Dave Urbanski on His Youth Group
Dave Urbanski works behind the scenes with our authors as they put together many of the titles we publish. Recently, I was able to pull him away from his work to capture some high school memories of youth group in suburban Philadelphia.
Do you remember the first time you went to youth group? What was it like?
I was a sophomore in high school & I wasn’t a Christian. I was disarmed by the fun-loving spirit of the group—that they weren’t stodgy Bible thumpers, but took the Bible very seriously. I was captivated by the leader’s message. Never had I heard the Bible, nor biblical truth, described in such a personal, meaningful way. A way of living and believing was presented to me for the first time. I wasn’t looking for a new way of living, but I was certainly affected. I sensed there was something to the Christian life that the leader—and my friend who’d been inviting me to youth group every week—were describing. But I wasn’t ready & didn’t go back to youth group until the spring of my senior year. It was then that I became a believer.
Tell us about your youth leader
One volunteer leader and my friend who invited me to youth group so consistently over the years are still my friends today—25 years later. The volunteer leader was a big music fan, as I was, and we connected on that level—even spiritually, which was revelatory to me.
That volunteer eventually became a youth pastor & is now a senior pastor. My friend who always invited me to youth group and I had many spiritual discussions before I became a believer—and a good number after. He’s a guidance counselor in a public school today. (The three of us are trying for a Philadelphia Phillies night out sometime this summer.)
Share a memory of an activity you did as a group
Summer retreat in the Poconos. Water tubing. My sunburned arms turning to mush and the freezing water knocking me for a loop when I could no longer grip the inner-tube. Memorable downtime discussions. Lots of prayer. Singing old-school worship songs like “Blind Man.”
What’s one thing that you learned in youth group that has stuck with you since graduation?
Another volunteer gave his one-and-only talk on the trials of Job. He was a few years older than me & a goofball most of the time, so I was shocked when he started giving this talk. And the theology of Job’s sufferings that he was laying out (all brand-new to me, as I was still a baby Christian) were eye-opening and had a deep impact on me. I never forgot that talk & it really became foundational for my understanding of God and where we stand in relation to the Almighty.
If you could relay a message to your old youth pastor, what would it be?
Thanks for being faithful and consistent—-truly you never know who’s going to show up week to week, and even one tiny message that may not seem like much can launch a kid into a lifetime of faith.
July 24th, 2008 - Posted By: Adam McLane in YS Staff Highlight | | 0 Comments
Welcome aboard Planet Wisdom
We couldn’t be happier to to welcome our friends at Planet Wisdom to the Youth Specialties family. You can read all about it here at the “very official” sounding press release.
But we know you. We know that a formal press release isn’t all that interesting and doesn’t really capture how we truly feel about the deal. So we put together this little video for you to enjoy.
July 23rd, 2008 - Posted By: Adam McLane in news item | | 2 Comments
Nerd Girls are Cool
I know I’ve had oodles of “nerd girls” in my youth group. Well, most of them were nerd girls in training as they hadn’t quite figured out how to intersect being a “normal girl” with being a “nerd.” But that’s what middle adolescence is all about, right? (Finding your identity by experimenting with a few.)
With the trend towards nerd girls just coming to the forefront the question for youth ministry is, “What are some ways you can reach out to young women who fit this profile:”
The Nerd Girls may not look like your stereotypical pocket-protector-loving misfits—their adviser, Karen Panetta, has a thing for pink heels—but they’re part of a growing breed of young women who are claiming the nerd label for themselves. In doing so, they’re challenging the notion of what a geek should look like, either by intentionally sexing up their tech personas, or by simply finding no disconnect between their geeky pursuits and more traditionally girly interests such as fashion, makeup and high heels. In fact, calling them “nerd” is no insult at all—the Nerd Girls have T shirts emblazoned with the slogan. The crew includes Cristina Sanchez, a master’s student in biomedical engineering (and a former cheerleader) who can talk for hours about aerodynamics. Caitrin Eaton, a freshman, asked her boyfriend for a soldering iron last Christmas. Juniors Courtney Mario and Perry Ross giggle when they talk about what fascinated them most about “No Country for Old Men”: how did the assassin’s air gun work?
July 22nd, 2008 - Posted By: Adam McLane in Culture, news item, video | | 0 Comments
Games not to play at youth group
- Bobbing for Baby Ruth’s in Mountain Dew
- Shave the preacher’s wife’s head
- Skin the Sand Snake
- Hit the intern with tomatoes
- Kiss and tackle
- “What body part is this?”
- Find the saltine
- Twinkie wars in the sanctuary
- Spin the bottle
- Pin the tail on the pastor
July 19th, 2008 - Posted By: Adam McLane in Fun | | 2 Comments
Most recent reason I was fired (or almost fired)
We left this open question on a table at NYWC 2007. Here are some answers.
- For letting a student pee in a water bottle so the van didn’t have to stop on the way to camp.
- Reaching the “wrong kids.”
- Forgetting to pay for the gas at the pump. Got pulled over by the state police.
- I told my pastor that he was the worst thing that ever happened to the church. While it was the truth I found out that the truth does indeed set you free.
- A student shot a red cinnamon bear out of the van at a neighboring car.
- Because I didn’t clean the kitchen
- Students were breaking into cars in the church parking lot
- The music was too loud in the sanctuary
- Couldn’t justify my salary because I was only ministering to 7 youth and 30 children
- Poker tournament
- Was it when I flooded the church after falling asleep while the baptistery was filling? No. Was it after leaving a student at a rest stop on purpose? No. Was it when I went behind the trustees back to make a major purchase? No. Was it that I sensed my students were apathetic and raised the bar? Yes!
- Because I moved some crafts to another room because of dodge ball night.
- The pastor’s wife had a crush on me
- For teaching theology and not dumbing it down
What about you? Got a reason you were fired? (Or almost fired)
July 18th, 2008 - Posted By: Adam McLane in Open Question | | 2 Comments
Don’t click the red button
Need to waste some time? Try to find the end of this bottomless pit. Just don’t press the red button.
July 18th, 2008 - Posted By: Adam McLane in Fun | | 0 Comments
5 Tips for Finding Cheap Gas
While there isn’t much you can do about the gas prices, there are some ways you can quickly find the cheapest way to fill up the church vehicle this summer.
Thanks to our friends at LifeClever, we’re passing on 5 tips for finding cheap gas wherever you travel with your youth group this summer.
- Gas widgets. For Mac users there is Gas. For PC users give GasWatch a try. I’ve used Gas on some recent travels and found it pretty useful.
- On the Web. My favorite site for keeping track of cheap gas in my area is GasBuddy. Toss in your zip code and get a Google map of area prices.
- Text Message. Text the word “gas” followed by a 5-digit zip code to 415-676-8397. Within a few seconds you’ll get a text message back with area gas prices.
- Mobile web browsers. Got a smartphone, blackberry, or iphone? Head over to GasBuddytoGo and put in your location.
- GPS Device. The latest versions of GPS systems from Garmin download local gas prices for your next trip.
For discussion: What are some ways your ministry is beating the gas crunch this summer? Have you had to pass along the higher costs to students? What’s the most you’ve paid to fill up a vehicle for a youth group trip?
July 17th, 2008 - Posted By: Adam McLane in news item | | 0 Comments
Korean Baseball Fight
Help us figure this out. Tell us what you think is going on here.
Leave us a comment with your guess. Also, give us your suggestion for turning this into a youth group game.
July 16th, 2008 - Posted By: Adam McLane in video | | 4 Comments
Focusing Parents on the Goal
“Our task has often been defined as raising children, and ultimately that’s what we’ve ended up with — adult-aged children who don’t feel very well prepared for life in the real world. I think if we were to shift our emphasis to raising adults, everybody is happier.”
So says Jim Hancock in a recent interview at the Indianapolis Star. The interview is about Jim’s book, Raising Adults in which he helps teach parents how to raise 21st 
century kids.
Apparently, this story kicked off some great discussion about parenting adolescents as it was syndicated around the state of Indiana. And we know Jim wouldn’t have it any other way. “I’m not sure there was ever a time when parents were more ready for the practical help youth workers are prepared — or at least preparing — to offer,” he says. “Where else are parents gonna find people who love their kids like they do?”
July 15th, 2008 - Posted By: Adam McLane in Books, Uncategorized | | 1 Comments
Will it Blend? iPhone 3G
July 14th, 2008 - Posted By: Adam McLane in video | | 0 Comments
