Youth Culture Matters - A CPYU Podcast

It was back in January of 2007 that Apple CEO Steve Jobs spoke prophetic words to the attendees at the Macworld Conference. Jobs famously said, “Every once in a while, a revolutionary product comes along that changes everything.” He was talking about the smartphone, a device that has changed just about everything. Stick with us as we have a youth worker roundtable conversation about the latest findings on teens, tech, and social media, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

We begin the podcast with a fun discussion about music. Then CPYU Research Fellows and Youth Workers, Jason Engle, Kerry Trunfio, Tim McAlpine, and new CPYU staff John Barry, talk about the U.S. Surgeon General's Advisory on Social Media and Youth Mental Health. We take a look at some of the data it points to, as well as practical ways the insights can impact our ministries. We also look at a few trends and news stories from the world of teens and technology and discuss how to approach the issues biblically.

One of the questions youth workers are asking more than any other is this: What can I do to come alongside of and help parents as they seek to love their LGBTQ+ kids? Because all of our kids are divine-image bearers and we are called to parent them with grace and truth. I invite you to listen in as I chat with Joan McConnell and Joy Worrell, both members of the Parent and Family Ministry Team at Harvest USA, about how to best support our youth ministry parents as they navigate these tender, sensitive, and difficult issues in ways that honor the Lord and His good design on this episode of Youth Culture Matters. 

Culture is changing at breakneck speed, and today’s youth workers need to not only keep up with the host of new challenges facing our kids, but they need to respond in ways that communicate the truths of the Gospel so that our kids might embrace a life of faithfulness to Jesus Christ as His disciples. Today, I pull together a group of boots-on-the-ground youth workers to help us learn more about where culture has gone over the last year, where it’s headed, and how we can practically respond as we nurture kids in our churches and homes. I invite you to listen in to our helpful conversation, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

“The feminist movement has given birth to many things: one of these is the popularization of gender, a concept that drives a wedge between sexed identity and embodiment.” Those words are written by Abigail Favale in the autobiographical chapter simply titled “Heretic”, in her new book, The Genesis of Gender: A Christian Theory. Abigail’s personal story and thoughtful book on the gift of our embodiement as male and female is a must-read for anyone hoping to lead kids through the current muddied and confused cultural narrative on sex and gender. I invite you to listen in to this conversation with Abigail Favale, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

The way that we parent and the way that we do youth ministry is always informed by the theology we embrace, whether that theology is embraced consciously or unconsciously. Of course, unless we work to consciously embrace a biblically-faithful and orthodox theology, we run the risk of thinking about God and Jesus in ways that are inaccurate and not even Christian. One hundred years ago, J. Gresham Machen faced and addressed this same dilemma, and he did so in ways that are helpful and informative for us today. I chat with my friend Dr. Steve Nichols about how Machen’s message is timely for us today, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

All of us in the youth ministry world have heard the experts tell us about the differences in generations. We have to realize that all of these statements are generalizations that are sometimes accurate and helpful, and sometimes not so accurate and less than helpful. What should we think about generational theory? And how can we as people who care about and love kids use it with wisdom and discernment in our youth ministries? Listen in as I chat with my friend Crystal Kirgiss and three of our youth worker friends about the good, the bad, and the ugly of generational theory, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

As Christians, our lives must be marked by a never-ending passion to know and live the truth. This is especially necessary in those aspects of life where convincing and easily-believed lies have taken root and grown, not only in the culture, but in our lives as well. What we believe about sex and gender is too often shaped by lies, rather than the truth of God’s will and way for His creation. Today we chat with someone, who like all of us, has believed and lived lies. By God’s transforming grace, she has also been brought out of darkness and into the light. Rosaria Butterfield is passionate about helping all of us know and live the truth, and I’m chatting with her about all of this on this episode, of Youth Culture Matters.

Here in the United States, over 45 million children and teens participate in organized sports every year. It’s no secret that over the years youth sports are costing families more and more in terms of time, effort, and money. If we allow it, this growing commitment can cut into our commitment to live a life of faithful Christian discipleship. Many youth workers and pastors lament how youth sports are taking so many kids away from opportunities for Christian nurture and growth. Today, I’m talking to our youth worker friend, Jason Engle, about how we can best navigate youth sports and church participation, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

It’s no secret that conversations about sex and gender are front and center in today’s world. This creates challenges for those of us who want to communicate God’s good design for sex and gender in our homes and churches. What voices are our kids listening to? And what should we be teaching regarding what it means to live lives of gender and sexuality regarding God’s design? Today, I’m chatting with one of the most trusted and helpful voices regarding biblical sexuality, Dr. Christopher Yuan, on this practical and helpful episode of Youth Culture Matters.

This episode was originally released on October 19, 2020.

Recent research tells us that about half of our eleven to twenty-one year old girls regularly alter their photos to enhance their appearance online in order to find acceptance. Researchers also tell us that our girls are much more likely to experience anxiety and depression than their male peers. What are cultural forces that are shaping and even mis-shaping girls in today’s world? Why are more and more of our girls struggling to figure out who they are and how to live in the world? And what can parents and youth workers do to guide girls through the earthquake of adolescence and into an adulthood where they flourish? Stay tuned as we chat with physician, counselor, and author Dr. Leonard Sax about his new book, Girls on the Edge, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

This episode was originally released on June 5, 2021.

People have always had questions, doubts, and objections to the Christian faith. Kids growing up in today’s youth culture are no exception. As they marinate in a cultural soup that encourages them to rely on their own intuition rather than biblical authority, the challenges to embracing a lifetime of following Jesus are very real.  And I fear that the nurture taking place in our homes, churches, and youth groups all too often remains shallow, leaving kids to simply embrace the cultural narrative, rather than engaging with solid biblical answers to their questions. One of the best resources to remedy this is Rebecca McLaughlin’s new book, 10 Questions Every Teen Should Ask and Answer About Christianity. Stay with us as we chat with Rebecca about helping our kids find life-giving answers to their toughest questions, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

It’s been just a few days since Tim Keller went to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. A pastor, writer, and theologian, Keller has had a profound impact on so many during the late 20th and early 21st centuries. I, for one, have been blessed by Keller’s ministry. Today, I’m going to converse with some youth ministry friends about the life, impact, and legacy of Tim Keller and what it means for all of us moving forward, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

Don’t judge. You do you. Be authentic to yourself. God just wants you to be happy. These are just some of the cultural mantras that saturate the soup of today’s culture. If we aren’t careful, even followers of Jesus Christ can get swept up in the spirit of the times and believe these lies that we see and hear on social media each and every day. Alisa Childers will help us understand how to listen to evaluate and respond to these cultural lies as we talk about her new book, Live Your Truth and Other Lies: Exposing Popular Deceptions that Make Us Anxious, Exhausted, and Self-Obsessed, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

Our kids are growing up in a world where questioning one’s birth gender is an encouraged option. With more and more of our kids questioning their gender and even taking steps to transition, we need solid guidance on how to compassionately walk alongside them and minister to them in ways that glorify God. Stay tuned as I chat with my friend Nicholas Black about what to do say and what to do with those who are experiencing gender confusion on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

It’s mind-boggling, isn’t it? I’m talking about the rapid advances being made in technology and social media. As parents and youthworkers, it’s essential  that we not only keep up with these changes, but that we also develop biblically-faithful strategies for helping our kids and their families navigate the use of these tools in ways that bring glory to God and advance our human flourishing. Knowledge, caution, and wisdom are necessary. That’s what we’ll address as we chat with Chris Martin about his new book, The Wolf in their Pockets: 13 Ways the Social Internet Threatens the People You Lead, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

Where is God in the midst of the trials and suffering we face in life? Jesus told us that in this world we will have trouble, and the entire Bible from Genesis to Revelation is filled not only with testimony to this fact, but with a theology of suffering that we must know, embrace, and pass on as an inheritance to our kids. If you’re like me, you often wonder how God works in the lives of those who face unimaginable suffering. When all seems hopeless is there any hope? Today, I chat with some young youth worker friends who have been and are in the midst of the unimaginable. Stick with us for a compelling conversation about real life suffering, real life hope, and a challenge to teach this to our kids, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

So today, I’ve got great news for youth workers! CPYU has put together a youth ministry training opportunity that we know will encourage and equip you as you look for ways to effectively minister to kids and their families. And I want to invite you to join us for four days in March to hear from sixteen gifted youth ministry trainers in five plenary sessions and your choice of twenty-eight different breakout sessions. Listen in as we introduce the Northeast Youth Ministry Summit and how to bring biblical hope to anxious hearts, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

We can’t answer the question What am I to do?, until we first answer the question “What am I to believe?” As Christians, we are called to listen to God’s Word, seeing it as the light that shapes our beliefs and guides our choices. Perhaps there’s no more urgent place in today’s world to embrace this reality than in God’s good gifts of marriage, sex, and gender. In an effort to help us recover and live out God’s will and way in these areas of life, Dr. Tim Tennant has written a fabulous book that will inform parents, youth workers, and pastors alike. I talk with Tim about his book, For the Body: Recovering a Theology of Gender, Sexuality, and the Human Body, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

Because our children and teens are vulnerable, they need to be protected. After more than two decades as a family counselor, our friend Julie Lowe has seen how important it is to help parents and caregivers think wisely and biblically about the dangers children face. Instead of living in fear or denial, parents and caregivers can equip children to assess people and situations and model for them how to live by faith in a world where evil exists. Today, we chat with Julie to get insights from her brand new book, Safeguards – Shielding Our Homes and Equipping Our Kids, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.

Culture is catechizing and indoctrinating our kids twenty-four seven. From the time they emerge from the womb, our kids grow up in a media-saturated world that tells them who they are, what to believe, how to live in the world. Sadly, the culture more often than not steers our kids away from the life-giving answers that the Bible provides to all these questions. Parents and youth workers, we need to be intentional about teaching our children and teens a biblical worldview, and that’s we’re talking about today as we chat with Amy Davison from Mama Bear Apologetics, on this episode of Youth Culture Matters.