I wish someone would have taught me much earlier in my walk with Christ that "desert" experiences do not necessarily mean you have done anything wrong, but are often times part of God's plan for spiritual growth.

There are Godly purposes and responses to our desert times and in this Youth Leader's Coach we'll discover them. For often times, the Lord speaks the loudest while in the desert. And, as long as we learn to listen with a different set of ears, the experience and growth can be profound.

So grab a cup of coffee and let's dive in...together!

Listening intently,

I'm certainly not an MTV watcher; and I hope that most of the students in our youth ministry aren't either (keep hoping, Jeanne), but MTV gives us some great ideas for connecting with today's youth culture. This full-length drama, "Boiling Point," is one of those.

The TV version of this concept is a program that purposefully tries to push people to their boiling point in a certain amount of time. The results are both humorous and painful. So the drama we wrote for this Source builds around this simple, but powerful concept. It's about a young man who slowly reaches his personal boiling point through negative turns in his life. At its conclusion, he attempts to take his own life. (The lights go out and you never know if he succeeds or not.)

The drama was a really powerful night for us, and I'm so thrilled to share it with you. Over 40 teenagers gave their lives to Christ at its conclusion. Best yet, the script is not difficult to pull off.

So enjoy listening and know, that though full-length dramas are obviously extra work, they are always really worth the effort.

Yours for a high "Boiling Point,"

"If you compare and compete, you'll live in defeat." You would think after four decades in exciting, full-time youth ministry that I wouldn't deal with those mind games any more. But in all honesty, I think we all struggle with painful comparison and competition occasionally in our lives. After all, we live in America where only "gold medal winners" are trumpeted. Unfortunately, part of the "comparison and competition game" spills over into even the youth ministry trenches.

Since Dr. Phil isn't anywhere around, let me share some of the ways I've dealt with this "dreaded duo" in my own life and youth ministry in this month's Youth Leader's Coach, "Compare and Compete: Youth Ministry's Dreaded Duo." I'm sharing with you four things that help combat the two-headed dragon of comparison and competition.

Running for an Audience of One,

Someone asked me recently, “What are some things that would have helped you along the ministry journey if you would have known them when you started?” It started my heart and mind reaching back over the more than four decades of youth and young adult ministry experience to make some summations of some of what I’ve learned along the journey.

Listen in as I unpack 5 things that I most wish someone would have shared with me early on when I began in youth ministry. Many of these lessons I’ve learned the painful way. It is my prayer that I can encourage you by helping you avoid some of the same pitfalls I made in my journey.

Lovingly,

A pretty big thought for today's generation of youth and young adults is "What is my destiny?" or "What is my purpose in life?" We all long to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. We want to make our lives count for something that really matters. But far too often it seems that we aren't sure how to FIGHT. We aren't sure how to push past all of the things that come along with fighting for our destiny...like loneliness, compromise, and giving up too easily.

I open this Source, "Musings From My Future Casket," with a pretty powerful but fun visualization, called "Welcome to the funeral service of "Melvin Mediocre"! I also share a story from the Bible about Jacobs's life as he wrestled for his own destiny and use some wisdom from an old movie where a 7th grade student named, Trevor McKinney, comes up with an idea that could actually CHANGE THE WORLD... and then puts it into ACTION. Journey with me as we talk about destiny, becoming part of something bigger than yourself and the concept of "Paying it forward."

Determined to fight for my own destiny,