Josh Griffin | More Than Dodgeball

Josh GriffinMore Posts Reaching the Lost Boys

Tony and I had some great conversations about church, ministry and the title of “pastor.” We also shared some time talking about churches constantly needing to consider the present and future generations. He’s posted some of his thoughts that I think are pretty good on the subject of the church evolving to continually reaching people for Christ. Check it out if it strikes a chord.

JG

Add Comment March 7, 2007

Josh GriffinMore Posts Randall Cunningham on Campus

A gentleman by the name of Randall Cunningham stopped by Saddleback today. So cool!

JG

Add Comment March 7, 2007

Josh GriffinMore Posts Pastor Rick on Nightline Tonight

Pastor Rick is going to be on Nightline tonight, answering some hard questions about faith. Here’s a clip from their program that airs tonight.

“The history of this idea — ‘purpose driven’ — is not something I thought up in the first place,” Warren explains. “There have been hundreds of books throughout history that talked about worship, fellowship, discipleship, ministry and evangelism.”

But while these five purposes are biblically based, there is no denying that Warren has popularized these purposes around the world. He says he has trained 400,000 pastors worldwide to start purpose-driven churches. But it’s Warren’s untraditional use of the Christian language that may be the reason for his enormous following.

“I like to teach theology to people without telling them it’s theology and without using theological terms,” he said. “Simple does not mean simplistic. Simple does not mean superficial. Simple means it’s clear.”

JG

Add Comment March 7, 2007

Josh GriffinMore Posts More Than a Youth Pastor Superstar

Just landed on this interview page over on ChurchCentral – a talk with Mark DeVries about youth ministry, what to look for, what to avoid and where to start. Here’s a clip:

What are some signs that the youth ministry is ineffective?

Kids tend to vote with their feet, so attendance is important. Also, if there is a spirit of anxiousness about the ministry–if people offer quick answers to difficult problems, such as, “if we just had a bowling alley,” et cetera, there is a problem.

Another sign of ineffectiveness is when you look down the road and there are no tracks being laid for the future. Churches need an explicit game plan for the ministry that is not driven by current staff personalities.

A final call for help from a youth ministry may be the ratio of staff members to kids. A good number is one staff member to 50 active kids. If that is off on the low side, the ministry needs help.

When is youth ministry the wrong choice for a church?

Some congregations hire a youth director and destroy their youth ministry. In a small church where every adult knows those kids, bringing in a hot shot 23-year-old who takes the kids out of the sanctuary and into a youth room actually removes the kids from the adults in the church who love them and hands them over to a person who is at best likely to be a short-term staff member.

You don’t want to hire a camp counselor as your youth director, but an architect to build relationships with youth. That’s why hiring a full time youth director may not be the best decision.

JG

Add Comment March 6, 2007

Josh GriffinMore Posts Apple’s New iLaunch

I love The Onion, and one of today’s article didn’t disappoint. Here’s a clip about Apple’s new iLaunch product coming soon. SO funny:

At a highly anticipated media event Tuesday at San Francisco’s Moscone Center, Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs introduced a new Apple product he said would “revolutionize” the process of unveiling new products throughout the world.

“In 1984, Apple introduced the Mac,” Jobs said to an overflowing crowd as an image of the first Macintosh computer was displayed on a giant screen behind him. “We changed the face of the music industry with the first iPod in 2001. And in January, we showed off the revolutionary new iPhone. Today, Apple is releasing a piece of innovative new technology that will forever change the way innovative new technology is released.”
Enlarge Image Apple Unveils

The iLaunch, as the new product is called, was then raised up from below the stage, prompting the audience of technology journalists, developers, and self-professed “Apple fanatics” to burst into a five-minute standing ovation.

JG

Add Comment March 6, 2007

Josh GriffinMore Posts Jedis, Jesus and Kenya

Allison just got back from Kenya yesterday and blogged about what is now my favorite moment of her trip. While this is actually the only story I’ve heard from the trip, I’m confident it cannot be topped. They screened Return of the Jedi for a group of Kenyan orphans they were ministering to while they were there. Read on.

JG

Add Comment March 6, 2007

Josh GriffinMore Posts PDYM 2008

Whew. After postponing the PDYM Conference in 2007 we’ve been working furiously on plans for the coming season and we’ve landed on January 2008 for the next big thing. We’re just about to make an announcement, and it’s going to be very cool. Wait for it … and if you don’t get the PDYM Neighborhood newsletter, it’ll appear there first.

This is in addition to a planned community website overhaul and the Student Leadership Conference this summer, too, so there’s no shortage of fun stuff happening. Soon!

JG

student leadership

Add Comment March 6, 2007

Josh GriffinMore Posts New Resources at SYM

Nadim just wrapped up posting several new resources up on Simply Youth Ministry today – check them out if you’re interested! 2 books from Duffy Robbins and a revamped sermon series called Old School Good Guys.

JG

Add Comment March 6, 2007

Josh GriffinMore Posts Playtime at Pastor Rick’s

An encounter between pastors Rick Warren and Doug Fields highlighting the seven deadly sins to promote a series at Saddleback Church.

JG

UPDATE: Off of YouTube, but on the Saddleback media site, I see. Cool.

Add Comment March 6, 2007

Josh GriffinMore Posts MySpace Workshop Highlights

As promised, here’s most of the notes from my MySpace on MySpace talk I give at various youth conferences. OK, I’ve actually only given it here at Saddleback’s Student Leadership Conference and Impact in Pennsylvania last week. But still, you might find some useful stuff in here. Enjoy!

Introduction
MySpace has grown to the largest website in the world. 1 in 7 Americans have a profile on the site. Having any webpage is a risk. Only verse in the Bible with “my” and “space” in it (Ps 38:22). The web is a powerful tool for good and bad. Blog is for people with something to say, a profile is for people who are figuring out who they are. People online are typically much bolder than in real life. Don’t believe everything you read on the internet. Anyone may be a faker, poser or stalker. Information travels fast.

Illustration: Blasphemy Challenge, etc.

A student leader is …

HONEST (Pr 11:3) - most people do one of two things as they set up their online profile. 1) they make themselves look better than they are – [like my Photoshopped ears and teeth], or 2) their true selves are revealed.

ACCOUNTABLE (Ec 4:10) - the people who get into trouble on MySpace are the ones that make decisions alone, have secrets and share too much.

ENCOURAGING (Job 4:3) - look for how you can help people, as people are honest about their lives there’s many opportunities for encouragement. Think outwardly, instead of inwardly.

AN INFLUENCER (1 Tim 4:12) – a whole new world opens up online. You can influence your friends with this new medium. Which way are you pointing people?

MySpace can be used for good.

A place to share my faith

A place to share my journey

A place to share encouragement

I will limit the use of personal information online

first name only

password protect your full profile

limit the use of pictures

don’t reveal routines or patterns

be aware of actual times that get posted on some sites

better to blog about after than before

whatever you post is like a billboard along side the highway – but this is a giant flashing billboard along the information superhighway

I will open myself up to my parents and accountability

x3watch software

take 24 hours to clean up your profile

give your parents a tour of your websites

bookmark your profile on their computer so they have access

give someone close to you your name/password to go behind the scenes

allow someone to ask you the hard questions

hold others accountable, too

How to get people to your website

Offer community, make comments, respond to comments

Stay current, post often

Give exclusive content, give people a reason to visit your place