Spirituality

"Attention, Please!" Connective Spirituality By Randy Kuss

Our job is to help kids pay attention, notice connections with God and each other, and be loving company for God and each other.
Confessions of a Spiritual Abuser By Don Perini

We often have great intentions for our students' spiritual development but end up abusing our positions of authority to manipulate their behavior.
Contemplative Prayer Practices By Mike Perschon

Mike Perschon offers a quick overview of six of the most common types of contemplative prayer practices-without the insider language.
Desert Youth Worker: Disciplines, Mystics, and the Contemplative Life By Mike Perschon

Sometimes following Christ takes roads along green pastures full of friends, family, and familiar devotional books; sometimes the road leads us into silence, solitude, darkness, and desert.
Finding My Way: Constructing a Personal, Authentic Spirituality By Tim Baker

There are lots of different ways in which people are expressing their spirituality out there. Most of us, at least to some degree, have to find our own way. Here are some insights into one author's meandering path.
It's All About the Dew By Steve Case

'We youth workers don't, and probably never will, all approach the Scriptures in the same way. But most of us can agree about the magical properties of Mountain Dew.'
Re-Culturing Youth Ministry: The Disciple as Healer By Chris Folmsbee

In many ways, in many forms, everybody needs healing—and followers of Jesus are the principal agents God uses to bring healing to the world.
Spirituality and Youth Ministry: What Are We Doing? By Mark Yaconelli

Spirituality as a movement has become popular in youth ministry, especially in the marketplace of "spiritual" products and programming techniques. Now is a good time to ask if the spirituality we're offering really is the spirituality of Jesus.
The Old Man and the See: The Spirituality of Stick-to-itiveness By D. Scott Miller

"It's the disciple of stick-to-itiveness which makes this spirituality into something which aspires for the extraordinary." Maybe Dory says it best in Finding Nemo, "Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming."
Tuning In to the Otherness of God By Wayne Highland, Jr.

Spirituality is a lot like beauty, art, and love; everyone recognizes it, but it's hard to define it. Pick up many of the leading books, past or present, outlining techniques for spiritual growth and you'll find few definitions, only a casual attitude of assumed understanding. This is an indication of how both mystical and subjective spiritual experiences can be. However, most teenagers ask a lot of questions, and "I dunno" is usually not an acceptable answer to a serious faith question.
Whose Journey Is It? Avoiding Life-Stage Confusion By Mark Matlock

Are we as youth workers confusing our students' level of spiritual maturity with our own? What happens when we assume the young people in our care are farther along their spiritual journeys than they really are?
‘Are We There Yet?' By Brent Parker

"Are we there yet?" "Are we there yet?" "Are we there yet?" We've all heard that enough to make us want to tear our (or someone else's) hair out. But when it comes to spirituality, are we guilty of too often focusing on the destination and missing out on the spiritual scenery along the way?