Orange
Ryan Reed
You Gotta Make It to OC17

One of the most important events on my annual professional calendar is the Orange Conference.

Why Orange? In sum, when it comes to a student ministry curriculum, I have not found one as powerful, versatile, comprehensive, and intentional as Orange. It cares for the middle school student just as much as the elderly aunt who takes care of him. Orange seeks to equip the entire family, not just the teenage kid, for both individual and familial faith. That simple.

As a user since 2011, I've continually been sold by how well it prepares me to share the Gospel with teenagers and build parent partnerships for faithful ministry in the home. 

You Gotta Make It to OC17
Leadership
Ryan Reed
The Important Role of Self Awareness in ...

This post originally appeared on the Orange Leaders Blog on June 22, 2016. 

What is the toughest question you’ve ever had to answer, and who asked it?

Given that somehow you made your way to this exceptional community called Orange Leaders, I automatically know a few things about you:

The Important Role of Self Awareness in Leadership
Leadership
Ryan Reed
Key Ingredients for a Thriving Ministry Recipe

Not long ago my wife introduced me to the best show on television... Chopped. I love it. Hands down noting beats it. A simple show in concept: four chefs compete against one another using a basket of mystery ingredients - yet so captivating!

Why? Because the ingredients equalize the playing field. Whether the chef be a novice out of culinary a school or a multi-restaurant owner veteran, each chef receives the ingredients at the same time and must respond to them. 

The ingredients are the star of the show. They call out the character of the chef. Not the other way around. It's the ingredients that define the path.

Key Ingredients for a Thriving Ministry Recipe
Church
Ryan Reed
May the Real Me Meet the Real You

Said C.S. Lewis, "The prayer that precedes all prayers is may the real me meet the real you." 

A great friend of mine from college once shared this quote with me. He and I served in Young Life together, leading high school students toward a growing relationship with Jesus. I can recall that he ended nearly every one of his ministry talks with this quote just prior to closing in prayer:

"May the real me meet the real you."

I probably listened to him share this quote with me dozens of times. I think I also used it. But quite honestly, I don't think I understood the meaning behind it until much later in life. Intellectually I understood it. It's simple in structure, but truly profound in its meaning. 

Perhaps I missed it time after time because inherent within this quote lays an assumption that you know the real you. 

May the Real Me Meet the Real You
Orange
Ryan Reed
Rethink Leadership Conference Day 2 #OC16 #RL16

CAREY NIEUWHOF INTERVIEW WITH JON ACUFF

Know your message enough to find the direction, but leave it open enough to let the Holy Spirit inspire new content. 

For humor, build the island, but then make sure that you make a sturdy bridge to and from the island. Satire is about an idea, but mockery is about an individual. We are not called to mockery.

Put handles on ideas so that we can carry them forward. We have enough ideas. Put a handle on them.  

Rethink Leadership Conference Day 2 #OC16 #RL16

teenagers

What I Want Every Kid to Know Before I Say One Word

What I Want Every Kid to Know Before I Say One Word

My mentor used to say, "Proclaim the Gospel by any means necessary short of anything illegal or immoral." 

I agree. In fact, I agree so much that I decided to dedicate my vocational career to the proclamation of the Gospel, and I seek to do it as often as possible! I want to use words, illustrations, actions, smoke signals, anything! I would do just about anything for a person to know the truth of grace and salvation! 

But what about the flipside to that coin? As much as I may want someone to follow Jesus, what do I want that person to know about how much I value her or him? What would I want that person to know about the love of Christ before I utter one word? I would want that person to know this:

4 Ways to Integrate Teenagers into the Life of Your Church

4 Ways to Integrate Teenagers into the Life of Your Church

One of the very first posts that I ever wrote was titled, "Why the Church Needs Teenagers (And Why You Do, Too)." I shared the importance for why your church or organization needs to include the voice of teenagers in its overall direction and culture.

The key question, however, is how does this practically, systematically, and structurally happen? How do we as youth workers and leaders persuade our communities to put into practice these very ideals?

Just a few short years ago, as a 16 year old, the leadership of my church thrusted me into a position of power and authority by encouraging me to preach a half dozen times throughout the year. They recognized a gift within me, and they assumed that I would have something to say that the rest of the church needed to hear. As a result of this decision, two consequences occurred:

Into the Wilderness with Teenagers

Let’s call it out: serving teenagers is crazy hard! It’s kinda like venturing into a deep forest without a light or a map - why would you do it?! The gnarly world of teenagers can seem confusing, difficult, and disorienting... for both you and the student! At times, it may even be terrifying!

God calls us into the wilderness and the dark places in order that we may be witnesses in a desperate world
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Streets #loveGodloveKolkata

Two weeks ago, I walked along an entirely different kind of street.

It was dirty, full of garbage, excrement, and raw sewage. Strangers bathed in the streets. Traffic moved about in chaotic forms. The homeless made homes in the streets. Struggling businesses dotted the streets. A dying man laid lifeless in the street. Misery is embodied on the streets.

The streets of Kolkata incarnate life in its rawest form.

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5 Keys to Communicating a Successful Vision

Great leaders lead with great vision!

In my experience with Student Pastors, we do not need much assistance with creating vision for ministry. Many student pastors excel in their chosen field because they are idealists, dreamers, and creative.

But a great vision is worth nothing without the complimentary skill set to communicate it. Vision without strategic and well-intentioned communication remains just an imaginary nugget. Vision requires communication.

Great vision is worth nothing without the complimentary skill set to communicate it.

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2 Observations from a High School Parking Lot

2 Observations from a High School Parking Lot

Last week, I drove to my community's local high school to pick up one of my students for lunch. I turned into the parking lot. Class had not yet been dismissed, so I sat in my car just outside of the main entrance to the building. About 30 seconds later, the bell rang, and immediately, a flood of students poured onto the school grounds. It was like a dam of teenagers burst through the doors of the high school.

Off in the distance, I noticed my student standing on the other side of the school grounds. I slowly began to drive forward through the main artery of the parking lot. Hundreds of students crossed the road from the main entrance to their cars. I inched my way — strategically navigating through the crowds who hardly, if at all, noticed me. It seemed like a scene from an Indian market.

4 Ways to Integrate Your Teenagers into the Life of Your Community

4 Ways to Integrate Your Teenagers into the Life of Your Community

Earlier this week, I wrote a post titled, "Why the Church Needs Teenagers (And Why You Do, Too)." I shared the necessity for why your church or organization needs to include the voice of teenagers in its overall direction and culture.

I received valuable response in addition to the comments that it received. The key question that remains, however, is how does this happen? How do we as youth workers and leaders persuade our communities to put into practice these very ideals?