{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"You Can Mentor: A Christian Youth Mentoring Podcast","title":"240. With > For // Mentoring Minute","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":386,"description":"With > For\n\nI love youth ministry. I am the product of a healthy youth group from the 80’s and 90’s that loved me well and gave me the chance to realize my identity and purpose within a group of youth workers and teenagers who were my community during those formative years. I also was blessed by a youth minister named Troy who encouraged me and equipped me to the point that after high school (and some considerable wrestling with the call) I became a youth minister too.\n\nChurch leadership through associate pastoring, music ministry, and youth ministry was my only full-time occupation before taking on the role of an executive director of a nonprofit seven years ago.\n\nAs much as I love supporting teenagers and watching them realize their IPC in Christ, there is an element of highly-developed mainstream youth ministry I don’t love – and that is the entertainment factor!\n\nAll too often, there is a high priority in the church to keep our children, teenagers, (and adults) engaged by entertaining them. It can be seen in the games we play, the songs we sing, and even the sermons we preach! Smoke machines, stage lighting, videos, and pastors not dressing age appropriately can be distracting.\n\nOne particular week, I was working on Wednesday night’s bible study after coming up with and making purchases for that night’s fun stage game. I had already planned out that evening’s meal with one of our volunteers and needed to get started on cleaning the youth room from the previous Sunday night. It dawned on me in that moment that a lot of what we did as youth workers was to create an environment FOR our youth in hopes that they enjoy our time together and invite friends to the carnival! The problem was there were no opportunities for youth to invest their time or efforts into the ministry. \n\nIn 1 Samuel 15, Saul is commanded by God to wipe out his enemies. But instead of doing so, Saul spares Agag the king and holds back some of the best livestock to make offerings to God later....","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/1Xka3zDiBlBt17bxGFKaPNKtfL4x0Qw6Yce8LqvHcjw/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS8wMTU4/YTYzZjc5Y2M5NjY4/MTFkZmY0NjExMzM2/Njc1MC5qcGVn.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}