I climbed into bed, pulled the covers up to my chin, and felt tears stinging my eyes. Another call from my son’s teacher, and another argument with him that resolved absolutely nothing. As I lay there, exhausted but unable to sleep, I found myself asking God how one of life’s richest blessings can be one of its toughest jobs.  When my kids were young, there were so many nights like that one. Children may be a gift from the Lord and a reward from him (Ps. 127:3), but if we’re honest, sometimes our kids can feel like more of a test of our endurance, patience, and wisdom. As Mother’s Day app ..read more

Our students inhabit a culture that values success and achievement to the extreme. We see how students pursue academic rigor, excellence on the athletic fields, and unwavering commitments to extracurriculars and clubs. As a youth minister, witnessing such passion and commitment can feel disheartening when students do not seem to have comparable commitment to Christian discipleship. Most students just don’t seem to apply the same diligence, effort, and discipline to their spiritual growth or biblical and theological literacy. This disparity can take its toll as we serve in youth ministry. If yo ..read more

I often hear parents with adult children use the phrase, “the bigger the kid, the bigger the problems.” With two children, ages seven and fourteen, my husband and I are potentially on the cusp of some of those “bigger” problems. In general, we can more easily solve our elementary-aged child’s problems. We are attempting to let our teenager be the problem-solver or advocate for himself before we step in, which can delay or disrupt resolution.  Parents know that our kids will experience suffering as they grow up, and we want to prepare them without scaring them. We can ask God to use our ow ..read more

Sometimes knowing the history of a word clarifies a lesson I need to learn.  Take the word sarcasm, the root of which is sarcas, meaning “to tear flesh.” Pretty descriptive. Knowing sarcasm’s origin helps me want to avoid using it, especially with my kids. Another such word is ruminate. According to Merriam-Webster, to ruminate means “to go over in the mind repeatedly and often casually or slowly.” Sounds harmless enough, until I learned that the word originally meant “to chew the cud.” The word is derived from the Latin rumen, referring to the first of four stomachs in some large mammals ..read more

Welcome to Rooted’s Top Ten, a curated reading list for youth ministers. Each month we find ten articles, and sometimes videos or podcasts, from various sources that we believe will encourage you in your ministry to teenagers and their families. Some give explicit instruction on gospel-centered ministry, while others are included because there is a message of common grace that is helpful to youth workers. (The opinions presented in these articles do not necessarily reflect the position of Rooted.) For more articles to share with the parents in your ministry, make sure to check out our Parent T ..read more

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28 “God works out all things for good because he loves you, Katie.” My college friend offered these words not long after receiving news that my dad had cancer. She intended them as comfort, but I cringed when she said it. There was only one “good” outcome in my mind – that Dad would live. In my feeble faith, I feared God might deem some other outcome as “good,” so rather than clinging to this truth, I held the words at bay. My Father passed away a ..read more

Youth pastor, you have a lot of options for how to end a sermon or talk to your students. You can end with a call to action, spurring teenagers to obedience. Or you can end with an emotional story, hoping to affect hearts. You could end with something funny to help the deep doctrines and hard truths go down easy. No matter which type of ending you choose, you should always end with the good news of what Jesus has done. I’ll paraphrase something Mark Dever said in Preach that has stuck with me for years. No one remembers everything in a movie. No one remembers every scene or bit of dialogue. Bu ..read more

When Notre Dame football players leave their locker room to take the field, they pass by a sign that reads “Play Like a Champion Today.” Every player taps that sign as they run by, as a reminder of all it took to prepare for the game, and what it will take to win it. Now, as lifelong Alabama fans, it pains us to speak well of the Fighting Irish, but they are on to something with this ritual reminder. If parents were to paint a similar sign and hang it over their bedroom door, what reminders might we need as we start the day with our families? We’d like to propose a few short truths that would ..read more

One of my most striking youth group memories happened during the sign-up period for an upcoming mission trip in my third year as a youth minister. A student who had participated in a trip the previous summer kept saying to me and to other students, “I can’t wait to go back…I miss the feeling.” While her words seemed innocuous at first, I started to wonder why she was so fixated on a feeling from our time serving together. Finally, out of love and care for this student, my wife and I sat down with her to find out what she meant.   In the course of our conversation, we began to discern that ..read more

Welcome to the Rooted Parent Top Ten, a curated list of resources from across the web that we believe will be helpful to parents raising teenagers. Here you’ll find articles, podcasts, and videos to support you in gospel- centered discipleship and interpreting youth culture. While most are gospel focused, others are included because they include a message of common grace. (The opinions presented in these articles do not necessarily reflect the position of Rooted Ministry.) At the end, you’ll find Rooted resources compiled from the last month’s new offerings. We hope this resource is helpful! G ..read more