Chris Kidd

Children Matter have highlighted the 'My First Message' Bible by Eugene Peterson:

it's brilliant!

the pages pictures and graphics are lush, the text is easy to read with a flowing style (as you expect from the message). no only that but thought prompting questions are found though out as well as suggested prayers and activities to coincide with the events.

basicly i highly recomend it since it combines everything that children need and enjoy.

One of the biggest challenges to any ancient faith is to adapt to modern circumstances and then, as circumstances change, to adapt again. American religious institutions are, as a rule, doing a poor job of listening to and learning from this millennial generation.

Mister Nifty pointed out Grunge Textures which is a get site to get free backgrounds for your presentations. On top of that they are high enough quality to be useful for print design as well. As they say on their site:

We have a growing collection of quality images ready for you to download including Aircraft Aluminum, Asphalt Textures, Brick Textures, Concrete Textures, Drains, Vents, & Grates, Grafetti & Vandalism Textures, Metal Textures, Mud, Clay & Earth, Old Machinery, Paper & Cardboard Textures, Peeling Paint Textures, Rusted Metal Textures, Spills & Splatter Textures, Stone Textures, Trash & Garbage Textures, Wood Textures, and other Distressed Surfaces.

The firm is to close factories in Massachusetts in the US, Mexico and the Netherlands after the digital age left almost no market for the film.
Polaroid stopped making the instant cameras themselves about a year ago. It now focuses on other ventures which include a portable printer for mobile phone images, and Polaroid-branded digital cameras.
"We're trying to reinvent Polaroid so it lives on for the next 30 to 40 years," the firm's president, Tom Beaudoin, told the Associated Press.

Write it out - no student should get up on stage without having their testimony prepared in advance. There’s nothing more powerful than a student story to compliment the message, but it can become awkward or even distracting when they don’t have a clear focus and a well-written script. Write it down and have them read it for the delivery. It evens the playing field so average students sound just like the ones that are more comfortable on stage.
Edit it down - Typically the testimony doesn’t come in at just the right size, and your size might fluctuate based on the needs of the service or the strength of the story. Either way, edit it down to perfectly fit the theme and message. Remove all last names, fact check, remove sentences that might appear to approve of unbecoming behavior, and make sure extra details used to color the story that may distract are edited out.
Talk to Parents - Before a student hits the stage, make sure their parents (if applicable) are in the loop. There’s nothing worse than a parent being blindsided - make sure there are no surprises. Whatever the story is about needs to be filtered by the family and make sure they are prepared for consequences and/or repercussions from the testimony.
Thank the student - It is a big deal to share the story! A hand-written card is a big deal, perhaps a small gift or a follow-up coffee is in order. Thank them for participating in a service whose goal is life change, and be sure to share the results of the weekend.

I've definitely had my issues with Seventeen magazine in the past, and as a young sex educator am always a little leery of studies like this one, mostly because they allow adult readers to generalize from the statistics without being exposed to the intricate, convoluted reasons why things are the way they are. But this time, Seventeen got it right: the issue, out on newsstands, talks respectfully and frankly to young women, in a space where they are all eyes, about sex and the real world -- and allows us to learn a few things in the process.

“My heart sank a little when we spoke of building youth centres. Those of us in the faith communities and the churches have been involved in work with young people for a long time.

“Buildings are important, and churches sometimes struggle with that, but it is the relationships and the quality of the work that are really important. We must be focused."

“We have some great sports facilities in schools. But at this time of year some young people find their local pitches are unlit and waterlogged. And even if they do function the gates are locked at sundown."

“And I’d ask all local authorities to look at the public sports facilities they already provide and make sure they are usable for as long as possible. If young people want to play sport after school we should encourage it - not lock the gates or turn off the lights."

“Of course local authorities have to make sure places are safe and secure - but floodlights can make areas safe for use and experience shows us that area which have provided out of hours sporting opportunities have seen a fall in anti-social behaviour.”

Check out his statement here.

3. SIMPLIFY: One thing I had to realize is I needed to use my leadership more effectively. Let them help plan the fundraiser. Let some of them do the announcements. So what if we don’t have a funny video opener or power point game all the time. I became to focused on the event programming, and I forgot my
audience.

4. REMEMBER WHY YOU ARE THERE: I read 1st & 2nd Timothy today. It was a great reminder to me of my calling and why I do Student Ministry. I challenge you to take a moment and read these short books of God's Word. It will refocus you and refresh your heart.

From Reuters news agency:

Read the rest of the article here