This Issue's Resources ...

Ministry Conversations: Program Evaluation
An Interview with Luther Whitfield

We continue our series of downloadable audio files with this month's free resource. 
Kara Powell interviews Luther Whitfield, urban ministries coordinator for Youth for Christ in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and national community ministries consultant for YFC, on conducting program evaluation.

A Deeper Integration of Theology and Ministry

by Kara Powell and Chap Clark
How often do you stop to ask, “Is the way I practice ministry leading to the results I am hoping for?” or, “How do my theology and my ministry shape each other?” Whether you think about these kinds of things a lot or a little, this Deep Design from Kara Powell and Chap Clark’s new book Deep Ministry in a Shallow World offers a “practical theology” loop that you can incorporate into virtually every aspect of ministry.

by Brad Griffin
Have you ever stopped to think about whether using a cell phone, instant message service, email, or even a sound system impacts the message you communicate using those media? In this interview with author Shane Hipps, we are challenged to stop and think about the implications of every day technology that we may never have considered before.

Getting the Job Done:
Evaluation Part III

by Mark Maines
When you make plans in ministry, do you tend to follow through well, or let the ball drop?  How does your level of follow through impact your kids, your community, and your ministry? In this last of a three-part series on ministry evaluation, Mark Maines helps us think more critically about the role of execution in youth ministry.

FAQs & the Low Down Dirty on
Hip Hop Culture Fo Yo Ministry: Part I

by Dan Hodge
OK, really: What exactly is Hip Hop Culture, anyway? Researcher Dan Hodge offers a user-friendly FAQ approach to Hip Hop in the first of a two-part series. Whether you think you “get it” or you know you don’t, take a look to see if you’ve ever asked the questions on this list!!

August Update from CYFM and Kara Powell

• We are thrilled to announce our first book from the Center for Youth and Family Ministry. Deep Ministry in a Shallow World: Not So Secret Findings About Youth Ministry (Zondervan, 2006) is now available for purchase! It represents several years of research and contains interviews with youth workers – people just like you – who are trying to go deeper in their ministry and relationships. Check it out and let us know what you think.

• Speaking of letting us know what you think, we would love to have a better idea of the impact our articles are having on youth workers.  In fact, we have changed our article rating feature to make it easier for you to let us know what you think!  You no longer need to sign in to access the rating feature – simply click “Rate this article” after you read each one, and click on the most appropriate rating, based on your own evaluation. Thanks for your help!

• Many of you have asked us for an update on our College Transition Project. This last spring, we surveyed nearly 200 high school seniors around the country who were graduating both from high school and their youth ministries. We’ll be doing the fun number crunching of these surveys this summer and will report results back to you in the fall..

- Kara Powell 

Kara E. Powell, Ph.D., is the Executive Director of the Center for Youth and Family Ministry and an Assistant Professor of Youth and Family Ministry at Fuller Theological Seminary.  She has been in youth ministry for 18 years and is the author of several articles and books including Help!  I'm a Woman in Youth Ministry (Zondervan, 2004) Mirror! Mirror! (Zondervan, 2003), and co-author of Deep Ministry in a Shallow World (Zondervan, 2006) and the Deep Sex Curriculum Guide (Zondervan, 2001).

NEWLY-RELEASED FROM YS/ZONDERVAN:

Deep Ministry in a Shallow World: Not So Secret Findings About Youth Ministry,
by Chap Clark and Kara Powell from the Center for Youth and Family Ministry.
You can order it online.
Check out additional Deep Ministry resources for free here.

Please PASS ON this e-journal to your ministry team and youth worker friends!

Our Mission: Working alongside frontline leaders, Fuller Theological Seminary's Center for Youth and Family Ministry (CYFM) exists to turn research into resources that transform youth and family ministry. To read more about how we work and the leadership of the Center, visit www.cyfm.net.