“More than 1 billion people worldwide are burdened with the ravages of Youth, and approximately one out of every one person will suffer the symptoms of Youth at some point in their life. But the crushing effects of Youth extend well beyond just the afflicted: teachers are driven to the brink of insanity, old people endure the indignity of having…
I’ve been in the fortunate position of being a youth leader to the same group of young people from the age of 10 to 20-somethings. Obviously the group membership has changed along the way, but the core of the group has remained. In the last two years, the core of the group has moved on to University and the task…
As commented upon by a number of people on Tuesday I haven’t been doing a very good job of keeping this site updated. Not only has the site been light on content, but also light on news. So here’s a much needed update in note form.Filling out – I need to exercise more and eat a little less, but that’s…
On Tuesday I attended the Kenda Creasy Dean day conference at the Oxford Centre for Youth Ministry. It was a fantastic day (except for the roadworks outside the Park and Ride) and I can’t wait until I find the time to read through Kenda’s three books properly instead of simply dipping into them. As I left CYM I found a…
Some time ago I posted about trying to write-up my aims and objectives for an exercise for the Engage Course. I said at the time: As this isn’t a maths exam I won’t be showing you my “working out”, but I will probably publish the final objectives here – if I ever settle on any long enough to type them…
“In life we are to leave an enduring impression; not a careless dent.” – Fr. Brian Cavanaugh
“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched–they must be felt with the heart.” – Helen Keller More quotes by Helen Keller at WikiQuote
We’ve recently had a new youth group making use of the Church Centre on Friday evenings. The group is for young people with learning difficulties/mental handicaps and they have been together for some time, but the leadership has recently changed along with the venue. The management of the group has now been taken on by the CrossLinks Centre, and a…
I’ve written once before about a manifesto on ChangeThis. Today I found another entitled “How to speak a teen’s language, even if you’re not one“, which is likely to be of interest to those working with young people. The author, Josh Shipp, is a gifted speaker/communicator [preview video].The manifesto has a section on empowerment which reminded me of the need…
Can it really be three months since my first Engage Day Conference? It seems like yesterday…It’s only about 50 miles from home to CYM in Oxford – what could possibly go wrong in 50 miles? Let me tell you. As I started out it was snowing, then as I progressed it turned into heavy rain. Secondly, there are major roadworks…
I know I’m getting old. I can feel it in my bones and I can tell by the increasing number of grey hairs I find.But the final straw came yesterday. It snowed in Milton Keynes, quite heavily at times, and for the first time in ages it settled. My first urge was not to go an build a snowman, or…