This video was shown at church on Sunday night.
It is amazing! Well produced, creative and powerful. Everyone was captivated including the many teenagers in the congregation.
I’m already excited about using this with my Year 7s when we look at Genesis 3 this week!
This video by Jefferson Bethke is a powerful spoken word poem that highlights the difference between Jesus and false religion.
It has literally exploded on the internet with over 18 million views on YouTube.
Interestingly, it has also generated lots of online debate with one blogger on Gospel Coalition saying, ‘amidst a lot of true things in this poem there is a lot that is unhelpful and misleading.’. You can read the full review here.
So given the criticism of this video, would I still use it in class?
Absolutely!
Three reasons why:
I admit there are some things in it that just seem random in our Australian youth context (such as his mention of Republicans), however, overall I reckon this video is an excellent resource! If you use it let me know how it goes!
Hello blog.
It has been a while. I plan to pay more attention to you this year.
Please accept this facelift as a sign of my intention to care for you more.
Ryan
Crusaders have relaunched their website with a whole lot of extra material.
If you are in schools ministry, I definitely recommend checking it out. You can do that here.
What I like most is the blog, which has already produced some terrific ideas and resource sharing. The blog is specifically aimed at student leaders running CRU lunchtime groups – I’m definitely going to let our senior boys know about it!
Sensational organisation. Magnificent new website. Go check it out!
I went to my first Barnabas Conference in 2009, just after I had started as Head of Christian Studies.
It was sensationally helpful!
I was still finding my feet in what was a newly created department at my school. Going on Barnabas was the best think I could have done.
I was personally encouragement about the strategic importance of my job. I discovered lots of new resources, ideas and practical tools. I loved and was sharpened by talks and discussions about best practice in communicating the gospel to teenagers in our high-tech culture. And the one-on-one conversations I had with others who had been in schools ministry for a lot longer than I had were invaluable and have had a significant and very positive impact on the work I do at school.
The Barnabas conference is held every two years and the next one is coming up 25-28 September 2011 in Sydney.
You can download the conference brochure by clicking on the images below.
If you are in schools ministry you should definitely come.
Hope to see you there!
60 Sermons. 60 days.
60in60 is the initiative of a team of Sydney Christians who are inviting others to commit to listen to one sermon each day. Why? To proactively chase a deeper knowledge and richer joy in Jesus.
Starting today, Monday 12th September, over 2,000 Christians have signed up to listen/read/watch one sermon everyday for sixty days.
The sermons are all prechosen from a diverse mix of preachers and collated on a central website.
Go to the website to find out more - http://sixtyinsixty.tumblr.com/
And if you work with Christian boys who listen to stuff online point them in the direction of 6oin6o.
Recently I had a terrific opportunity to take a group of Year 11 students to hear John Lennox speak on the topic of Religion and Science.
John Lennox is a Professor of Mathematics at Oxford University and has written a number of books as well as been involved in some prominent debates, including with the well-known atheist Richard Dawkins.
This was a great opportunity and I was blown away with the logic and high intellectual level in which Lennox engaged his audience. Part of me was secretly hoping he would take a breath and give a cute illustration, but the other part of me was stoked as some seriously intellectual students, who dominate the sciences, were captivated by his argument and reasoning.
At the end of the day, to be able to engage the very top-end students with someone like John Lennox was a real treat and privilege.
The highlight of the day was on the bus on the way back to school. Overhearing Christian students engaging with their not-yet Christian friends about Jesus and the gospel!
For me, this is what it is all about!
Providing resources to the Christian students to speak with their friends about the gospel with confidence! And in this case, John Lennox had given them massive intellectual confidence.
It was a helpful and humbling reminder that often the most fruitful evangelism is done outside the teacher-student relationship and among the boys themselves.
