a book you should read. I also recommend that you encourage your volunteers to read it and allow the ideas in the book to birth deep, rich and lasting conversations about the importance of the imagination in the formation of adolescents.

“Being a peacemaker is part of being surrendered to God, for God brings peace. We abandon the effort to get our needs met through the destruction of enemies. God comes to us in Christ to make peace with us; and we participate in God’s grace as we go to our enemies to make peace.”

(Glen H. Stassen and David Gushee, Kingdom Ethics)

“The peace intended is not merely that of political and economic stability, as in the Greco-Roman world, but peace in the Old Testament inclusive sense of wholeness, all that constitutes well being … The ‘peacemakers,’ therefore, are not simply those who bring peace between two conflicting parties, but those who actively at work making peace, bringing about wholeness and well-being among the alienated.”

(Robert Guelich, Sermon on the Mount: A Foundation For Understanding)

It seems as though almost everyone associated with youth ministry is talking about the use of story – including myself. And why not, who doesn’t love a good story? I love that we (the world of youth ministry) are talking about story — especially as it relates to helping students engage with God’s story and ultimately his mission. In my opinion, there isn’t a better method of communicating than through the powerful use of story or parable.

I first became intrigued with the use of “story” as a learning method when I read my friend Mark Miller’s book called, “Experiential Storytelling” like 4 years or so ago. Then as a part of my master’s degree I went to a week long seminar in Dallas lead by a guy named J. O. Terry and some others. I was introduced to the Chronological Bible Storying (CBS) method that at the time seemed revolutionary to me. Later I learned that CBS had been around for several decades and utilized by a number of mission agencies like, New Tribes Mission, the Navigators, International Mission Board, etc., mostly in illiterate contexts and for the purpose of sharing the gospel.

I became more deeply intrigued and much more familiar with CBS after working with my friend Mike Novelli. Mike has done extensive research and work in storying (as it is commonly called by those who use story as a learning method) and was really the first person I had met that used the CBS method effectively in his youth ministry.

While at Sonlife, Mike and a team of others created and developed two new events for students that use storying as the chief learning method. One event is called “Merge” and is for high school students and the other is called “Awake” and is for middle school students. Both of these events have been tremendously helpful. Almost weekly I get emails from youth workers and students from all over North America that are filled with stories of life transformation. Currently, Mike is training youth workers in the art of bible storying through his organization called Echo. If you haven’t heard of what he is doing, you should look him up at www.echothestory.com.

In the last few days I have received a few emails from youth workers who are experimenting with the use of storying within their ministry context. Some are creating film shorts and others are writing their own narratives from Scripture that bring together God’s epic story in a way that helps their students understand God more deeply. One of the youth workers that I have been in conversation with is writing a musical for her youth ministry to perform at their annual year-end church-wide fund raiser. She is basing the musical on seven episodes of God’s story that we teach in our Enroute Youth Worker training.

Of course if you were at YS’s NYWC you know the theme was “storyline”. Student Life did a seminar on story called BLUR that I heard didn’t really go over that well and I taught my Story, Signs and Sacred Rhythms seminar (which I also heard, from a few, didn’t go over very well either) J. I just came across a blog post by someone named Drew over at http://collectionofcrumbs.wordpress.com/ who is one post into a five post series called, The Power of Story in Youth Ministry. There is a new book out (that I haven’t read yet but have on order) called, The God-Hungry Imagination: The Art of Storytelling for Postmodern Youth Ministry by Sarah Arthur. Story is everywhere in youth ministry – and I love that it is!

I am concerned about one thing, however. I am concerned that we as youth workers will stop at the use of the method. I know youth workers and I am convinced that our uses of story as a learning/teaching method will be creative and compelling as youth workers are some of the most imaginative people I know. However, I am concerned that we might stop at the “newness” of the approach or technique and therefore fall short of helping our students encounter and develop a narrative theology.

Even if our use of story is powerful and it provides a fresh way of communicating who God is to our students, until we allow narrative theology to inform our way of life, we’ll be discussing the same issues we are today 5, 10, 15, 20 (you get the point) years from now. What will change us? It isn’t leapfrogging from the story of God and the methods we use to introduce our students to it to the systematization of theology as we have come to know it. I am wondering if one of the biggest challenges we face in youth ministry today isn’t the relocation away from a systematic, informational approach to youth ministry (as a starting point) and a movement toward a narrative, informational approach to youth ministry (as a starting point).

More on this in future posts…your thoughts to this point? I would love to hear what you are thinking about as it relates to the use of story, God’s story (and mission) and narrative theology.