Starting out

I like blogging, I always have. I find it calming, a good way to get out what you're feeling and express yourself. I like to write, I just don't do it often enough. The only problem I have with writing a blog is the same problem I find with most of social media today. It seems to, more often than not, serve the purpose of edifying oneself.

I will be honest, one of my biggest struggles to this day is pride. I have to contain myself, part of it comes from wanting to be an actor in high school and the whole idea of confidence being everything. I hate that that confidence fed a spirit of arrogance in me. Because of this I need to watch how much time I spend blogging, or on Facebook or Twitter. I am always asking, "Is this all about me? Should anyone really care what I did today? Is this post/update/tweet bringing anyone closer to Christ?"

So I looked at what I am passionate about, what God has called me to. Students, middle school and high school, have been the passion of my ministry since I left high school. God placed that squarely on my heart and it is impossible to ignore.

Over the years, as I've learned what it takes to be a youth pastor, God has taught me more and more that being a youth pastor is less about taking on the responsibility of personally discipling 30 kids and it is about teaching students to be leaders while equipping parents to be the main discipler for their children.

In a book I've been reading called "reThink: Is student ministry working?" by Steve Wright I found this challenging quote:

"Student pastors have too quickly accepted responsibility for teens' spirituality and too reluctantly reminded and equipped parents to take their responsibility as primary spiritual disciplers...The problem with this value system is twofold: 1) it isn't biblical and 2) it doesn't work."

I read those words over and over again and realized more of what I should be. I will always be here for your kids, I will always be ready to help them through a hard time or try to explain the tough questions. But if I don't partner with you, the parents, and if your kids don't see that partnership, then what am I doing? I'm setting them up to always be searching for discipleship rather than realizing that it is in their own family all along. Just like there is danger in a parent having a "Day Care Drop-off" mentality when it comes to student ministry, there is a danger in me accepting a role as the primary discipler in these student's lives.

So that is what this blog is about. It is me, setting aside my pride and accepting my spiritual duty to partner with you all. I hope that for many years to come this blog will be a source for you all to find hope, encouragement, wisdom, and community when it comes to raising your teenager in this world. I know I am not a parent, but I want to provide you with tools to be the best parent you can be.