How do you get volunteers to serve in ministry along side you? Brian Bierenga, Youth Pastor at Brookside CRC, shares his approach by using the internet. He suggests three things: Use email, Use template, Track Smarter.This is a fantastic blog to equip you as a Youth Ministry Leader in recruiting volunteers.

It appears that confessional preaching/teaching and the second worship services are both going the way of the dodo bird and passenger pigeon in most places in our denomination. Check out this article about second services by Matt Vande Bunte in a recent on-line issue of The Grand Rapids Press and then read on. I hope the article remains available for a while.

What makes a meeting go well?  Isn't it great to come to the end of a meeting and say, "I feel calm and peaceful and happy.  I even have some energy left!"    

If you are interested in reading charitable, honestly Christian comment on the issue of Christian-Muslim relationship—especially on the topic of Koran burning—today’s issue of Evangelical Fellowship of Canada's Virtual House News will be helpful. Pass this around to members of your congregation, council members, friends. Encourage prayers, calm, gentleness and generous portions of Christ’s love. If you don’t have time to read all the items editor Daina Doucet refers to, I particularly recommend at least Geoff Tunnicliffe’s record of his conversations with Pastor Terry Jones.

Joel Van Dyke of Christian Reformed World Missions has been doing some exciting work in Guatemala with gang members and others society calls the “least, last and lost.”  Now a moving documentary has been made about that work entitled “Reparando.” It was accepted and screened at the Grand Rapids Film Festival last month.  It will be playing at two West Michigan locations the second full week of October.

Okay, that advice might be a little extreme, but the first few weeks of Sunday school are critical.

More and more software programs are becoming available online or 'in the cloud'. Currently, there are several popular services like Google Docs or now Microsoft Office Web Apps that make working in the cloud advantageous. Recently, Intuit unveiled Quickbooks Online which allows an organization to manage their books, run reports and more online. Now those who keep track of the church's finances and books can do so in the cloud. 

Our use of money is one place where our spirituality gets incarnated.  Spirituality in our imagination is rather high-minded, mystical, and holy.  But money matters seem stressful, mundane, practical and –in these days of recession – discouraging.

Let's learn from the Roman Catholic masters from whom we separated--and whom we villainized for many years. Perhaps one spiritual benefit of ecumenism for all Christians is to examine ourselves, scour our motives, use the agonizingly slow, maddening wheels of the church to move with us and we pastors and leaders with them.

Well, in my honest opinion, money might not buy happiness, but it sure can borrow some great times and an enjoyable lifestyle. And the lack of money can sure bring on some pretty unhappy situations.

Last week's blog reflected on generational differences in approach to missions.  Dr. David Livermore of the Global Learning Center at Cornerstone University is one of the leading experts in short term missions and cultural intelligence which are key issues for youth and intergenerational mission teams.  He will be the keynote speaker at a conference on these topics on October 30 at Ivanrest CRC, Grandville, Michigan.