The Curious Ministry of an Unlikely Leader

What does that phrase mean? I've heard a lot of interpretations. One is that we, as Christians, should shy away from any and all influences of this world. We should not listen to any non-Christian music, we should not watch TV shows that do not have a "redeeming" purpose, and so on. While this is a worthy idea, it's not exactly sustainable. It also does not give us the ability to be "in this world" and instead creates a wall between Christians and "the world." This divides us from all others. If we are divided, separated, from the rest of the world, how can we possibly serve it? I've recently come to believe that "in the world, not of it" has a much deeper meaning than simply avoiding the sinful influences of the world. The world, especially now, will have us believe that we are in constant danger. There is a continual bombardment of messages telling us how bad the world is now. We are told that Muslims are the enemy. Immigrants are...

It's been a bit since I've posted. Last week, I was away from the youth group for Princeton Seminary's Institute of Youth Ministry's annual forum. I got to hear from some amazing, brilliant people who really have a heart and understanding for youth ministry. I'm still processing it all! That will be another post, though. The week before, the youth had a jam-packed Wonderful Wednesday. It was our turn for clean-up after the meal. I didn't realize it would take quite as long as it did. That's one of my shortcomings - judging the amount of time it will take to do anything. I'd be chronically late to new places if it weren't for GPS telling me exactly how long it will take me to drive! I digress. We cleaned every pot, pan, knife, and spoon in the kitchen, as well as the tables and anything else we could get our hands on! I say we ... Really, the youth did most of the work.  Photo source: Cliparts After all of that cleaning, we played with the ...