ICYMI – July 25, 2012
If you are like me you try to read as many articles, blogs and books as possible but just cannot catch all of them. “In Case You Missed It” is my way of pointing out a few “reads” that I think are too good to miss.
Nine Secrets of a Name Knowing Ninja – Erin Jackson
It’s the worst. The student walking up to you has been coming to youth group on and off for about a year…and you just completely blanked out on her name.
“Hi, you! How’s it going?” you say awkwardly.
“You forgot my name, didn’t you?”
Gah! Busted. (Her name was Monica, by the way, and I didn’t forget it after that.)
Have trouble remembering names? Relax, you’re in good company. Remembering people’s names is a tough skill to master – but getting a handle on it will set you apart from the crowd and win people over. You don’t have to ever say, “I’m sorry, I’m terrible at remembering names,” if you really commit to work at it. Youth ministry is about building community and knowing each other, that starts with everyone being able to call each other by their name. Want a second time guest to feel special? Call them by name when they walk in the door!
Here are 9 tricks that –if you commit to make them work – will help you remember anyone’s names.
5 Common Misreads on Teenagers – Adam McLane
One of the things you learn as you go in youth ministry is that teenagers are experts at sending off false signals that can be difficult to pick-up on.
Here are five common ones I see newbies miss all the time.
- “I’m just hanging out” or “I just thought I’d drop by because I was bored.” If you have a student that stays late or is just hanging around or lingers longer than usual or drops by the office for no real reason– it isn’t an accident. There is always a reason. They want to talk and are waiting for you to take the initiative. And sometimes when they do this you’re going to have to build a little repoire before they share what’s really going on.
In the Beginning was the Tweet – Leonard Sweet
From the start, Twitter changed things. And every hour it changes something else. And if you cooperate, it can change you. I don’t mean by giving you a wireless megaphone to announce the color of your nails or the acquisition of a new pickup truck. I mean Twitter can make you a better Jesus-follower.
I shared this view with a group of Christians, and an audience member told me afterward, “It takes a lot of chutzpah to argue that Twitter makes you a better Christian.” And maybe it’s true that getting the highest benefit from Twitter takes chutzpah. This kind of cultural chutzpah may explain why a study in Advertising Age found that of all the social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, GooglePlus and so forth), tweeters are the most religious.
For me, social media stretches far beyond a cultural icon of religiosity. The vehicle of Twitter is, in many ways, the ultimate medium for discipleship. Let me explain the five leading ways that Twitter has changed my life and made me a better follower of Jesus. You might realize a few of these changes have taken place in your life as well.
