We need to be biblical. We have to be clear. And every youth worker wants to be relevant. But does that mean including technology as part and parcel of our teaching? And if so, to what extent? When does a useful tool because a distracting burden? Or a trendy gimmick that helps no-one...
In this seminar first given at the Bible-centred Youthworker conference earlier this year, Jon Bradley looks at the role of technology in youth work.
Spirituality. What is it? Do children have it? Does it change over time? Questions that many a children's worker has asked themselves over the years.
In this seminar, first given at the Bible Centred Youthworker conference earlier this year, Mel Lacy from Oak Hill Theological College looks at how a child's spirituality grows as they do.
The Bible is an awesome true story. And Jesus the ultimate story-teller. So it's no surprise that telling Bible stories is a fantastic way for God's people to teach others about his greatness. But it's not always easy to engage a room full of small people in a complex biblical narrative in ways that are both faithful and relevant.
In this seminar, first given at the Bible-centred Youthworker conference earlier this year, Sarah Bradley shares her top tips for storytelling with under 11s.
Barry Cooper explains who Discipleship Explored is for: “It’s intended for Christians, whether they’ve just started the Christian life, or have been on the road for a number of years.” And how has the series been received? “We’ve been thrilled to see the way God’s been using it. It was nominated for media product of the year at the CBC awards, which made our friends in the marketing department very happy! But for me, the real joy comes from the personal emails with stories of how lives have been changed. I remember hearing from Tim Chester in Sheffield and he said: ‘We should watch that ten-minute episode [“Righteous in Christ”] at least once a year because it encapsulates the truth of justification so well and applies it so powerfully.’ Our aim with Discipleship Explored is to get out of the way and just let God’s Word speak for itself, so it was lovely to hear that.”
The irony for Barry was that the opportunity to present an eight-part DVD series on the so-called “New Testament letter of joy” came at a time when he was struggling with profound grief. “There were some personal issues at that point in my life which left me feeling isolated and extremely lonely, and so to be in front of camera every day was a huge challenge for me. At the same time, I was immensely grateful for the things that God was teaching me as I wrote the series. I needed those lessons about contentment. Still do! And I think the fact that I was suffering probably helped me to get under the skin of Philippians a bit better than I would have done otherwise.”
And for Barry, there couldn’t be a better time to rediscover the truths taught in Discipleship Explored: “D. A. Carson says at the start of How Long, O Lord that it’s not much use trying to sort out our theology of suffering when we’re right in the middle of it. You can’t put up storm defences as the waves are crashing against you. So for me, Philippians is a pre-emptive strike. It’s a defence against the storm that is coming.”
Discipleship Explored is supported by a DVD written and presented by Barry Cooper. Each episode is beautifully shot on location around the UK, with settings as diverse as Highgate’s gothic cemetery, an East End boxing ring, a huge athletics stadium, a decommissioned observatory, an eerily empty underground station, and a scrapyard, filled with towering stacks of long abandoned cars.
It’s a visual treat, with a gorgeous soundtrack and a rumbling voiceover from James Cosmo, the Scottish actor perhaps best known for his work on Braveheart. The director is Steve Hughes, Cooper’s long-time friend and collaborator, who has just recently finished work on the BBC’s Dr Who. But the star of the series is the script, based firmly in God’s Word.
Barry explains his thinking behind the scripts: “I think one biblical idea clearly understood is better than three dimly grasped. With something as theologically rich as Philippians, it’s tempting to try and say everything—and end up saying nothing. So I wanted to make each episode as lean as possible, to hit one point and keep hitting that point as clearly as I could. Each episode has a single pulse that runs all the way through it, and hopefully there’s real power and clarity that comes from that.”
See the Discipleship Explored trailer here to get a feel for this DVD.
And please note: The DVD has been redesigned as part of developing the 2nd Edition of Discipleship Explored. However, the contents are unchanged from the previous version of the DVD, so you do not need to buy a new DVD if you already have an existing one.
“Philippians is a letter whose time is coming. And it’s coming soon. We’ve enjoyed an unprecedented period of ease and goodwill in recent times. But when you look at human history—and other parts of the world—you soon realise that all this comfort is just a blip. Don’t expect it to last, because it won’t. Suffering is coming.”
For Barry Cooper, hearing Dick Lucas say those words proved to be the decisive moment as he wrote and presented Discipleship Explored, an eight-part DVD series based on Paul’s letter to the Philippians. It’s the follow-up to the hugely popular Christianity Explored, a course that is now running in thousands of places and dozens of countries at any one time.
“I was sitting in this classroom in London, and Dick was saying that Philippians prepares the church to suffer well. It struck me as odd at the time, because everyone says: ‘Oh Philippians, that’s the New Testament letter of joy.’ So my job as a writer was to try and see how those two things—joy and suffering—fitted together.”
The answer, Barry says, comes in Philippians 1 v 29. “Paul makes a staggering statement which I think I’d lost sight of. He says, ‘…it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him…’ So Paul is saying: ‘Just as your belief in Christ is a joy-filled gift, so is your suffering for him.’ And I remember thinking, ‘Well, is that really how I see my Christian life?’ I think we spend most of our lives trying to avoid any kind of suffering or discomfort. We certainly don’t see it as a joy-giving gift. It never occurred to me that when we try to dodge the discomfort of discipleship, we are actually denying ourselves good gifts from God’s hand.”
For these reasons Discipleship Explored prepares people for the reality of living wholeheartedly for Christ—both the joy and the suffering. New Christians need to know this, but so do those who’ve been following Christ for some time. Our hope and prayer is that Discipleship Explored will help Christians walk confidently in the footsteps of Christ.
The new Discipleship Explored course - designed to give people the time and space to think about what it really means to live the Christian life - is now available. It's an eight-week journey through Paul’s letter to the Philippians which helps new Christians think through what it means to be a genuine disciple of Jesus Christ.
2nd Edition: the same…
Discipleship Explored has been widely used for several years. Churches and groups have found it a valuable tool that God has used to change many lives. We’ve now launched the 2nd Edition of this popular course. The core strengths have stayed the same:
…but different
This second edition has been completely redesigned to tie in with the hugely popular Christianity Explored course, for which Discipleship Explored is an ideal follow-up. New features include:
More to come
This week on the blog we're going to be talking to Barry Cooper, who wrote and presents the DVD. He'll be explaining some of the thinking behind developing Discipleship Explored. And on Friday there will be some great special offers on the new Discipleship Explored material.
So you've done the prep. The main point is clear in your mind. The structure is sketched out. And your application thought-through. All that remains is to put the pieces together, write the talk and deliver it.
You're faithfully explaining the word of God so you're confident that it's going to be relevant and transformational. In the hands of the Holy Spirit, there's no doubt that it can be used to glorify God. But there's still a nagging suspicion that the talk that you end up with might be, well, how can I put this? Just a little bit dull...
If that scenario sounds familiar, why not spend an hour today listening to Pete Woodcock's seminar on how to stop being boring.
As an experienced speaker, Pete shares his top tips for passing on God's truth in ways that engage and enthuse. Originally given at the Bible-centred youthworker conference, there are hints here for anyone who has to teach Jesus from the front of church. If you listen, your talks may never be the same again ...
For many, the path to knowing Jesus is a series of steps. They get to know a Christian… they meet some of that Christian's friends… they go to a church-run event… they begin to be interested in what lies at the heart of the church… they come to an evangelistic talk… they start going to church meetings regularly, or go on a course… they put their faith in Christ.
Of course, that journey is different for all of us. Some stages get jumped over, swapped around, or taken a long time over.
But it's easy, having been Christians for a while, to forget that each of those steps doesn't seem very small when it's the next one. And so it's worth thinking: what's an easy, short next step for my tentatively-enquiring friend—and how can I help them make that step?... continue reading
ChristianityExplored.org exists to tell people about Christ—who He is, why He came, and what it means for us today. It's not an advert for the Christianity Explored course—and your church doesn't need to run the course to use the website as an evangelistic resource.
But that said, there is an area of the site which tells people what a CE course is, and what it's like, and what "type" of people go (ie: all types!).
And if your church does run CE, it's well worth pointing people who might be interested to "The CE course" area on the site. Turning up for CE can be a pretty intimidating prospect—What will happen? Who'll be there? Will they be asked to pray or sing? Will they be put under pressure, or brainwashed?
There's a great short video at www.christianityexplored.org/course which aims to help people feel comfortable and confident about signing up. It's voiced by a real CE group leader, and features a wide range of CE courses from big church halls through living rooms to coffee shops.
If you're advertising a CE course at your church over Easter, why not show this two-minute video at evangelistic services and events? It's what it's made for, (literally!). Let people see that CE really is relaxed, informal and friendly, and they'll be far more likely to show up!
