Earlier this year, about thirty of us from varying youth ministry organizations gathered in Orlando with one singular focus. Reaching the next generation. At the outset, a statistic was shared that became our rallying point. Recent research by the Barna Group provided sobering clarity. 7% of the next generation globally identify themselves as Christ-followers. Are …
“Surely the islands look to me…” Isaiah 60:9a In 2012, I sat in my living room watching the Summer Olympics. I ran track in jr. high, high school, and college (800 & 1500 meters), so the Summer Olympics is a genuine treat for me. That Summer though, I was struck by all the Caribbean nations …
“Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” Acts 1:11 NIV At Jesus’ ascension, two men dressed in white appeared and made this announcement …
“In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to their own town to register. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to …
In two weeks, our youngest will return home from Basic Training. Back in the Spring, she enlisted in the Army Reserves, and her Basic Training at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri began in late Summer. After three and a half months away, she will return home a different person. She will return home a soldier. …
In the ever changing landscape of youth ministry, what makes a great youth pastor today? Has it changed in the past few decades? I frequently receive emails from churches looking for a youth pastor. Theirs has either transitioned into another role in the church, moved on to greener pastures, or has left ministry altogether. There …
Have you ever heard the phrase “Jack of all trades, master of none”? I resonate deeply with this phrase — not so much because I’m good at a lot of things, but more because I feel like I haven’t really mastered anything. I like working on projects with my hands, so I’ve dabbled in building …
Completely restored He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. Mark 3:5 NIV When Jesus healed this man with a deformed, shriveled hand, his hand was completely restored. Such a powerful …
XJ, eXperience Jesus, is Sonlife’s new disciple-making event for high school students in partnership with Moody Bible Institute in the summer of 2023. And while XJ is new, its roots go back over 35 years.
In Live Like Jesus, Sonlife’s founder, Dann Spader, does an excellent job diving deep into the rich truth to be found in Jesus’ prayer for the disciples in John 17. In this study, Dann uncovers seven disciplines of a disciple-maker, all revealed in Jesus’ words as He prayed for His followers. “After Jesus said this, …