A Couple of My Heroes. . . .

My good friend and CPYU Associate Staffer Paul Robertson has a wonderful habit of asking me the same question whenever we chat: "What are you reading?" I love that question. I loved being asked because it tells me that the one doing the asking is a learner. I love being asked because it keeps me on my toes. . . and reading. And I love being asked because it reminds me to be constantly asking others the same question. . . which has led me to discover some great books I might otherwise have never known about.

Another reading question I love is one I'm thrilled to be asked by youth workers: "What books do you recommend I read?" Over the course of the last few years I've been answering the question not only with a list of books, but with a list of authors. Two of those authors that have shaped and reflected my own thinking on matters of faith and culture in concise and readable ways are two guys that I'm now privileged to count not only as heroes, but as friends. They're both humble and unassuming guys who are incredibly gifted, have amazing stories, and who have gotten enough years of experience under their belts to have deep wells of time-tested wisdom to draw from and share. They are guys I encourage you to seek out so that you can sit at their feet, listen, and learn.


The first is Dick Staub. You can learn more about Dick at his website. I used to require his first book - Too Christian, Too Pagan - in all the undergrad and grad classes I taught. Students ate it up and consistently said that it transformed their thinking and lives in terms of who we're called to be as Christ's followers in the world. Sadly, that book is out of print. . . but still worth looking for. Then Dick released his next book, The Culturally-Savvy Christian, and once again students had the opportunity to soak up some wonderful wisdom on finding their place in God's world.

The second is John Fischer. Perhaps you've heard me speak in the past about how as a 9th grade, I sat in the bleachers at a Philly high school and heard this long-haired guy with a guitar sing about Jesus. Just to get some context. . . that was a long time ago. Music like that was really cutting edge. I was 14 and John Fischer was 23. John then started to use his writing skills to go beyond music. Since then, he's written several books. A few years ago I stumbled upon a copy of Fearless Faith and I was blown away. I began requiring students to read that book. The response was unbelievable. When have you ever heard an undergrad say to his prof, "Thanks for requiring that book! It's changed me."????? I heard that from several students over the years.

I thought I would pass on some quotes from the beginning of Fearless Faith that shatter so much of the conventional and erroneous thinking that has infected the church over the years:

"He doesn't intend for us to be removed from the world, but to be protected in the middle of it. He doesn't want us removed from danger, he wants us surrounded by danger on every hand - but safe from the evil one."

"The prayers of Jesus are completely in accord with God's will because he and the Father are one. If Jesus prays for our protection, then it is because he knows God fully intends to protect us. And if he prays for us not to be removed from the world, it is because he has no intention of rescuing us out of the world. This is not a well-intentioned wish on the part of Jesus. It is the will of God to leave us in the world and meet us with all the provisions and protection we need to be here and be involved in the world. Anything short of this is less that what God intends for us."

"We want to be safe in a safer world; God wants us to be safe in an unsafe world. We want to protect ourselves by removing ourselves from danger; God wants to protect us in the middle of danger."

"The more we remove ourselves from the world, the worse the world gets in the absence of a Christian influence and the stronger the argument becomes to stay away from the world. If we were training our children to understand and critically examine the world's popular art, literature, music, and film instead of limiting them to safe Christian versions of these things, we might have a different world waiting for us in the next generation."

John nails it. . . over and over again. I've come to love John's thinking and message so much that a couple of years ago I approached him and invited him to consider serving on Associate Staff with CPYU. I was blown away when he accepted. I'm thrilled that John is now traveling and speaking on our behalf about true fearless and biblical faith. He's a voice you need to hear. I hope that some of you would consider doing what you can to help others hear John's message. If you're interested in bringing John in to speak to your adults, young adults, college students, or other group, you can click here to learn more.

What are you reading? Who are you listening to? May I recommend Dick Staub and John Fischer?

Teddy and Me. . . .

If you aren't my age, you probably can't understand my fascination with all things Kennedy. I think it happened when JFK was assassinated and I experienced it all as a 2nd grader. Sure, I had been a tourist at the Kennedy White House on a family trip several months before. But the Kennedy thing didn't begin for me until that watershed moment in cultural and political history when the TV provided non-stop coverage of the events in Dallas. It left a deep and enduring mark on me, most likely because my 2nd-grade mind was trying to process the murder of the President.

Since then, I've read all kinds of books on the family, the assassination, and how the Kennedy's have influenced culture and history. Part of my fascination has been invested in trying to figure out the fascination with the family. Ironic, isn't it? Lisa jokingly tells people that when I get to Heaven the first question I'll ask is, "Did Oswald act alone?" Several years ago I flew to Dallas a day early for a YS youth workers convention. I arrived late at night but managed to get up at the crack of dawn to spend the day at Dealey Plaza. I called home early in the morning and asked Lisa is she could guess where I was. "The grassy knoll," she answered without flinching. She was right. She knows me well.

You might have guessed that I spent a good chunk of time last Friday and Saturday watching the television coverage of Teddy Kennedy's funeral. My interest came from my fascination. I was never a fan. In fact, I grew up thinking Teddy Kennedy was an over-privileged and two-faced crook who was a living contradiction. Books, conversations, and my own observation of the man reinforced my opinion that he was most-likely getting into more trouble than any of us ever knew. When he did get caught, it was a combination of privilege, status, power, influence, and money that made for an easy out.

After processing Saturday's events, I'm not sure where I stand in my understanding of Teddy Kennedy. I never knew him. The knowledge I did accumulate and the opinion I had was mostly shaped by the words and opinions of others. Sure, much of his admitted misbehavior was sorry and sad. But on Saturday, for the first time, I think I realized just how human Kennedy was. The funeral was filled with comments from people who knew him well. Predictably, nobody said anything bad. There were, however, numerous references to his ability to make mistakes and poor choices in his personal life. At one point, the presiding priest talked about redemption.

Just when I was ready to oblige my biases and stereotypes by concluding that the world might be a better place without Ted Kennedy and his antics, I got a tap on the shoulder. It was brought to my mind - not coincidentally - that I am a sinful and fallen human being who has a tremendous ability to make mistakes and poor choices. . . . and I do. In the eyes of the One doing the tapping, my combination of shortcomings make me no better than anybody else. If I think I am, then I am actually worse. And, I was reminded that I am totally indebted to the One doing the tapping for the unearned and undeserved gift of grace and redemption that I've been given.

Thinking about that brought to mind a fact that I found a bit discouraging. Over the course of my life I have from time-to-time been critical of Teddy Kennedy. . . both in my own mind and in my words to others. But I don't think that I ever once prayed for the man. I realize there's no excuse for that. There's a much-needed lesson in there for me.

I'm Not Sure They'll Listen. . . .

I'll bet this has happened to you. It's already happened to me a few times. The other day I'm driving down the local interstate at a pretty good clip. I'm in the right lane. An on-ramp is coming up. I see a car gaining speed as the driver readies to merge. I move to the left lane and the car merges as we're right next to each other. I glance over at the driver. He's not paying attention to the road. He has one hand on the wheel, one hand on his cell phone, and both eyes focused on writing a text message as he looks in the direction of his lap. I don't know the guy's birth name, but I - alone in the car - refer to him out-loud as "you idiot." Sorry. I think he earned it.

Have you seen this? Have you done this?

There's been lot's of banter lately about people who text while driving. Our texting-addicted teens are perhaps most prone to this dangerous new practice, and I'm sure we're going to be hearing more and more stories from law-enforcement, the judicial system, and legislators about the potential dangers and horrifying results of texting while driving. Any of us who drive know that a car is a potential weapon whether intended to be or not. And, we know that momentary distractions can be dangerous and even deadly.

When I was 16 I was on the receiving end. There were no cell phones. But back in those days, papers and others things would blow off seats and onto the floor. I was newly licensed and recently hired by a lawn mower repair shop. The owner thought that I would do a good job driving his truck and trailer to deliver mowers to customers. Early one Saturday morning he taught me 1) how to drive his stick-shift pickup (can you say "neck brace?"), and 2)how to drive with a trailer hitched to the rear. Needless to say, I was very nervous. Only two miles into my first delivery, I pulled up to a stop sign at an intersection. Another driver made a wide turn at the intersection and hit me head-on. I saw it coming. I also saw him in the driver's seat. . . . looking at the floor instead of out of his windshield. He admitted his fault and blamed his inattention to the road on his preoccupation with a paper that had blown off his seat and onto the floor. I learned a lesson due to someone else's mistake.

When I was 25 I was on the giving end. I was driving with my new wife and lots of morning traffic through Boston's Callahan Tunnel. I looked into the left lane when it appeared that the guy next to me was drifting over. While looking at him, traffic in front of us came to a stop. I didn't. Enough said.

Perhaps you've seen the much-publicized new PSA video from a police department in Wales that's designed to scare kids into thinking twice about texting while driving. Give it a look. A texting teen causes an accident that leaves four people dead.



But will it work? How will teens respond? Realistically speaking, I don't think it's going to do much good. . . and it makes me sad to say that. Think about teenagers for a minute. They're risk-takers. They feel invulnerable. They are impulsive. And, while they know that these things do happen, they think that they will "never happen to me." Add to that the fact that the horror of this video is tempered by years of desensitizing media violence, and I'm sure many kids will see it as a mildly entertaining curiosity or even a lame attempt by adults to get the message across. Of course, that's not to say that it won't effect some kids. . . which is a good thing.

After watching the video for the first time, I thought back to the cinematic scare tactics I was forced to endure during my own high school Driver's Ed class. To be honest, me and most of my adolescent male friends actually looked forward to the days when the lights in the classroom would go down, the clackety-clack of the 16mm projector would begin, and we'd get to ooh and aah at some real-life blood and guts in films like the 1959 classic, "Signal 30." It was one of the most-looked-forward-to aspects of education at my high school. Our teacher, Mr. Vagner, would dramatically kick a metal trash can over near our female classmates for their use, just in case. As we watched, the unspoken assumptive response shared by us all was a simple, "That will never happen to me." We were teenagers.



So, what do we do with all this? The problem is only going to get worse. The combination of cars and technology can be deadly if not used in God-glorifying ways. There's nothing wrong with cars. There's nothing wrong with cellphones. But if we implement these neutral structures in dangerous and irresponsible directions we're only asking for trouble. Driver training - which we're doing with one of our kids now - has to include instructions on how to keep your eye on the road, how to eliminate distractions, and how to keep your hands off your phone.

I hope they get the message. What do you think?

Wacky . . . .

So I'm sitting on the couch with my wife Lisa watching our local Lancaster, PA 6pm newscast. For some strange reason, I say. . . "Let's turn to the Channel 6 Philly news." I haven't watched this newscast in a long, long time. Because it's the newscast I watched while growing up in Philly I sometimes like to take a nostalgic trip down memory lane and tune into Channel 6 Action News.

We flip over and there's a story on Hurricane Bill and the massive beach erosion at our favorite Jersey shore place, Ocean City. About 1 minute into the report, my 9th grade gym teacher appears. Oh man. Am I old? Am I young? Do I really need to be transported back into 9th grade and all the garbage that came with freshman year of high school?

So, enjoy. His name's Barry Troster. You'll see him about a minute in. He was tan and bleached blond forty years ago. Look at him now. He's probably still driving a blue Corvette. How old was he then? How old is he now? Check it out here.

This is one of those weird media moments!

Michael Vick. . . .

It's been a weird few weeks for those of us who have spent years living and moving in the world of Philly sports. Okay. . . . I guess an argument could be made that any given hour in Philly sports is weird. If that's the case, then these have been some of the weirdest. First, the Phillies go and mess with their team chemistry by signing Pedro Martinez, a pitcher who some might say is arguably the most arrogant man in baseball. We'll see how that all works out. Then last night. . . during the Eagles' first preseason game, we hear that the Eagles have signed the recently reinstated Michael Vick.

Interested in the way this thing plays out in a town like Philly, I've been tuning in and out all day just to hear what the pundits are saying both nationally and locally. But it's not all the discussion in response to the move that's caught my attention.

What's caught my ear is how this decision was made. Granted, I've only heard bits and pieces from the people who are talking about how this all happened as they worked behind the scenes. From what I've heard, I'm impressed. While eating my lunch, I watched Eagle's owner Jeffrey Lurie and his press conference. Without notes, Lurie spoke from his heart, candidly expressing his deep reservations about Michael Vick along with his cautious hopes for the good that might come out of this whole thing. I hope it wasn't spin. While I might not share some of Lurie's presuppositions about life, I can't argue with his high regard for integrity along with his willingness to provide a window for a man who's done terrible wrong to find some redemption. There are three things about Lurie's decision that are worth a response.

First, Jeffrey Lurie is willing to call wrong behavior what it is. . . wrong. That's refreshing in a day and age when all-too-often celebrity is used to excuse or overlook all kinds of immoral behavior. Lurie was appalled at what Michael Vick did and he found it to be disgraceful and despicable. He said so over and over.

Second, he spent hours questioning Michael Vick before making his "counterintuitive" decision. Lurie is an owner who's very concerned about the culture of his team. He doesn't want to bring in a player who is purely saying the right things about how he's dealing with his past. He wanted to know that Vick is remorseful. In fact, Lurie stated that he was looking to see "alot of self-hatred," something that shows that Vick was not upset over getting caught, but upset for what he had done. I like that.

And third, Lurie opened himself up to the advice of three people who he values the most in terms of integrity - Commissioner Roger Goodell, Andy Reid, and Tony Dungy. That last name really caught my eye. I'm not sure there's a person in all of sport with more integrity than Tony Dungy. He's been mentoring Vick since this all happened. Knowing what I know about Dungy, the guidance and advice he's offering is straightforword, no-holds-barred, and Godly. If you've read Dungy's books you know that he is committed to a "no excuses, no explanations" approach to life. I get the sense that if God is going to do something incredible in Michael Vick's life, Tony Dungy would be a great human instrument to use.

I'm not sure how this thing's going to play out. Only time will tell. If Micheal Vick doesn't do one positive thing on the field for the Philadelphia Eagles, but he does experience redemption. . . it will all be a success. This could turn out to be a pretty good story.

Teens, Sex, and Early Marriage. . .

There's an article in the latest edition of Christianity Today magazine that I'm sure is already getting some attention and buzz. "The Case for Early Marriage," by Mark Regnerus, is one of the most thought-provoking assessments of our current abstinence culture, the state of marriage in America, and numerous cultural forces that are leaving a mark on people in ways that should cause concern.

While the article is about marriage - not marriage for the sake of legitimizing sex - Regnerus has dropped some thought-provoking and well-reasoned fodder for discussion into what I hope becomes a healthy debate about teenagers, abstinence programs, and what we focus on in youth ministry. Regnerus rightly asserts that "few evangelicals accomplish what their pastors and parents wanted them to" in terms of saving sex for marriage. I agree. I also believe that much of the fervor of parents and pastors is rooted in reckoning with the personal difficulties they had when they were the same age. It's important to note that Regnerus is not suggesting that teens get married. However, he does support marriage among those three and four years removed from their teenage experience. Again, the implications for those of us doing youth ministry or raising kids are deep.

While I encourage you to read the entire article, here's just a little of what Regnerus writes to whet your appetite:

Indeed, over 90 percent of American adults experience sexual intercourse before marrying. The percentage of evangelicals who do so is not much lower. In a nationally representative study of young adults, just under 80 percent of unmarried, church-going, conservative Protestants who are currently dating someone are having sex of some sort. I'm certainly not suggesting that they cannot abstain. I'm suggesting that in the domain of sex, most of them don't and won't.

What to do? Intensify the abstinence message even more? No. It won't work. The message must change, because our preoccupation with sex has unwittingly turned our attention away from the damage that Americans - including evangelicals - are doing to the institution of marriage by discouraging and delaying it.

Most young Americans no longer think of marriage as a formative institution, but rather as the institution they enter once they thing they are fully formed. Increasing numbers of young evangelicals think likewise, and, by integrating these ideas with the timeless imperative to abstain from sex before marriage, we've created a new optimal life formula for our children: Marriage is glorious, and a big deal. But is must wait. And with it, sex. Which is seldom as patient.

I urge you to give the article a good look. Then, why not let us know what you think.

Remembering John Hughes. . .

The pictures on the walls here at CPYU serve us as visual reminders of why we do what we do. Among them are a bunch of movie posters. If you would visit our office and stand in the main common area, you'd see posters for two of my personal favorite teen films, The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller's Day Off. John Hughes directed both. The 59-year-old Hughes died on Thursday morning while taking a walk.

If you watch movies and you like to laugh, you're most likely familiar with Hughes even though you might not recognize his name. Included in his body of work are a host of comedies that when mentioned, conjure up visual images and verbal references to some pretty classic scenes. Among my favorites are Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, National Lampoon's Vacation series, and the Home Alone films.

But Hughes also had the ability to tug at our hearts. While John Candy's Del was hilariously funny as a traveling shower curtain ring salesman, viewers were moved by Del's loneliness and need for connections. And what male youth worker who's had to share a hotel room with their peers at a youth worker convention hasn't at some point made reference to this scene? . . . .


And then there's the teen film that offers a window into the adolescent world that's still relevant today - The Breakfast Club. I am amazed at how a film that's almost 25 years-old can still help us understand the trials and travails of teenage life. The film was made five years before CPYU was founded. Twenty years into our ministry of providing information and analysis on today's youth culture, it's a movie that I still point to as a timely primer on teenage life and culture. The Breakfast Club is my favorite teen film of all time.


The death of John Hughes reminds me that I haven't watched The Breakfast Club in a few years. This weekend, I'm going to watch the DVD. If you decide to do the same, be sure to watch the DVD - not the TV - version. There's something about the honesty and brutality of the language used in the unedited version that opens our eyes to reality in some very significant and moving ways.

This isn't the first time I've mentioned the recommendation of one theologian for all Christians to start their day with the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other. In this case, start your weekend with the Bible in one hand and The Breakfast Club in the other. It will open your eyes to how we need to bridge the gap between the life-giving Word, and a yearning-for-life world.