| TheSource4YM.com | |
 | Jonathan’s Resource Ezine |
Weekly Resources, Ideas and Articles from The Source for Youth Ministry
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
| In This Issue |
- Featured: A Li’l Bit of Scripture in Your Teenagers’ Ears: A New Podcast Just for Teenagers
- Something You Can Use: A Music Discussion Using Timbaland’s Apologize
- The Source Podcast: Dan Kimball Talks About the Issue of Homosexuality in Episode #12 of The Source Podcast, in THE SEVEN SINS of Preparing Today’s Youth for Life After High School
| If you aren’t a subscriber of this EZINE and would like to subscribe – it’s free – just pop on www.TheSource4YM.com and sign up in the upper right hand corner. |
| Featured: A Li’l Bit a Hit With Teenagers |
Wow! It’s only been 7 short days and our brand new website www.alilbit.com (that’s dedicated to getting teenagers into God’s Word) is proving to be a hit amongst teens all over the country! A Lil Bit is our way of giving your teens “a lil bit of Scripture just to get them through the day.”
Every session is about 10 minutes long and includes a passage of Scripture, an explanation of it, a challenge for teens to take action, and suggestions for further reading on the topic. Teens can simply log onto www.alilbit.com to download our Bible studies onto their iPods.
A Lil Bit isn’t designed to be a replacement for students’ Bible studies and small groups; it’s meant to enhance what you are already offering for them. So broadcast it to your teens and tell them to check it out. And since it’s from The Source, it’s FREE!
Hey, even though the website and podcasts are designed for teens, we won’t tell anybody if you listen along, also.
Wouldn’t it be cool if we could get THE WORD into their ears?
It’s here! www.ALilBit.com
A weekly-updated 10-minute podcast that digs into the Word, applies it to their lives that week, and gives them some further reading for the rest of the week! Check it out for yourself, and then spread the word!
All on www.ALilBit.com
| Something You Can Use: A Music Discussion Using Timbaland’s Apologize |
You know that catchy tune from Timbaland called “Apologize” that every kid seems to be singing along with? How would you like to have a great Bible study that uses the song as a discussion starter and focuses on the theme of forgiveness?
This week’s Spiritual Growth Resource of the Week highlights a lesson that does just that. The resource includes a copy of the song’s lyrics, a relevant passage of Scripture, some small group discussions, and a challenging wrap up. All you need to add is your students.
| The Source Podcast: Dan Kimball Talks About the Issue of Homosexuality in Episode #12 of The Source Podcast, in THE SEVEN SINS of Preparing Today’s Youth for Life After High School |
EPISODE #12
THE SOURCE4YM PODCAST, EPISODE #12
DAN: … and that leads us right into sin #4.
JONATHAN: Beautiful segue!
DAN: … which is… the sin of not addressing human sexuality and homosexuality in a Biblical. thorough, and loving way.
JONATHAN: So you’re saying, “Don’t ignore these issues.”
DAN: I wouldn’t say that in youth ministry we’ve ignored them. I think we have sometimes done a lot of damage in the way we have historically taught about them. We will go out and say “Homosexuality is a sin!” and quote Leviticus 18:22, or Leviticus 20, or Romans 1 and pull these verses out and then say, “It’s wrong! Period.” and leave it there.
JONATHAN: And never explain– never give the reason why.
DAN: And never go into the context of what was going on there, the holistic complexity of human sexuality. You’re teaching a ninth grader that homosexuality is wrong, but not talking about, well, what if a ninth grader does have same sex attraction? What should they do? How should they address it? Is your church a loving place? …trying to create a culture where it can be talked about. And I think we have basically said, “Here’s a couple Bible verses. It’s wrong.”
…I knew of a young girl who was raised in a wonderful church but they talked about homosexuality in such a way that-she was having same sex attraction-but she felt that she couldn’t talk to anybody about it. She had to wait for her college years and then she actually began experimenting in same sex relationships because the church and the youth ministry that she was involved in, even as a leader, was not allowing the discussion to be open so she could share what she was experiencing… she felt, “they’ve already painted me as this horrible sinner, therefore, why would I want to even confess that I’m having these attractions.”
So I’m thinking that we have to really address it in a different way and hold to the truth of the scripture, but we have to create a culture that’s different in our youth ministry, and children’s ministry and our whole church.
JONATHAN: And we gotta realize that our typical youth ministry might mention it… what… maybe a couple times a year? You know, in that one week… “Sex Week.” Or “Strange Beliefs Week!” … and they’ll mention it there. But we gotta realize, every TV show, every class at school, everywhere else they’re hearing, “Hey, this is fine, this is okay, and it you aren’t believing this you’re a tightwad.” And for us not being able to articulate something better than, “Because the Bible says so! Here’s one verse!” That’s probably leaving them way short.
You know Dan, a lot of people here are thinking, “Well, what does this guy with the spikey hair believe about the homosexuality issue?” So can we ask you? What is your belief on it? Because I think people are going to want to know.
DAN: Yeah, my belief is that the holistic teaching of the Bible is…
Click here for more of this FREE podcast where Dan shares his beliefs on this issue, gives 6 more sins, and provides other great pieces of wisdom for those of us equipping high school students for real life! Also here’s what else you’ll get…
Episode Highlights:
- In our YOUTH CULTURE WINDOW section of this podcast we take a peek at an issue that teenagers are very concerned about: it is either war, environmental issues, or world hunger… which do you think it is?
- Dan shares THE SEVEN SINS OF PREPARING TODAYS YOUTH FOR LIFE AFTER HIGH SCHOOL.
- We discuss how Christians are perceived by people outside the church.
- The question of “what are women’s roles in the church” is addressed, and begged to be answered.
- Dan reveals his beliefs about what the Bible says about homosexuality.
- World religions are discussed as well as how Christians often respond to people from those religions.
(CLICK HERE)
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Jonathan McKee
Jonathan McKee is the author of over twenty books including the brand new The Guy's Guide to FOUR BATTLES Every Young Man Must Face; The Teen’s Guide to Social Media & Mobile Devices; If I Had a Parenting Do Over; and the Amazon Best Seller - The Guy's Guide to God, Girls and the Phone in Your Pocket. He speaks to parents and leaders worldwide, all while providing free resources for youth workers on TheSource4YM.com. Jonathan, his wife Lori, and their three kids live in California.