Most youth pastors already influence students more than they realize. The challenge isn’t starting influence. The challenge is directing it. Intentional leaders decide ahead of time what kind of influence they want their ministry to produce and then structure their time, conversations, and leadership around that goal.

One of the most practical ways to lead with intention is by defining what a “win” actually looks like in your ministry. If you asked five of your small group leaders what success on a Wednesday night looks like, would they give the same answer? Or would they hesitate and guess?

When wins are unclear, leaders default to crowd control. When wins are defined, leaders begin focusing on spiritual formation. A win is not simply that students showed up or that the service ran smoothly. A win is when:

• A student takes a spiritual step forward.
• When they ask a deeper question.
• When they open up about something they are struggling with.
• When they pray out loud for the first time.
• When they begin bringing their friends to hear about Jesus.

Intentional influence begins by clarifying the kind of transformation you are aiming at.

Another practical way to influence students intentionally is by slowing down long enough to see them. Student ministry moves fast. Programs have to run, announcements need to be made, and services have to stay on schedule. But the most meaningful moments rarely happen on stage.

• They happen in the margins.
• In the lobby before service starts.
• In the circle after small group when students linger to talk.
• In the moment when a student hangs back because they need someone to notice.

Intentional leaders resist the temptation to rush past these moments. They pay attention. They ask follow-up questions. They remember details from previous conversations. They let students know they are seen.

Intentional influence also means modeling the faith you hope students will develop. Students learn far more from what they observe than from what they hear. They notice how you respond to stress, how you treat volunteers, how you talk about other people, and whether your faith seems real outside of the stage. If students see leaders who pray naturally, open Scripture regularly, and speak about Jesus as someone they actually walk with, that authenticity carries weight.

A ministry culture is often shaped less by what leaders say and more by what leaders consistently demonstrate.

Another practical step is empowering other leaders to share that influence. One of the biggest mistakes youth pastors make is unintentionally centralizing influence around themselves. If every important conversation, spiritual moment, and leadership decision runs through one person, the ministry eventually becomes limited by that person’s capacity. Intentional leaders multiply influence by equipping others. They train small group leaders to shepherd well. They invite volunteers into meaningful conversations with students.

They create a culture where influence is shared, not hoarded.

Finally, intentional influence requires patience. Most spiritual growth in students is invisible at first. Seeds are planted long before fruit appears. A conversation today may not show its impact for months or even years. A prayer you pray with a student might be remembered long after they graduate.

Youth pastors often underestimate how deeply these small moments shape the faith of students over time.

The work of student ministry is rarely flashy. It is slow, relational, and often unseen. But when leaders consistently influence students with purpose, character, and love, something powerful begins to happen. Students begin to trust the leaders around them. They begin asking deeper questions. They begin taking ownership of their faith.

Intentional influence does not happen accidentally. It is built through thousands of small decisions that point students toward Jesus.

And over time, those small decisions shape lives.

A Final Word to the Shepherds…

You may not trend online. You may not fill arenas. You may not see immediate fruit. But every faithful moment matters.

Every student conversation. Every prayer circle. Every sermon prepared with tears. Every late- night call answered. Leadership in youth ministry is slow, sacred work. And heaven measures differently than the world.

So, influence boldly. Shepherd faithfully. Lead humbly. Because the next generation is watching and becoming under your care.

The post Leadership: What Intentional Influence Looks Like in Student Ministry appeared first on Student Leadership University.

At Youth Pastor Summit we continually focus on four indispensable idea, leading to four key questions concerning ministry:

1. Spiritual Formation: Who are we becoming?
2. God’s Mission: What story is God telling?
3. Ethics: How should we think?
4. Leadership: Why and how do we influence?

In the previous weeks, Dr. Wallace and Pastor McDermott have done an incredible job of writing to ideas one and two. Now we turn our attention to an ever-evolving question: how should I think, and how should I help students think, about the tidal wave of moral decisions that crash upon the shores of their lives? I say ‘ever-evolving’ because the questions are always changing. The work of equipping students with an ethic is part of the assignment for every next gen leader. Ethics matter because when done right our students can stand on that shore, look at the tidal wave, and smile confidently knowing they will not be overwhelmed. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. First, where does our modern day word ‘ethic’ originate?

Unquestionably one of the great minds and philosophers in history was Aristotle (384-322 BC) who was a student of Plato (428ish – 348 BC), who was in turn a student of Socrates (470-399 BC). These three Greek philosophers would come to define one of the most important ages of intellectual thought in history. Known as the Classical period, their works would shape the future of Western thinking for over two thousand years. At first glance you might be thinking this either sounds ancient, boring, or even irrelevant. Welp, it is ancient but far from boring and incredibly relevant. Consider that everything from the arts to the sciences, math to literature, and even politics and government (think democracy) are still being impacted by the vast intellectual work of these men. Aristotle was recognized to be such an important thinker that King Philip II asked him to personally tutor his son…Alexander the Great.

One of Aristotle’s most important works is simply titled Rhetoric. In it he codifies the three main modes of persuasion: ethos, pathos, and logos. We learn from Aristotle that a person’s ability to help another person become convinced of an idea depends on how intentional one is with these three modes. Aristotle described logos, ethos, and pathos this way:

There are, then, these three means of effecting persuasion. The man who is to be in command of them must, it is clear, be able (1) to reason logically, (2) to understand human character and goodness in their various forms, and (3) to understand the emotions-that is, to name them and describe them, to know their causes and the way in which they are excited.[1]

So, we get the Rhetorical Triangle from the three modes of persuasion as written about by Aristotle in Rhetoric. Now let’s give some general grasp of these words and see how that informs our understanding of building a set of guiding principles.

                  First the word logos. Now this word would come to have a very special meaning in theology. It often refers to God’s special revelation and “in its unique meaning personifies the revelation of God as Jesus the Messiah.”^[2] But Aristotle used it in a way that was consistent with classical Greek meaning both “reason” and “word.”^[3] In this sense it is a mode of persuasion that appeals to a sense of logic and reason. The word pathos in the classical Greek literally means ‘suffering’. As a mode of persuasion, it focuses on what a person or audience may be feeling, or what might motivate them to consider an idea. When an author or speaker appeals so that the reader or audience feels something that elicits an emotional response, then pathos is being used as a mode of persuasion.

Ethics Explained

The word most relevant for our discussion today is ethos. The reason is because ethos, when properly understood, gives way to our understanding of ethics. It is a word that means ‘moral character’ and often refers to the credibility of the person who is doing the persuading. As a mode of persuasion ethos certainly speaks to the credibility of someone but also describes the moral character or guiding ideals of the persuader, a people or a culture. We need to understand ethos represents the moral character and credibility of the person doing the persuading, who also reflects the attitude, beliefs, and ideals of the audience.

So, what does this have to do with ethics, and furthermore why is ethics important? If ethos has to do with moral character and beliefs and ideals, then ethics are those ideals put into principles that can affect how we think, live, and make decisions. If ethos revolves around credibility and the idealistic version of what could be, then ethics is the expression of that in a potentially practical way. Let’s look at a very basic example of this. The apostle Paul wrote in Colossians 3:12-13,

Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and dearly loved, put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a grievance against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you are also to forgive.

The moral character that we possess is itself a gift from God. To be chosen, or as Paul wrote elsewhere “set apart to the gospel of God”, means we are holy and loved by God. We therefore have the capacity to be compassionate, kind, humble, gentle, and patient. This all speaks to ethos:

-the credibility of God, he loved us and is the only one that can choose to make us holy

-his moral character expressed as holy ideals for our lives

The expression of this ethos is that we can choose to endure with one another and be quick to forgive if we are wronged. Our ethic when it comes to forgiveness can be summed up in one statement: “forgiving one another, just as God also forgave you in Christ.” Ephesians 4:32. Ethos, then, is the foundation providing the credibility, belief, and ideals for ethics.

Ethics Practiced

Now let’s take a bit to understand a little more in depth this idea of ethics and how it can affect our thinking, living, and decision making. When we talk about doing the work of ethics, simply put, we are organizing principles from Scripture to inform how we should think, live, and make certain decisions. The Harper Bible Dictionary offered a great overarching summary of the importance of ethics:

“Ethical concerns occupy a central position throughout the Bible with respect to the actions of individuals as well as the whole community. At points this is presented in terms of general and absolute norms (as in the Ten Commandments), and in other places it can be discerned in the actions of people and the customs of the society.”^[4]

One of my favorite characters in history is Dietrich Bonhoeffer. The German theologian-pastor-church planter turned spy who sought the downfall of the Third Reich during WWII. He would end up paying the ultimate price for his convictions being hung in a concentration camp at the age of thirty-nine. Bonhoeffer believed some of the most important work he did was a book he simply titled Ethics. In it he wrote,

“Those who wish even to focus on the problem of a Christian ethic are faced with an outrageous demand—from the outset they must give up, as inappropriate to this topic, the very two questions that led them to deal with the ethical problem: “How can I be good?” and “How can I do something good?” Instead, they must ask the wholly other, completely different question: what is the will of God?”^[5]

It is to this end that we care so deeply about Christian ethics because we want to know and respond to the will of God. To put it even more specifically, we want Christ glorified in all aspects of our thinking, living, and decision making.

I believe a Christian worldview makes all the difference in our understanding of ethics. We pursue a Christian understanding of ethics because we are grateful for, and seek to exalt, Christ. We desire to live set apart, because Christ has called us and set us apart for the gospel of God (see Romans 1:1). Oswald Chambers describes this beautifully, 

“Jesus Christ did not come to tell men they ought to be holy—there is an “ought” in every man that tells him that, and whenever he sees a holy character he may bluster and excuse himself as he likes, but he knows that is what he ought to be: He came to put us in the place where we can be holy, that is, He came to make us what He teaches we should be, that is the difference.”^[6]

Therefore, ethics for the Christian should be moral decision making, empowered by the person and work of Jesus, according to the moral will of God. It is thinking and acting as a citizen of heaven about a host of moral issues, while living in a depraved and broken world. The work of ethics is more than figuring out what to think on any given topic, rather it is formulating principle-based paradigms for how to think in an ever-devolving culture. Or more simply put, doing ethics is like building a bridge from the current moral dilemma to the will of God.

Now back to the tidal wave of moral decisions rapidly approaching and crashing on the shores of our students lives. It is a daunting task, and one that you will never feel is completed. At times it can be frustrating and even discouraging. But take heart, God has not left us to our own to depend on earthly wisdom. We have heavenly help. Jesus still rebukes the wind, he still calms the seas, he still empowers us to navigate everything on the horizon.

[1] https://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/rhetoric.1.i.html

^[2] Douglas Estes, “Logos,” ed. John D. Barry et al., The Lexham Bible Dictionary (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2016).

^[3] Arch B. D. Alexander, “Logos,” ed. James Orr et al., The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia (Chicago: The Howard-Severance Company, 1915), 1911.

^[4] Achtemeier, P. J., Harper & Row and Society of Biblical Literature. (1985). In Harper’s Bible dictionary (1st ed., pp. 283–284). Harper & Row.

^[5] Bonhoeffer, D. (2005). Ethics (I. Tödt, H. E. Tödt, E. Feil, & C. J. Green, Eds.; R. Krauss, C. C. West, & D. W. Stott, Trans.; Vol. 6, p. 47). Fortress Press.

^[6] Chambers, O. (1947). Biblical ethics. Marshall, Morgan & Scott.

The post Ethics: Building a Bridge from Moral Dilemmas to the Will of God appeared first on Student Leadership University.

That question begins to pull our gaze off ourselves and toward something greater.

Students today are surrounded by stories telling them who they should be, what they should chase, and how they should measure success. Social media promises significance through visibility. Culture celebrates influence through followers, fame, and wealth. Achievement is framed as the ultimate goal. In that environment, it is easy for students to believe their lives are meant to be self-authored and self-promoted. Yet the gospel offers a far better narrative: God is telling a redemptive story, and He is inviting every believer to take part in it.

From Genesis to Revelation, Scripture reveals a God who is actively pursuing the restoration of His creation and the reconciliation of His people. Mission is not something the Church invented; it initiates from the very heart of God. Student ministry, therefore, is not merely about moral improvement or spiritual information. It is about helping them recognize that their lives fit within a much larger, much more meaningful story that God is already writing. When students grasp the mission of God, faith stops being something they add to their lives and begins to become the lens through which they live it.

Helping students join the mission of God begins with teaching them that the gospel is not only about what Jesus has done for them, but also about what He now desires to do through them. Salvation brings belonging, but it also brings sending. Jesus’ words are clear: “As the Father has sent me, I also send you” (John 20:21). Students are not simply invited to attend church; they are commissioned to live as ambassadors of Christ everywhere they go.

For too long, “mission” has often been reduced to occasional service projects or short-term trips, valuable as they may be. But our commitment to and participation in the mission of God is lived out in everyday faithfulness. It is displayed in kindness that stands out, integrity that refuses to cut corners, courage that speaks truth with love, and compassion that notices the overlooked. When students learn that mission is not limited to church programs but woven into everyday life, their ordinary rhythms become sacred opportunities.

As leaders, we have been entrusted to help students interpret their lives through a missional lens. Instead of just asking, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” we also ask, “Who is God calling you to reach?” and “How might God want to use your gifts for his glory and the good of others?” Purpose becomes less about career and more about calling. Success becomes less about personal achievement and more about faithful obedience. We have the opportunity to model missional living for our students. They need to see leaders who care deeply, serve sacrificially, and live generously. They need to see leaders who live on mission beyond a Wednesday or a

Sunday, beyond the four walls of the church. That’s when it becomes part of the culture, not just part of the curriculum.

This is why the Youth Pastor Summit continues to emphasize God’s mission as one of the core questions for every leader and ministry. Programs may change, strategies may shift, and cultural challenges will continue to evolve, but the mission of God remains constant. Our task is not to invent a mission for students, but to help them discover that they are already included in God’s redemptive plan.

Ultimately, we want students to understand that they are not the authors of their own salvation story, but they are meaningful characters in God’s ongoing work of redemption. Their words, choices, relationships, and compassion can reflect the heart of Christ to a watching world. That is not pressure; it is privilege.

So, we keep asking the question: What story is God telling? Because when students see God’s mission clearly, they begin to live with purpose boldly. And when they live with purpose, their faith becomes active, their influence becomes intentional, and their story becomes part of something far greater than anything they could ever write on their own.

The post What Story Is God Telling? Inviting Students to Join the Mission of God. appeared first on Student Leadership University.

In a culture obsessed with image, metrics, and performance, student ministry can easily drift toward asking, What are we producing? How many students attended? How many decisions were made? While those questions are not unimportant, they are incomplete. Scripture reminds us that God is far more concerned with who we are becoming than what we are accomplishing. Formation precedes function and identity shapes impact. We see this throughout scripture:

• Relationship before responsibility (John 15; Mark 3)
• Transformation before mission (Romans 12; Romans 8)
• Heart before harvest (1 Samuel 16; 1 Corinthians 13)

Spiritual formation is the lifelong process of being shaped into the likeness of Christ. For students, this process is especially critical because adolescence is a season of intense identity development. They are already being formed by social media, peer pressure, cultural narratives, political polarization, and digital algorithms that disciple them far more hours each week than most churches ever will. Thus, if the Church does not intentionally engage in spiritual formation, someone or something else will gladly take on the role of shaping their hearts, values, and worldview.

At its core, spiritual formation is about cultivating habits, rhythms, and relationships that root students in Jesus. It is about teaching them not only what to believe, but how to live, how to pray, how to repent, how to forgive, how to listen to God, and how to walk faithfully when no one is watching. It is about helping them develop a resilient faith that can withstand doubt, disappointment, and cultural pressure.

Without formation, we risk creating spiritual consumers rather than spiritual disciples, which will lead to students who attend events but lack endurance, who know Christian language but lack spiritual depth, who follow Jesus when it is easy but quietly drift when faith becomes costly. Spiritual formation, however, builds spiritual muscle. It prepares students not just for the next retreat, but for the next decade.

Just as importantly, spiritual formation is not only for students; it is for leaders. The question “Who are we becoming?” must first be answered in the hearts of those who lead. Students may admire our words, but they will imitate our lives. They can sense when faith is performative versus practiced, when prayer is scripted versus sincere, when leaders are busy doing ministry but not abiding with Christ. Healthy spiritual formation in students is rarely produced by perfect programs, but it is consistently influenced by authentic, spiritually grounded adults.

This is why YPS places spiritual formation first among its four foundational questions. Before we talk about strategy, leadership systems, or ministry models, we must talk about becoming. Becoming Christlike. Becoming rooted. Becoming emotionally healthy, spiritually mature, and relationally present. Because no ministry structure can compensate for spiritual emptiness, and no leadership platform can replace personal intimacy with God.

When student ministry prioritizes formation, everything else changes. Teaching becomes more than information transfer. Worship becomes more than emotional moments. Small groups become more than social gatherings. They become sacred spaces where transformation is expected, where honesty is welcomed, and where growth is patiently nurtured over time.

In the end, the success of student ministry cannot be measured only by what happens on a stage or in a single season. It must be measured by the kind of adults those students become; men and women who love Jesus, love others, live with conviction, and remain faithful long after the youth group lights are turned off.

That is why we must keep asking the question: Who are we becoming? Because long after programs fade and trends change, spiritual formation remains. And spiritual formation, by God’s grace, changes everything.

The post Formation Before Function: Reclaiming the Heart of Student Ministry appeared first on Student Leadership University.

If we were to follow the imagery of George on the bridge just outside the little town bright with Christmas lights, peace might seem fickle indeed. Who is to say that George won’t one day return to the bridge, questioning life and all the decisions again? Whose to say that even after moments of perspective and clarity we don’t return to bridges of despair? Is it that hard to believe? I know in my own life I have enjoyed inescapable moments of God’s presence, and others where sin or circumstances make Him feel a million miles away. And if I am not careful, peace then becomes a delicate thing that needs my protection. But maybe such an understanding of peace is sadly misinformed.

You see, God’s peace doesn’t need my protection, God’s peace was given to be enjoyed. The apostle Paul teaches in Romans 5:1, “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Peace, that is peace with God, isn’t dependent upon our ability to always get it right, nor is it dependent on the good and difficult circumstances of life. The peace we enjoy depends on the finished work of Christ on the cross. We must always keep our belief in check; our peace was accomplished by Christ and Christ alone. The Hebrew term ‘Messiah’, meaning ‘Anointed One’, is equivalent to the Greek term ‘Christ’. Messiah carries with it an understanding of future hope. Christ is hope arrived, living and breathing amongst us and making it possible to have peace with God again. Therefore, peace can be defined this way:

Peace is that unchanging condition where we always find ourselves safe in the promises of God.

If hope comes to our address and faith opens the door and joy is the emotion that fills the house, then what is the lasting evidence of advent season? What is the change to my life? In a word P E A C E. Peace is what takes up residence in our hearts, in our lives. Long after the decorations come down and the beautiful chaos of Christmas gives way to a rhythm of a new year, peace endures with the Christian. This is what Jesus taught in John 14:27,

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”

The prophet Isaiah shared this plot 700-or-so years earlier when he shares writes,

For to us a child is born,

to us a son is given;

and the government shall be upon his shoulder,

and his name shall be called

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

The prophet gave four names or titles, which collectively explain the character of the Messiah. The last title speaks to the lasting, unchanging condition the Christian enjoys where he or she is safe in the promises of God. A prince is typically a son of a monarch. Jesus is the Son of God, the Messiah, the Christ. Standing before the mockery of the Jewish leadership, called the Sanhedrin, He was asked “are you the Christ?” Jesus responds in Mark 14:62, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” Jesus was bluntly saying, I am the one that Isaiah wrote about, the one that everyone was hoping for … oh and whether you believe it or not you will see it and know it when I come again. Two advents, two promises, in one response. The waiting and arrival of His first and second coming, redemption and restoration. Put another way, everyone may not believe in the first advent, but everyone will believe in the second.

The sad thing about the Jewish leadership, and so many down through the ages, is that the peace they desperately needed was available and yet they fought against it. In the Hebrew language peace is often associated with prosperity. Advent season is a time for us to rediscover, or maybe discover for the first time, the invaluable and irreplaceable gift of peace. There is a prosperity, a richness in grace, when the Prince of Peace takes up residence in our lives.

So, settle in and light a candle, open the Bible and study about the peace of God. As the flames of now four candles flicker, imagine their illumination filling a dark room. Let your mind grow ever aware of how light and darkness cannot coexist, and that light chases out the darkness. Just as light chases out the darkness, so peace chases out the chaos and conflict. Know this advent season that peace is our identity because we are in Christ. And every time that bridge just out of town comes calling, let’s preach to ourselves an all-important message: I have the greatest gift…my home is to be safe in the promises of God … peace has taken up residence in my life, this is who I am.

The post Advent Week 4: Peace takes up Residence appeared first on Student Leadership University.

Eventually George reaches a breaking point. This alternate reality only gave way to a desperate man. He runs out of the little town and hurries to the bridge where he had first met the angel-type-being, hoping the little man would still be there. Stern’s fable then tells us,

George was relieved to see the little stranger standing on the bridge. “I’ve had enough,” he gasped. “Get me out of this—you got me into it.” The stranger raised his eyebrows, “I got you into it! I like that! You were granted a wish. You got everything you asked for. You’re the freest man on earth now. You have no ties. You can go anywhere—do anything. What more can you possible want?” “Change me back,” George pleaded. “Change me back—please. Not just for my sake but for the others too. You don’t know what a mess this town is in. You don’t understand. I’ve got to get back. They need me here.” “I understand right enough,” the stranger said slowly. “I just wanted to make sure you did. You had the greatest gift of all conferred upon you—the gift of life, of being a part of this world and taking part in it. Yet you denied that gift.”

When we meet George on the bridge the first time, he is desperate to escape his life. When he returns to that bridge, at the end of the story, he is desperate to regain the life he lost. What changed? In a word, perspective. This was the actual gift the angel had given. The dictionary defines perspective as, “a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; a point of view.” George now saw life through a different filter. The story ends with joy, as George hurried back through the village seeing friends and family along the way. He made sure to kiss his mother, joke with his father, and squeeze his brother’s hand, as if to assure himself that he was still alive. The story ends with joy coming home. George returns to his wife, Mary, and the kids, smothering them with affection, and realizing that what he had experienced wasn’t a dream … it was real, and now this life was real again.

The Advent season is an entire time of the year, traditionally four weeks, that gives again and again the gift of perspective. The groundswell of anticipation felt, building with each passing week, until it gives way to celebration. If hope comes to our address, if faith opens the door, then joy is the emotion that fills the house. Christmas is a celebration of life. The gift of a life that had been prophesied down through the ages and arrived in an unassuming manner. In short, the birth of Jesus makes a new type of joy possible. Let me explain.

In the New Testament the Greek words for ‘joy’ and ‘grace’ are closely related:

χαρά (joy)           χάρις (grace)

See the similarities? Now read Luke 2:10-12,

But the angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid, for look, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people: Today in the city of David a Savior was born for you, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be the sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped tightly in cloth and lying in a manger.”

There is an undeniable correlation between joy and Jesus in the above text. In fact, some Bible translators have rendered the “good news of great joy” portion of the text: “I evangelize to you a great joy.” The joy we experience is because of the Savior that was born. Titus 2:11 reads, “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people…” God’s grace to mankind is Jesus, mankind’s response is joy. Joy is the natural response to grace because grace is the greatest reason for joy.

Advent allows us to return to that bridge just outside of town. Not in desperation and hopelessness. Rather, Advent affords us the margin and ability to return to a place where we can recapture a sense of anticipation and wonder. It is a season to rediscover the gift given and hopefully regain the meaning of it all. I hope, as we walk through our third week of advent, that this week is one of great joy because of the great grace God has given you.

The post Advent Week 3: Joy Fills the House appeared first on Student Leadership University.

Everyone is waiting for something. The ‘where’ of our waiting is the best place to begin the advent season. The place or posture of our waiting, our current emotional address, usually speaks to our expectations…our hopes. Some wait and hope believing it to lack meaning. To them hope is a lying expectation. Others wait and hope with caution. Theirs is an expectation that says, “I believe good things are on the horizon, but I am prepared to be disappointed.” They hope with a disclaimer. But there is a third type of hope, one that is fully convinced and confidently believes. They are adventing with great expectation. It’s a hope that is continually giving way to deeper faith and higher praise. Dr. John Piper defines it this way, “Biblical hope is biblical faith in the future tense.”

Whatever your posture. That of a lying hope, hope with a disclaimer, or hope with great expectations…there is room for all the feelings during this season of advent. God is not threatened by our lack of faith, be it denial or caution. God has never been threatened. He doesn’t move away from the George Baileys standing on the bridge, he runs to them. Neither does he cozy up to our caution, those expecting disappointment but rather he overwhelms it with his arrival. The closer Jesus gets the more disappointment fades.

Hope, the kind that hopes in the promises of God, always gives way to faith. A slight shift in our posture can give way to a tidal wave of purpose. He may have been born in a manger, but he will not force himself into your house. He may pursue us relentlessly, but he will not kick down the door to our hearts. As Max Lucado writes in A Gentle Thunder,

“God will whisper. He will shout. He will touch and tug. He will take away our burdens; he’ll even take away our blessings. If there are a thousand steps between us and him, he will take all but one. But he will leave the final one for us. The choice is ours.”

The choice to let expectation give way to experience, to let wondering give way to believing, is God’s design and desire for Advent:

“When the time came to completion, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” Galatians 4:4-5

Redemption, and future restoration, is the reason for the waiting. It’s what gives meaning to our waiting. Oswald Chambers explained it this way, “Hope without faith loses itself in vague speculation, but the hope of the saints transfigured by faith grows not faint but endures “as seeing Him Who is invisible.””

So, Advent is a season of hope that never leads to darkness swirling like liquid glass. The future is not an abyss bidding us to give in and give up. Advent is a season that about how we were called “out of darkness into his marvelous light.” The future is grace showing up to carry us home. Hope comes to our address; faith opens the door. And when we allow hope to give way to belief, then we position our lives to be filled with joy. But that’s a candle for another week.

The post Advent Week 2: Faith Opens the Door appeared first on Student Leadership University.

As copies of Stern’s story were given to friends that December 1943, one copy ended up being brought to the attention of RKO Pictures. Intrigued, they purchased the rights to turn the 4100-word story into a script for a movie. Soon thereafter, a director named Frank Capra purchased it from RKO and brought it to the attention of actor James Stewart who had recently returned from World War II. Stewart severely suffered from PTSD. As a bomber pilot he had watched friends die, had many brushes with death, and found himself in the throes of combat so often that eventually his superior officers grounded him because of his condition.

After his service, Stewart seriously considered retiring from acting to lead a quiet life running his family’s store in Pennsylvania. Capra had different plans for Stewart and the two married their talents to create the film It’s a Wonderful Life. The character of George Bailey would become James Stewart’s favorite of the over 80 characters he portrayed on the big screen. 

Stern’s original opening of The Greatest Gift begins in dark and desperate fashion, typical of a depressed person standing on the edge of meaning and meaningless,

“The little town straggling up the hill was bright with colored Christmas lights. But George Bailey did not see them. He was leaning over the railing of the iron bridge, staring down moodily at the black water. The current eddied and swirled like liquid glass, and occasionally a bit of ice, detached from the shore, would go gliding downstream to be swallowed up in the shadows under the bridge. The water looked paralyzingly cold. George wondered how long a man could stay alive in it. The glassy blackness had a strange, hypnotic effect on him. He leaned still further over the railing…”

ALL of history waits. Everyone wonders, pontificates, and anticipates future history. How will it happen? Will it gloriously burst on the scene with a prerecorded symphonic score designed to give us all the feels that accompany a foreshadowing hope? Or will it sneak in the side door, purchase an economy ticket and sit amongst us, all the while we are oblivious to its presence? Will the ‘what’ we wait for live up to the hype, or will it disappoint?

Before discussing the ‘what’, I would like to ask a sacredly relevant question: If all of history waits…if we each are individually waiting…where are you waiting? After all, where we spend our time waiting, is a reflection of our view of life and self and the meaning of it all.

For some our ‘where’ is next to George Bailey on the bridge, standing on the brink looking at the abyss. The dark current swirling like liquid glass somehow feels like a residence, a destiny that cannot be escaped. These find a strange refuge in the paralyzing cold and deafening silence of this place. For them the painful nights have become the norm, they have become home.

Others are down the street, far from the shadows of George Bailey’s experience, in the city, enjoying all the decorations and Christmas lights. They drive slow down the main street, not wanting the moment to pass, not wanting to leave so much happiness. Their cup is full this time of year, full of Christmas magic with all its sights, sounds, and smells.

Many of us, though, secretly find ourselves somewhere in between. We aren’t on a bridge needing rescue, nor are we lost in the moment amongst the decorum of main street. Our bedfellows are both joy and sadness, excitement and anxiety, hope and despair. At times we see the meaning of it all, other times the world around us feels meaningless.

As we begin this Advent season, a time of waiting and anticipating the birth of Jesus, let’s begin with the ground beneath our feet. It’s ok. It’s not selfish. If anything, it reflects the entire meaning of the Advent season. God came to us, to the place of our current condition, he put his feet on the ground next to ours. He shared the dirt underneath our feet. So the ‘where’ is an important place to start. The bridge far removed from joy, the street at the center of happiness, the in-between places. Your emotional address, your ‘where’, and honesty about it, can be the starting point of a season of waiting that gives way to something unexpected…something needed.

The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, Generous inside and out, true from start to finish John 1:14, The Message

All of history was waiting, and Jesus slipped in the side door, purchased an economy ticket and sat next among us. The incarnation story begins with our place. Our broken, messy, standing on the brink, driving down main street, or somewhere in between neighborhoods. Christmas comes to us, that’s what makes is so magical. In the coming weeks we will focus on different parts of the meaning of Advent. But for today, here at the beginning, hope is on the horizon…and its coming to us.

This is part one of a four part Advent devotional series provided by SLU.

The post Advent Week 1 : Hope Comes to our Address appeared first on Student Leadership University.

Last month, I was in Singapore and was asked to speak at a Christian school for its weekly chapel program. When I accepted, I was warned that the students did not care much for chapel, so their non-attention and minor disruptions should not offend me. This made me even more enthusiastic about speaking!

At the chapel program, instead of opening pleasantries, I started by answering questions I knew they had:

Why does God allow such suffering in the world?

Why are Christians so mean-spirited toward LGBTQ people?

Doesn’t science prove that God is unnecessary?

Can I still be a Christian if I have doubts?

I tied together the questions to our worldview commitments and compared the responses. Students were with me the whole time, and the conversations with individuals afterward were lively.

Students in Singapore ask the same questions our students do. This experience exemplifies how youth today everywhere are impacted by the rapidly changing cultural and technological landscape. Their faith ranks as an add-on to their social life and social media consumption – and it does not fit in neatly.

Our most meaningful interactions are often when we encourage them to ask questions about their faith and to think through the challenges to Christianity. They have seen and heard many of them, and they lurk in the back of their minds, resulting in a tentative commitment. Given the opportunity, they ask deep and challenging questions about God, the Bible, and Christianity and how these relate to their world. Their questions reflect a desire to reconcile faith with a current understanding of the world and personal identity. Here are some of the common questions they might ask:

(How many of these questions have you heard from your youth? How many of these questions do you think your youth have but haven’t asked out loud?)

Questions About God

1. Is God real? How can we know?
2. Why does God allow suffering and evil?
3. Can God really love me after what I’ve done or thought?
4. How can God be relevant in a modern scientific world?
5. Doesn’t science prove that God doesn’t need to exist?
6. If He does exist, why does God not make His presence more real?
7. Why does He let bad things happen to people like children getting abused by adults or dying of cancer or a natural disaster?

Questions About the Bible

1. Is the Bible still relevant today?
2. How can we trust the Bible if it was written so long ago?
3. Are the stories in the Bible literal or symbolic?
4. How do we interpret challenging parts of the Bible, like those about violence or controversial moral teachings?
5. How can you have a book from God written by people?
6. Why the Bible and not the Quran, or the Upanishads, or other “holy” books?
7. Why did God order Israel’s army to kill all the people, including children (Deut. 20:16)?
8. Why does God order execution for disobedient children, people who are homosexual, and people who work on the Sabbath?
9. Why did so many Bible heroes have a lot of wives? Why can’t we?

Questions About Christianity

1. What makes Christianity different from other religions?
2. Why are there so many different Christian denominations, and which one is right?
3. How can I be a Christian when Christians have done so many bad things throughout history?
4. What does it mean to be saved, and how can I be sure I am?
5. If Christianity is true, then why are there so many other religions who think they are correct, and Christians are wrong?
6. If Christianity is true, why haven’t most people in the world had an opportunity to hear about it?
7. Can I be a Christian and still have doubts about my faith?
8. How should Christians respond to issues like LGBTQ+ rights, climate change, and racial justice?
9. What does Christianity say about relationships, dating, and sex?
10. How can I practice my faith without seeming judgmental or out of touch with my peers?

Questions About Faith and Culture

1. How can I maintain my Christian faith in a culture that often seems opposed to it?
2. How should Christians engage with popular culture like music, movies, and social media?
3. Can I enjoy secular entertainment, or must everything I do be explicitly Christian?
4. How do we handle the pressures of social media in light of Christian values?

Questions About Christians

1. Why are many Christians so close-minded and mean-spirited?
2. Why do Christians hate gays and Hispanics?
3. How come Christians still sin as much as everyone else?
4. How come Christians dislike each other? Why are there so many denominations?

These questions reveal teenagers seeking authenticity and practical guidance in living out their faith in a complex, often contradictory world. Youth pastors and Christian educators can address these questions by creating safe, open environments for discussion, using Scripture as a foundational guide, and relating biblical principles to contemporary issues in a relevant, empathetic manner. Engaging with these questions thoughtfully can help strengthen teenagers’ faith and equip them to navigate their world as informed, compassionate followers of Christ.

Top of Form

Where to Start?

For You as a Leader

Set the Tone

Create an environment of exploration and explanation for your students. Asking and answering questions should be a central theme of the gatherings. Let them develop confidence that Christianity is open to examination and challenges.

Prepare Yourself

Every youth pastor should be conversant with apologetics. There is no shortage of resources available to inform yourself and your youth about the art of providing meaningful responses to questions about Christianity and the biblical worldview.

Lifeway has some excellent books providing apologetics resources (https://www.lifeway.com/en/searchpage.html?prod.taxonomy.lwc%5Bquery%5D=Apologetics&prod.taxonomy.lwc%5Bpage%5D=2)

AXIS (www.Axis.org) is the best source for up-to-date interaction with all things youth culture. They provide parent guides, discussion kits, etc. All free.

What Would You Say? (https://whatwouldyousay.org/) provides short but to-the-point responses to questions people ask about Christianity and Culture from the Colson Center for Christian Worldview. All Free.

Got Questions (https://www.gotquestions.org/questions_Christianity.html) is a good source for responses to the most common questions about Christianity (and many uncommon questions, too). All Free.

Of course, other resources are also available. If you have sites, YouTube videos, books, etc., you have found particularly useful, please leave a message below.

How do you get your students to ask questions?

Some youth programs encourage students to pose questions to the leaders in an open-ended “forum” (raise your hand; ask a question). I recommend this only if the leader(s) are comfortable and proficient in answering challenging apologetic questions.

When you receive questions, it is best to have time to research and respond in a way the students can understand and remember. One good way to do this is to have students ask the questions near the end of the meeting, expecting them to be answered at the next meeting or have students write out questions and leave them with you (or put them in a “question box”). Then, you can work on them before the next meeting (possibly using the resources I cited above).

 Don’t forget that you can take control of the Q&A process by asking a question yourself. For example, you could say, “How many of you have heard someone ask, ‘How can God exist when there is so much evil in the world?’” Before you answer, you could get responses from the students individually or arrange them in small groups to discuss the issue.

How do you answer the questions for the students?

The easiest, of course, is to give your prepared answer to the group. If you find a good response on a YouTube site, you could show it to the students and have them respond to it. For example, I like to use a clip from one of John Lennox’s presentations or Q&As to answer a question about the relationship between Christianity and science. 

Do what you think fits best with your group. Make it active, positive, and engaging.

The always-present goal

Let me encourage you to invest time in broadening your knowledge and proficiency in apologetics. Never forget that your students will be leaving you, and how you have equipped them to acknowledge and respond to faith challenges will have a lasting impact on their college and vocational life choices. Giving them confidence in their faith and helping them to know where to go for answers to challenges will be a precious gift.

A never-ending opportunity

Many people spend their lives in an environment where they are regularly called upon to “give an answer for the hope within them” (1 Peter 3:15). Here is a good example. Lynne and I have dear friends who are missionaries to foreign students at an American University. They serve the students in many ways, helping them navigate their new environment. Frequently they invite foreign students to their home for meals and conversation. They become the closest thing to family these students have. As you can imagine, they have many occasions to discuss their faith, raising questions among their guests. Every month, they send us a synopsis of some of their conversations. They are always fascinating and a blessing.

Here is an example of a foreign student, Peter, who had questions for Roger. Notice how the questions are honest and thoughtful. Roger’s responses are straightforward and biblical and point to Jesus. 

Question 1 

Peter: “Isn’t the Bible a book for Jews to allow them to find redemption in a Jewish heaven? So, what does that book have to do with me, a non-Jew?”

Roger: The sin problem affects all peoples of the entire earth, Jews and non-Jews. 

• Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”
• The sin solution is offered to everyone. As the Scripture says in Romans 10:13, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Question 2 

Peter: “Did God create everything? If yes, why am I and the fallen angels considered guilty when I and they sinned? God is actually the one at fault because He created evil?”

Roger: You are mistaken to say that sin originated with God. The Bible says: 

• James 1:13-14: “God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone.”  
• 1 John 1:5: “God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.” 

Satan seeks to hinder people from choosing salvation and living a life of obedience.

• 1 Peter 5:8-10: “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers worldwide are undergoing the same kind of suffering.“

God loves people and offers them salvation.

• John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.“

Question 3

Peter: “Japan is a modern developed country. It has a low crime rate and designs and builds some of America’s best-selling automobiles. The 2024 percentage of Christians who call Japan home is around 1%. So, Japan is a very successful modern country that does not need Christianity to succeed. 

Roger: In 2023, Japan reported 17.6 suicides per 100,000 inhabitants. The rate is 14.2 in the USA per 100,000 inhabitants. The people are smart and hardworking but not happy. Besides, financial and intellectual success does not mean that a nation or an individual is in the right relationship with God. The problem for the Japanese is the same for all people. They are sinners and need a savior. 

Pray for Peter, who is wrestling with a question:  Who is telling me the truth, the internet or the Bible?

Finally, thank you for the privilege of serving you as Scholar-in-Residence for Youth Pastor Summit this year. Collaborating with Dr. Brent Crowe, one of my former students, and his outstanding team has been a blessing. Please let me know if there is any way I can be of service to you.

I pray for God’s presence and blessing on you and the ministry He has given you.

Eyes on Him!

Bill

William E. Brown, PhD

Senior Fellow for Worldview and Culture

The Colson Center for Christian Worldview

The post Unasked is Unanswered: appeared first on Student Leadership University.

After the most recent Presidential campaign and election cycle, most Americans had their fill of the tumultuous (and frequently bizarre) escapades of vote-getting. As a youth pastor, did you take some time to mentor your youth through the process? As a youth pastor, teaching teenagers about politics and government involves balancing practical information and biblical guidelines. This approach helps young people understand their civic responsibilities and the moral and ethical implications of political engagement from a Christian perspective. Here are some key topics and guidelines a youth pastor might consider:

Practical Information

Jonathan Haidt, author of “The Anxious Generation,” wrote this about the degrading of the American pollical process:

“There seems to be no alternative to a political process in which parties compete to win votes and money. That competition always involves trickery and demagoguery, as politicians play fast and loose with the truth, using their inner press secretaries to portray themselves in the best possible light and their opponents as fools who would lead the country to ruin.”

Haidt wrote this 12 years ago (!), and it has only sunk deeper into the muck.   

Can’t We All Disagree More Constructively? from The Righteous Mind, Vintage Books by Jonathan Haidt (2012).

Side note: it would be worthwhile to dialogue with your youth about the nefarious characteristics of current political discussions, debates, and dialogues from political parties, candidates, and their ads. Do the words, attitudes, and accusations reflect the kind of society we want to live in? Are they necessary? Could a Christian run for office with this approach?

Politics aside, here are some ideas and topics to provide a framework for understanding the American political structure and scheme.

1. Basics of Government Structure

Teach how the local, state, and national governments operate, including the roles of various elected officials and how legislative processes work.

2. Civic Engagement

Explain the importance of voting, how to register, and how to stay informed about political issues. Discuss other forms of civic engagement like volunteering in community projects or participating in local councils.

3. Critical Thinking about Media

Educate on how to critically evaluate media sources, understand bias, and find reliable information to make informed decisions about political issues.

4. Role of Citizens

Discuss the role of citizens in a democracy, including the importance of participation, advocacy, and respectful discourse.

Biblical Guidelines

1. Biblical View of Authority

Teach what the Bible says about authority, such as Romans 13:1-7, which discusses the role of governing authorities and the Christian’s responsibility to respect and pray for them.

2. Justice and Advocacy

Highlight biblical examples of advocacy and justice. Discuss how prophets like Amos and Isaiah called for justice and righteousness in society, and how Jesus’ teachings in Matthew 25:31-46 call for care for the marginalized and oppressed.

3. Peacemaking

Teach the importance of being peacemakers as Jesus taught in the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:9). Discuss how this applies in the context of political divisiveness and how to engage in conversations respectfully.

4. Prayer for Leaders

Encourage regular prayer for political leaders and governments, following 1 Timothy 2:1-4, which urges prayers for all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life.

5. Moral and Ethical Decision-Making

Discuss how to make decisions aligned with Christian values when participating in political life, addressing complex issues like poverty, injustice, and integrity in public life.

6. Unity in Christ

Emphasize the unity that should exist among Christians regardless of political affiliations, drawing on Galatians 3:28, which speaks of unity in Christ despite external differences.

Discussion and Application

1. Open Discussions

Facilitate open discussions where students can express their thoughts and ask questions about political issues and the Christian response.

2. Debate and Role-Play

Organize debates or role-playing sessions to help teens practice discussing and defending their views respectfully and thoughtfully.

3. Engagement Projects

Encourage practical engagement through projects like community clean-ups or participation in local government meetings, helping teens put their learning into action.

4. Prayer Sessions

Regularly incorporate prayers for national and local issues, leaders, and upcoming elections in youth group meetings.

From a biblical perspective, educating teenagers about politics and government informs them about their civic duties and shapes how they perceive and interact with the world through the lens of their faith. This holistic approach prepares them to be thoughtful, informed, and faithful societal participants.

Verses to guide discussion:

Romans 13:1-7 Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. ² Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. ³ For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right, and you will be commended. ⁴ For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. ⁵ Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience. ⁶ This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants who give their full time to governing. ⁷ Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

1 Peter 2:17 Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, hone the emperor.

1 Timothy 2:1-3 I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession, and thanksgiving be made for all people – for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.

Feel free to respond with any ideas and experiences. Blessings! 

Bill

SLU Scholar in Residence

sluinresidence@slulead.com

The post Equipping Young Christians to Understand a Biblical View of Politics and Government appeared first on Student Leadership University.