Tag Archives: Youth Pastors

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How to Make College Count

I am passionate about college students making the most of those strategic years. I have written on the subject and speak on it often. But I am so glad that there are many other voices out there helping encourage and equip the next generation. It’s a team effort! That is why I want to tell you about a recent book by Derek Melleby called Make College Count. It is a quick read that is packed with vision and helpful tips for succeeding in college. Here is more information, check it out!

(From the Back Cover)
Discover the way to true success at college–and beyond

There’s more to college than classes, credits, and a nonstop social life. It’s more than getting a degree to improve your job prospects. College is a time where you develop into the person you will be for the rest of your life. Make College Count will help you make the most of your time in college. It encourages you to ask the big questions, like

Why am I going to college?
What kind of person do I want to be?
How do I want my life to influence others?
With whom will I surround myself?
What do I believe?

You want your college years to count. This book shows you how to make that a reality.

“For years I have been looking for the right book to give to Christian high school grads: readable, real, honest, grace-focused, Christ-centered, and practical. Finally, I’ve found just the ticket–Make College Count is that book.”–Chap Clark, author of Hurt: Inside the World of Today’s Teenagers; professor of youth, family, and culture, Fuller Theological Seminary

“Christian college students hear a lot about what to avoid during their college years. So it’s refreshing to encounter a book that explains what students should embrace in college. It’s clear that Derek Melleby understands the world of today’s students.”–Joseph M. Stowell, president of Cornerstone University

“Make College Count is just right! What Derek Melleby has done is find a way to come alongside someone on the way to college and offer guidance about things that matter most.”–Steven Garber, director of The Washington Institute for Faith, Vocation & Culture; author of The Fabric of Faithfulness

“Make College Count offers an accurate preview of college life and encourages and equips students to thoughtfully make the most of college (and the rest of their lives) by embracing a real and vibrant faith that’s not an extracurricular add-on but a foundation for all of life. This could be the most important book students read during their college years.”―Walt Mueller, president, Center for Parent/Youth Understanding

Derek Melleby is the director of the College Transition Initiative, a ministry of the Center for Parent/Youth Understanding and the Coalition for Christian Outreach. He is the coauthor of The Outrageous Idea of Academic Faithfulness.

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The God Quest DVD Curriculum by Sean McDowell

I am excited to tell you about (and endorse!) a new DVD curriculum for youth by author, apologist, and teacher Sean McDowell. Having had the pleasure of co-writing a book with Sean defending the existence of the Christian God, I know his heart is to reach this generation with the good news of Jesus Christ. And this top notch, accesible video study will be a great tool for youth pastors and parents to use to engage today’s students. Sean invites students on a God Quest and offers six signposts (six 15 minute sessions) that point down a path where if a person is seeking God…they will find him. The message of the God Quest is intellectually satisfying and emotionally compelling. It answers the biggest questions in life. The kit is affordable and comes with a well designed guide that students can use during the week as they explore these critical questions. I hope you will consider taking your students on a God Quest!

To find out more about the God Quest and to purchase a copy for your church, click here. “Like” the God Quest Facebook page and share it with others here.
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Why college students leave church – @washingtonpost @stickyfaith

Last friday I was interviewed for an article by Piet Levy that ran in the Washington Post. We had a great conversation about this important topic and I was grateful for the opportunity to share my thoughts. Students walking away from their faith was a big reason that I wrote Welcome to College: A Christ-follower’s Guide for the Journey and it also prompted Sean McDowell and I to write Is God Just a Human Invention? to deal with the toughest intellectual objections to the Christian faith raised by the New Atheists. We must do a better job equipping the next generation so that they are prepared for the opportunities and challenges of college life and beyond.

“Millions of college freshmen are overwhelmed right now trying to make new friends, adjusting to more rigorous school work and learning to live away from home. Whether they also find time for church during their first two weeks on campus will set the mold for the rest of their college years, according to new research.

These findings come from a six-year study of approximately 500 Christian youth group members, conducted by Fuller Theological Seminary’s Fuller Youth Institute in Pasadena, Calif.

The study’s results will be released Sept. 17 in “Sticky Faith: Everyday Ideas to Build Lasting Faith in Your Kids.” The book examines why, according to a 2006 report by Christian research firm Barna Group, 61 percent of 20-somethings who regularly attended church as teenagers later left the pews….” (Read the rest of this article)

In my forthcoming book Think Christianly: Looking at the Intersection of Faith and Culture (October with Zondervan) I offer suggestions as to what we can do to reverse this trend among students and help them cultivate a mature faith. One thing we must do is help students realize that Christianity actually rises to the level of being of true or false. It is capable of being rationally investigated and defended (1 Pet. 3:15 cf. Jude 3).
To read more on the new research this article is based, see Sticky Faith by Kara Powell and Chap Clark:

When all is said and done, may we be like the Psalmist who prayed, “O God, You have taught me from my youth, And I still declare Your wondrous deeds. And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me, Until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to all who are to come” (Psalm 71:17-18). That’s as missional as it gets.
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Parents: Are You Plugged-In Online?

Do you know what your kids, preteens, and teens are watching, texting, and sharing online? At the movies? Listening to? Now you can with minimal effort each week by visiting a very helpful website called “Plugged-In.” where you will find reviews of the latest video games, music, shows, and movies. They have an iPhone and Droid app and there is also a new book out called Plugged-IN Parenting: How to Raise Media-Savvy Kids with Love, Not War by Bob Waliszewski.



Parents: Are there any technology / media boundaries in place? Any accountability? Have you said no to any movies this summer? Yes there will be conflict with your children as you discuss what media is worth consuming and what isn’t and why you need all of their social media usernames and passwords etc.; but what’s the alternative? Allowing your child to be mindlessly shaped by a culture that is embedded with ideas and images that lead them AWAY from life with God? We need to reject passivity and engage! There are great resources available to help you, Plugged In is one of the best. For filtering and internet accountability sites Bsecure and Covenant Eyes are great options. I am not supporting running for the hills and saying no to all technology etc., but we must be active in our media consumption and learn to think Christianly about our entertainment choices and then teach our kids to do the same.
Think Christianly with Jonathan Morrow