What do I Hope to Gain from Orange Conference 2012?
Posted on February 8, 2012 | Leave a comment
As I continue talking about this idea of Orange, I wanted to share some thoughts regarding what I hope for this year at the Orange Conference. Yesterday, I talked about the big things I love about the event, but today, I want to get into some details. Specifically, what do I want to gain from OC12?
First, I want to learn more on how I can help transition our high school students to college and beyond. You may remember my post a couple weeks ago, where I shared the beginning of our journey in this area of ministry. It is something that is increasingly important for the church today. Way too many students are abandoning their faith when they go off to college or work, and I want to learn all I can in order to change that.
Second, I want to learn more from other student ministers on their structure of youth group. One of the things controlling my mind lately is how to structure for future growth. I have been trying to pick the brains of local youth pastors about how they structure their weekly meetings and small groups. I look forward to gaining more wisdom at OC12.
Finally, I want to learn more about implementing a mentoring program within our student ministry. My thesis is on this idea of mentoring, and how it is crucial to a growing student ministry. I strongly believe that is the case, especially when you consider the amount of students coming from broken homes — many without a strong Christian father. The church and family needs to join efforts in order to combat this, and I am looking forward to what OC12 will teach me.
Share:
EmailMore- Print
- Digg
- StumbleUpon
- Reddit
→ Leave a comment
Posted in Orange
Tagged steve, cullum, stevecullum, orange, family ministry, Orange Week
What am I Most Looking Forward to at Orange Conference 2012?
Posted on February 7, 2012 | 1 Comment
This April will be my third trip to the Orange Conference. It has become something that I look forward to each spring, as it is a staple in my growth as a minister. However, I have begun to think about why I am so excited about OC12. What are the main reasons I am looking forward to attending this conference for the third time?
First, I get to sit at the feet of some of the experts in the area of family ministries. I realized early on in my ministry “career” that I have a great deal to learn. I am far from perfect, and one of the best places to learn are from the fantastic speakers and leaders that come to the OC.
Second, I get to connect with other ministers who are passionate about family ministries. Not only do I get to meet the excellent OC blogging team, but I also am able to connect with other youth ministers at various times. The most fun is when we get together for a fun night at Dave & Busters.
Finally, I get to spend a week with little responsibility. Many of the trips I take involve watching after teenagers. At the OC, I get to kick back and relax a bit. It is a great feeling to go into a time of worship without having to make sure all your students are there. Instead, you can just focus on God, which is always a great thing!
Share:
EmailMore- Print
- Digg
- StumbleUpon
- Reddit
→ 1 Comment
Posted in Orange
Tagged steve, cullum, stevecullum, orange conference, orange, family ministry
Orange Week – February 6-10, 2012
Posted on February 6, 2012 | 1 Comment
It is that time of year again — Orange Week! Several bloggers around the world will be flooding the inter-webs with thoughts on Orange, the Orange Conference, and family ministry. For those not “in the know” about Orange, it is essentially a philosophy of how to combine the church and family. These are two institutions God established, and we believe that they need to partner together. The Bible is filled with examples of why this should happen, but we also have many modern-day examples/experiences as well. This is especially crucial, due to the current state of both the family and church in today’s culture.
For my first post, I just wanted to point you to others who will be posting about Orange this week. Be sure to check out their blogs this week and beyond!
- Amy Fenton Lee: www.TheInclusiveChurch.com
- Wayne Stocks: WayneStocks.com and Kidmin1124.com
- Cass Brannan: www.CassBrannan.wordpress.com
- Michael Bayne: www.MichaelBayne.net/
- Jenny Funderburke: JennyFunderburke.com
- Tom Pounder: www.MinistryBlackboard.com
- Henry Zonio: KidminAndCulture.com
- Nick Blevins: www.NickBlevins.com
- Amy Dolan: www.LemonLimeKids.com
- Ben Read: www.IntentionalStudentMinistry.com
- Kenny Conley: www.ChildrensMinistryOnline.com
- RyanMillard: www.RyanMillard.com
- Dustin Valencia: www.AbrahamChronicles.com
- Paul Mannino: www.OrangeDad.com
- Jeremy Lee: www.WonderfullyAwkward.com
- Jason Chenoweth: jasonchenoweth.com
- Benjamin Kerns: www.averageyouthministry.com
- Jonathan Cliff: www.jonathancliff.com
Share:
EmailMore- Print
- Digg
- StumbleUpon
- Reddit
→ 1 Comment
Posted in Orange
Tagged cullum, family ministry, orange, Orange Week, steve, stevecullum
High School to College Transition: Beginning the Journey
Posted on January 12, 2012 | 1 Comment
One of the areas of youth/student ministry that I strongly believe is lacking in American churches is the transition to college. We do a good job of meeting teenagers while they are in middle school and high school, but often, we do very little after graduation. After reading The Slow Fade last year, it has been on my mind that we need to push the “finish line” back a few years. So, as we continue in this journey of making this a better transition at our church, I thought it would be good to bring you along — just in case you want to learn from our experience… or mistakes.
I believe our goal is to help students not graduate from their faith when they graduate from high school. We need to do more to make sure they continue in their discipleship, and we need to help them stay connected with God’s church.
For starters, I thought I would share what we currently do at RCC to help this transition…
- One of our parents meet with high school students in the fall to discuss plans and help parents navigate the college application process.
- We invite the high school seniors over to our house at least once or twice during the school year to talk candidly about their college plans. We discuss what schools they are looking at and begin to help them develop some churches/ministries around each school.
- We try to stay connected with our college students by phone calls, Facebook, and care packages throughout the school year.
- When they are back for summer and holiday breaks, we try to have at least one event to get them together, share stories, and catch up.
It is our goal that these things will help our college students stay connected when they go away, instead of feeling like they no longer belong to the church. We also want to do our best to partner with parents, as this can be a difficult transition period.
Can we do more? Sure we can! In fact, we have some other plans to put into place very soon. However, that is for another blog at a later time.
For now, my question to you is: What do you have in place already to help your high school students make the transition?
Share:
EmailMore- Print
- Digg
- StumbleUpon
- Reddit
→ 1 Comment
Posted in HS to College Transition
Tagged college, college ministry, graduation, High school, high school ministry, high school to college transition, orange, steve cullum, stevecullum, the slow fade, transition
Reflections on Taking Up My Cross to Follow Jesus, Away from Family
Posted on January 10, 2012 | Leave a comment
This morning, I received a phone call from my father, where he proceeds to tell me my sister was involved in a car accident. To sum up what happened, her and a friend were rear-ended while sitting on the side of the road. She has been released from the hospital with a mild concussion, neck pain, and some memory loss regarding the accident.
I say all this for two reasons. First, your prayers are greatly appreciated. Second, it has obviously got me thinking more about my sister. It is an odd series of thoughts. That is not because we do not get along or anything. It is just that we have never been incredibly close. This is partly because we are five years apart. We had our own group of friends, we were only in the same school for 2 years (during elementary), and we are different genders. I moved out when I started college, and did not really spend much time back in my home town. And just when we were getting a bit closer, God called me to ministry several hundred miles away.
This is extremely difficult for me. I do not vocalize it much, because I never want to seem like that type of a person. However, it does get overwhelming every once in a while and I feel like I need to tell someone. Today has been one of those days. Not that I could have done anything, but I wished I could. And part of me thought that, “If only I was there…” Similar thoughts have crossed my mind when my great-grandmother was not doing well about a year or so ago.
I guess what I really want to say is that I am constantly being reminded how ministry/missions can be lonely, especially when God removes you from your family and friends. Visits are never long enough, and it feels like time creeps by as you await another time to catch up. Technology helps but it is not the same. Nights are spent wondering what life would be like if we actually had friends and family around. Days go by when you wonder if it will feel like “home.” At times, you get discouraged at how difficult it is to make friends, trying to remember when was the last time people just wanted to hang out and share life together. Do not get me wrong; there are amazing days when things go so good! I thank God for these times!! But there are other times when you think about such things.
If you are considering ministry as a profession, I can only tell you to pray. Make sure it is what God wants for your life, because it will not always be easy. It will not always be filled with people giving their lives to Jesus, church growth, and no problems. And if He calls you to leave your friends and family, pray even more, because you will soon begin to understand what Jesus means in Matthew 8:18-22 and Matthew 10.
I know that God will help my sister get through this, and He will continue to watch over my family and friends I “left behind,” but I just want to be honest. It is tough sometimes.
Share:
EmailMore- Print
- Digg
- StumbleUpon
- Reddit
→ Leave a comment
Posted in Thinking Out Loud
Tagged matthew 10, matthew 8, ministry, missions, reflections, steve cullum, stevecullum, student ministry
Orange and Upward Partnering Together
Posted on January 6, 2012 | Leave a comment
Two of my favorite organizations have announced they are officially partnering up for future ministry. Orange, the people behind most the family ministry things I talk about, and Upward, a church-sponsored sports league, will soon be joining forces.
The curriculum writers at Orange will be providing three components of Upwards’ experience – the weekly practice devotions for kids, weekly halftime activities for parents, and end-of-the-season celebration DVD for families to take home. Because of this connection, the emphasis on reaching families for Christ through Upward Sports programs will be greater than ever.
I am very excited about this partnership, as both are excellent organizations! For more information, check out the official press release I have posted below.
Continue reading →
Share:
EmailMore- Print
- Digg
- StumbleUpon
- Reddit
→ Leave a comment
Posted in Orange
Tagged family ministry, orange, partnership, rethink, sports, steve cullum, stevecullum, Upward
What would you like to hear about this year?
Posted on January 5, 2012 | Leave a comment
This year, one of my goals is to blog more. This will involve more general things about my life too, because I don’t feel I always have a ton of insight to share about ministry.
The question is, though, what would you like to hear about this year? What types of things do you want me to share? Would you like to hear random things? Would you like more ministry resources? Would you like more personal stories? Would you like more videos/photos? Would you like more tech-related things?
This blog is not only for me to just talk, but I have always wanted it to be somewhere for others to gain something. So, what do you want to hear about this year?
Share:
EmailMore- Print
- Digg
- StumbleUpon
- Reddit
→ Leave a comment
Posted in Thinking Out Loud
Tagged blog, question, steve cullum, stevecullum
YM Resource – Free eBooks for Youth Ministry
Posted on January 4, 2012 | 3 Comments