April 9, 2008
Live from Shift
Brian McLaren on why everything must change in youth ministry.
I'm sitting in Willow Creek's auditorium as hundreds of youth leaders and students slowly make their way in. In a few minutes Shift 2008, Willow's student ministries 3-day conference, will begin. As previously mentioned, for the next few days Out of Ur will be hosting the online component of this conference. We'll do our best to summarize the ideas and questions raised by each speaker. Our hope is that those of you attending the conference will chime in with your comments about what you are experiencing during these three days. And for those of you watching from a distance, hopefully these posts will give you a taste of what is happening here in Barrington, Illinois.
UPDATE. Here are some video highlights from this session.
This morning's first speaker, Brian McLaren, just walked in and Charlie Hall is beginning to lead worship so I'll sign off for now. Check back in a couple of hours for a summary of the first session. Later today we'll be adding video highlights so keep checking in.
UPDATE. Read on for a summary of the first session...
The main session began with a video called Did You Know? that can be seen on YouTube. The video creatively demonstrates the major and rapid changes going on all around the world. Though he didn’t reference the video, it was a great set-up for Brian McLaren’s presentation, Everything Must Change.
Not long into his presentation, Brian told a story of his time as a volunteer youth leader in the 1970’s. He asked his youth group to brainstorm a list of things that were major issues in their churches. This list included things like speaking in tongues and contemporary worship music. The group then came up with a list of those things that were important to the group and their friends. This second list reflected the global concerns of the 70’s: nuclear war, communism, famine, and overpopulation. In Brian’s words, “there was nothing in common with those two lists.”
Brian obviously believes that youth leaders have a role in shaping their students to be involved with that second list.
Every kid that I lead to Christ and commitment to the church is going to increase his or her commitment to the first list and will have less time to devote to the second list. Which list is God more interested in?
What do you think? What types of major issues are your students most concerned with? Does your church regularly address those issues? Should our youth ministries spend time equipping students for global issues or, as Brian put it, is our role mainly to “get people into heaven”?
Brian closed by encouraging the audience to see the Kingdom of God as having everything to do with how we tackle our world’s biggest problems: prosperity, equity, security, and religion. While salvation matters, Brian is concerned that the church often abdicates our responsibility to God’s creation.
Here is something I find interesting. The Shift organizers decided to kick off this conference with a presentation about global crises. Why? I’d be very curious to hear from Shift attendees. Did Brian’s material resonate with you? Will his presentation about these major crises make a difference in how you do ministry?
David Swanson is an associate pastor at Parkview Community Church in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, and a regular contributor to Out of Ur. Read more from David at his blog, Signs of Life.
Posted by UrL on April 9, 2008
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Comments
We're here too! Can't wait for the next 3 days...
Posted by: Kelli at April 9, 2008
I'm in Brian's session right now. Wow, there's a lot to unpack here! I'll definitely have to spend some time thinking through the implications for my own youth ministry.
Posted by: Mike at April 9, 2008
just finished the session. for someone who has been engaged with studies of gen y and beyond, mcclaren's time led to some powerful insights and verbage I have needed. an definite deep end of the pool time but worth it.
Posted by: jason at April 9, 2008
brian rocks! "everything thing must change" is a no holds explanation on much of our global crisis. this was the first time i heard him present it in such a way. though he's been doing the Kingdom of God stuff since 'the Secret Message of Jesus'..
my blogging of event and twittering of event
Posted by: gavin at April 9, 2008
I wasn't sure what I'd get from Brian...overall I thought it was a good message, lot's to think about.
What was missing (in my opinion) was any mention of sin and how it (sin) created those 4 crises. I know that most here are familiar with the gospel, but we should assume nothing, not even that a bunch of youth leaders are familiar with sin and it's effects...
Again, overall, it was an enjoyable message.
Posted by: John at April 9, 2008
Hey, I'm a fellow blogger, check it out. www.timlemons.com and twitter. www.twitter.com/timlem
Posted by: Tim Lemons at April 9, 2008
Hmm, could you be a whole lot more specific about what was said...a reader digest sort of explanation would be helpful.
I hate it when synod's are being called and everyone gets jazzed, and all I hear is, "OMG, it was, like, wow, and I was like, you know, whoa...and it was like...totally...you know, awesome, and like, wow!"
There's an over abundance of creativenes, and a despairingly lack of a...ah...hmm...what's the word I'm looking for...ah, there it is...DEPTH!
Posted by: sheerahkahn at April 9, 2008
Might as well add to the fold: my blog and my twitter.
FYI, i started a hashtag (hashtags.org) for tweeters at the conference. use #shift08 somewhere in your tweets, and check the tag at http://hashtags.org/tag/shift08/
Posted by: Jake Bouma at April 9, 2008
@sheerahkahn: bmac's talk as essentially a distillation of his book "everything must change". read it if you want to understand the "wow"s. relax, buddy.
Posted by: Jake Bouma at April 9, 2008
I'm at http://www.xanga.com/xjm716
Posted by: John at April 9, 2008
DIBS on Cinco de Jesus!
Posted by: Wil at April 9, 2008
It definitely resonates. Most of my teens are very aware of major issues concerning human rights. Some are active in demonstrations such as displace me etc. They are surly eager to get involved and I have been wrestling with how to direct and encourage them in it. I recently posted a note on facebook for them to brainstorm about how to approach these issues but did not get much feed back. I am thinking they need a bit more focus, but am needing it myself. Thanks for doing this.
Posted by: Jeremy at April 9, 2008
I loved Mark's Eckhart quote:
"God is not found in the soul by adding anything, but by subtracting," - Meister Eckhart.
Posted by: Tom at April 9, 2008
Wonderful post!
Keep it up.
I hope you have a blessed week! :-)
Posted by: preacherman at April 9, 2008
I wish I was at the conference to hear Mclaren speak, but I did just finish "Everything Must Change". I must admit that I found the clip that they played before his presentation a bit curious considering the focus of the book. (I blogged about it this morning www.brian-beckstrom.blogspot.com) Did anyone else think it seemed strange?
Posted by: Brian Beckstrom at April 9, 2008
Brian's message was great - certainly nothing like all the controversy he seems to generate. I don't know what was "heretical" about his talk - seems right on...
For anyone who isn't at the conference but wants to hear his talk, you get it through the resources section at the conference website:
http://www.shiftexperience.com/
Posted by: jon at April 9, 2008
is it me, or is the main "crisis" facing the world our alienation from God... guess I missed that in Brian's session this morning...
Posted by: Jill at April 9, 2008
Jill,
You missed nothing of the sort as it was not mentioned.
Posted by: John at April 9, 2008
Me and two of my cohorts were debriefing this afternoon...are there only 4 paradigms or framing stories that we can fit into? Is the fifth the "kingdom of God"? Does it exist now, or is it only a future reality?
Posted by: John at April 9, 2008
What Mr. McClaren fails to speak of is that in far too many of the cases, it is oppressive government, led by dictators and warlords, who keep the people in bondage. Brian's politics seemed evident in his talk, yet when our government does practice tactics to alleviate suffering, it's not good enough...we are deemed a nation apart from God's plan. We are warmongers - and practice a policy foreign to God's design? (Psalm 144:1)
I agree that the church can do more and should do more to ease suffering in the world, but let's not confuse our mandates. Jesus sent the apostles into the world with the message of the gospel - not the message of social activism. He supplies the Holy Spirit for empowerment in part for impact in the ultimate battlefield, the battlefield for the mind.
Everything else flows from victory there. Social justice, financial equity, women's rights etc. are all a direct result of encountering the truth that sets you free. None of this gets accomplished through mandate or legislation.
Posted by: aaron peternel at April 9, 2008
Aaron,
I disagree with your separation. Jesus' call to spread the Gospel was one that called humanity to live out the Kingdom...to live in expectation of a recreated world...not escape from it.
Part of recreating the world includes social activism, and the church has failed miserably because is has fought to separate the two. (Both sides have failed...some emphasizing a "spiritual" salvation over physical needs, and the other side emphasizing an activism apart from Jesus call to institute and spread the Kingdom.)
Posted by: eric wright at April 10, 2008