Youth Culture Matters - A CPYU Podcast

Research and experience point way too often to the fact that our youth ministries and churches are failing at equipping kids to leave our youth groups with a deep, significant, and lasting faith. Too many kids graduate from high school and into the next phase of life seemingly pushing the pause or stop button on their Christian faith. Consequently, they aren’t ready to faithfully navigate the difficulties they are bound to face in life. How can we begin to take kids deeper into the Gospel? What are the steps we can take to promote spiritual maturity in our students? What are some of the key pillars of effective deep youth ministry? One youth worker has devoted his life to these matters after experiencing his own difficult adolescence, and the sudden death of his own three-year-old son. We’ll hear his story, discover how the truths of the Gospel carried him through the darkness of that time, and look to learn more about doing deep youth ministry, on this episode of youth culture matters.

As parents and youth workers, we are eager to see our kids come to faith in Christ, and to grow in maturity in Christ. Research and experience are pointing to the fact that some of the greatest strides kids make in their faith happen in the camp setting. What happens to kids when they go to a Christian camp? How has Christian camping changed over the course of the last few years? And what can parents and youth workers do to encourage a positive camping experience that yields real life change in the kids they know and love? With summertime fast approaching, you’ll want to listen in as we talk about the benefits and blessings of Christian camping with three camping experts, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

When youth workers ask me about the qualities they should seek to develop in their lives and ministries, there are three that I’m always sure to mention: humility, teachability, and cooperation. Pride kills ministry. Without a determination to learn we get horribly stale. And if we aren’t working with others we forfeit the great benefits of ministering together as part of the body of Christ. How can we intentionally position ourselves to serve Christ, kids, and families most effectively? What does it look like to be a part of a ministry team where all generations learn from each other? And what are the benefits of doing youth ministry in this way? We’ll talk to a multi-generational team of youth workers who are committed to carrying the youth ministry baton together, on this episode of youth culture matters.

Whenever Valentine’s Day rolls around our culture is prompted to think about romance, love, and sex. It’s no fluke that the latest installment in the Fifty Shades of Gray film series was released just a few days before Valentines Day. As followers of the one who created romance, love, and sex, we need to follow Christ by understanding and experiencing romance, love and sex in ways that bring honor and glory to God, rather than in ways that are broken and sinful expressions of sex and sexuality. This means that we have to consciously guide our kids through the minefield of pornography that litters today’s cultural landscape. What should we make of the Fifty Shades phenomenon? What does the interest in the films teach us about what to say and how to say it in our conversations with kids, young adults, and even parents? We’re having a conversation about cultural sexuality and biblical sexuality, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

We don’t like to talk about it, but we must. The spiritual, emotional, and physical well-being of our kids hangs in the balance. That’s why we need to be thinking about and strategizing for how to best push back and minister to kids in the midst of the growing epidemic of teen suicide. What are the signs? What are the myths? How can youth workers and parents intervene in a moment of crisis? Join us for a practical and hope-filled conversation with Dr. Marv Penner about teens and suicide, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

Over the course of Walt Mueller's years of youth ministry, he's developed some wonderful friendships with a variety of youth ministry peers. Some of the most significant relationships have resulted in sometimes fun, sometimes serious, and always profitable conversation about their personal lives and ministry matters. They don't always agree, but they always work to sharpen one another. All of us need these kind of relationships where iron sharpens iron as we love each other and serve together. We invite you to listen in on one of these conversations among youth ministry friends, Walt Mueller, Duffy Robbins, Marv Penner, and Chap Clark... on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

One of the biggest mistakes we make in youth ministry is assuming that we are the ones primarily responsible for the spiritual nurture of teenagers. A second and related mistake is making the assumption that as youth workers, we can actually do a better job of nurturing kids than their clueless parents. Sure, parents might sometimes be not well-equipped to nurture their children in the faith, but they are still called to be the ones primarily responsible for the nurture of their children and teens. How can youth workers properly support and help parents as they fulfill this high calling? Are there steps we can take to be the kind of youth workers parents need? We'll be talking about how youth workers can help parents lead and disciple their teens, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

Prayer is essential to the Christian life. As followers of Jesus, we must make the same request as one of His early disciples: Lord, teach us to pray. Once we learn how to pray, what should we be praying for? In today's incredibly confusing world, one of our primary prayers subjects must be our children and teens. What would happen if as individuals and churches we would begin to engage in daily prayer for each and every young person in our congregation? We'll be talking to Tony Souder about the Pray For Me campaign and how we can build our churches into communities that pray for children and teens, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

Where are we to find our identity? Our current and powerful cultural narrative is convincing children, teens, and adults alike that we are to create, maintain, and find our identity in what we look like on social media. Consequently, we pour our time and energy into practices and habits that destroy us. It’s feeding the epidemics of anxiety, depression, and disordered eating. The path to hope, healing, and fullness is found in a different narrative, the biblical narrative, which leads us to find redemption and identity in Jesus Christ. How can we help our kids hear and follow this life-giving message? Stay with us as we talk about helping kids find their identity in Christ in a world of snaps and selfies with Kristen Hatton, author of the book Facetime. . . on this episode of youth culture matters.

Unless you’ve been asleep, you know that the last few weeks have been flooded with news stories about a growing number of political and celebrity figures and allegations regarding sexual abuse and assault. What’s now known as the Weinstein Effect was front and center again this week with the firing of NBC Today Show Host, Matt Lauer. Should we be shocked? Should we be surprised? We believe that this cultural moment provides us with the opportunity to look inward, to talk to ourselves, and to talk to our kids about a host of issues from a biblical perspective. What are those issues? And, how should we talk about them? We’ll be talking about how to capitalize on these teachable moments and more, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.