Innovative Salvation

Often, in an effort to stay relevant to the youth and young adults we minister to and with, we strive to be on trend, ahead of the curve, on the ball, or whatever cliche you choose to describe the on-going chase of the next thing.

Then there are those that are doing it. And doing it well. I've been paying attention to social media, like many of you, knowing that this is so crucial to the lives of the vast majority of the young church.

Over the last few days the focus of most social media postings I follow, whether they are personal friends, professional acquaintances, or organizations, have revolved around the weather and devastation of Sandy.

What astounds me is how innovative some organizations and individuals are using social media to provide immediate, meaningful relief or communicate in particularly trying circumstances.

Many friends used social media to search out shelter, convey their state of being, when all they could rely on was their smart phones or other comparable devices. This allow many of us to pass along accurate, helpful information to other concerned individuals or provide information on shelter and assistance.

I am completely flabbergasted by the use of social media in one particular instance. HopeMob has been using Twitter, Amazon, and everything else they can to help provide immediate assistance to individuals and organizations in Sandy's wake. They have found individuals in the devastated areas that are able and willing to provide transportation, food, and a multitude of other small and great acts of goodness. Then there is the current mobilization to provide supplies needed at shelters where small children are located. They have utilized Twitter to spread the word and set up a registry on Amazon with the supplies needed. Thus people can order and have the items overnighted to the shelter directly.

How incredible is that? While many of us had the first thought to donate to Catholic Social Services or the Red Cross, how many thought of ways we could make a direct impact on an organization or individual? How many of us know how to do that?

Are we able to think this creatively, this innovation in our ministry? Are we able to see the tools of the ever changing media and technological landscape through new lenses on a daily basis? Are we able to be as innovative with conveying the message of eternal salvation as these examples of worldly salvation?

Keeping It Together

I may have mentioned this. Once or twice. I am someone who loves organization. My dad is former military (over 20 years of service) and my mother has worked in finances for as long as I can remember. Organization is pretty much genetically ingrained in me.

However, there is a stereotype or perhaps an excuse regarding those in ministry to youth and young adults. We are not organized, we're creative. We're not organized, we're relevant. To quote my favorite half-giant, "Codswallop!"  If anything we need to be more organized. We face audiences that redefine procrastination, use of instantaneous communication, and parents that are raising the bar of helicopter parenting on a daily basis.

Do you have mechanisms in place to keep yourself organized? Do you know how you will communicate effectively and appropriately with those involved in your ministry? Do you keep accurate and accessible records?

A few of my tricks are these:

• Levenger's Circa Notebooks.  I adore these things. They allow me to take notes, reorganize the pages, and keep everything together if I am jumping from meeting to meeting until I can get them into the appropriate file folders in my office. I also use the junior size one as my "Book." The Book goes everywhere with me. Some of the pages are personal information - books to read, quotes I like, grocery lists. Some are notes on work - calendar of all youth and young adult events, leadership contacts, etc.
• Evernote. This is a blessing when it comes to digital organization. Check it out if you haven't already. Many youth ministry blogs have touted the uses and wonders of this program and app (plus the program is free though you can get an upgrade should you wish).
• A workable old-school filing system. Some things need hard copies. Your parish and diocese likely give you some of those stipulations. I also have the "If Jenn Gets Hit By A Bus" set of folders - basically the next week to two weeks of programs all set to go so that if I end up with both legs in traction or attacked by poisonous caterpillars, the show can go on without me.
• Email and texting mechanisms you can access from anywhere. Since our youth group is on Sunday, communicating changes (say cancellations due to snowstorms) can be challenging if I make the decision after our last morning Mass.  Using list servs, Google Groups, etc allow you to easily and effectively communicate via email. There are also some great new resources out there that will allow you to communicate via text message without forcing your poor little thumbs to scream out in rebellion.  I'm going to be giving Simply Youth Ministry Tools: Communicate a try. There are a few others out there. Plus these will allow you to send emails and text messages even when you're out of the country on a mission trip. Great to keep parents aware of your safety and the joy the teens are sharing.

Any tips you want to share?

Please note, these are my opinions and what I found useful. They are not an advertisement from any of the resources listed above.

Friday Highlights

As I was up late with one of those phone calls you can get in the late night hours when you work in ministry, today's post is going to be pretty easy. Here are a few things for you to check out:

A great post with a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor on Philomena, The Greatest Saint Who Never Was. Love the takeaway points.

The USCCB's blog on Social Media and the Gospel.

For those in young adult ministry - check out the forum on young adult ministry sponsored by the National Catholic Young Adult Ministry Association (NCYAMA). You'll see me there!

Great Little Tool

Confession: I own two Kindles.  In my own defense they were both gifts from my parents.  I am an avid reader - I have two book cases that are filled (completely wedged in every space are books), one more decorative one with special editions (heirlooms from my grandparents) and favorite books, then there are the inevitable stacks on my night stand, coffee table and end tables.  I also have a well used library card.

A few years ago my parents gave me the second generation Kindle.  I thought it would be nice for traveling if nothing else.  I love it.  It has been around the world several times.  It hangs out on my night stand so that I can read before I go to sleep.  It slips into my purse for days when I may find myself waiting somewhere.

This past birthday, I received the Kindle Fire.  While the iPad has many bells and whistles, for what I wanted, the Kindle Fire is genius.  I've got my books, web access, email, a ton of apps (including weather, Words with Friends, etc.).

The Kindle Fire was a huge help on our service trip so I could track weather on our cross country winter drive.  I could email updates to families of our teens.  I could email when I have various problems.  I could look up maps to locations and the times that restaurants were open.

The other great thing - you can get books from your library on Kindles now.  Huge bonus here!  As a youth minister I find myself trying to read a ton of things from psychology books to the latest YA novel.  With the library loan system, at least at my district library, you get two weeks with the book.

Also, you can email documents to your Kindle.  I just did that with a huge pdf file that would be over 100 pages.  As it is a great, colorful document too, I can appreciate all those great colors and layouts on the Fire.

You can also highlight, take notes, and leave bookmarks.

I find these great tools to help me stay on top of things in the ministry world and in the various tangentially related fields.

Two-fer

Here's a two for the price of one.

One: a great online magazine is here.  Church Life: A Journal for the New Evangelization.  You can access it for free from...

Open publication - Free publishing - More spirituality

Two: ISSUU a publishing site.  Looks to be intreguing.  I  haven't snooped around it too much yet, but there could be things of interest.  I would hazard to say there will also be things that I will stay far away from, but I just wanted to put it on your radars.

Two Handy Tools

Switching gears, here are two digital tools I find incredible -

Instapaper

This handy little app for your computer, iPhone and so forth allows you to clip text, websites, etc. and come back to read them later. You can sync it with your Twitter app on your phone which I find helpful when there's a link I want to follow but at that moment the dentist calls me back for that pesky appointment. It is also great because it works well with ....

Evernote

I am hardly the first to extol the virtues of this handy little application. However, I am really digging it right now as I am working on my workshops. I have three workshops to present prior to the end of the month. Two deal with media and technology so I am creating handouts and finding articles online. Since I do some of the work at home, some at work, and some on the go, it allows me to have access to the info no matter where I am. You can also directly email someone your files from Evernote. Images, websites, text, it all falls neatly into Evernote and you can easily create notebooks and tags to keep things organized. The app for my iPhone is also great so I can add a note if something came up in conversation or while reading something.

Media

Just have a few moments before a staff meeting.

I've dropped a few things into Delicious, but for those not using that service, here are a few items of interest:

The Beloit Mindset (yet another great thing from my homestate of Wisconsin). A fascinating look at this year's freshman college class. Also, likely the only time that Ferris Bueller and altar servers will be on the same list.

A great article on Millennials and media.

And a way to address 9/11. I found this video as a great thing to use for youth group where most teens have no real memories of the day. A pilgrimage through Ground Zero with Fr. James Martin, S.J.

Reality Check

Today we could not use our computers in our office until about 11:00 am. For most of the morning, we were hamstrung. Everything on my "to do" list and all the things I could possibly think of to do required my computer. I ended up sorting through the piles on the credenza behind me. No more looming piles of paperwork or magazines.

But it was quite the reality check. Once upon a time, not so very long ago, youth ministry and young adult ministry happend with out computers. It happend without the Internet. Wow.

Okay, all kidding aside. It was a good reminder that work still goes on even if your computer doesn't. It got me to thinking about what we can do when we unplug.

In a couple of weeks at youth group, we're doing a special night on prayer that will focus on very low-key, no technology reflections and prayer techniques. We will actually have the kids silently reflect for a period of time. And you know what, last time we did this, every single teen loved it. They adored the chance for silence.

And isn't that telling?

Technology

This month, Youth Worker Journal, has dedicated their issue to Technology & Youth Culture. As usual, it is a fantastic, thoughtful read.

That said, here's my two cents.

Technology is a tool. Like any tool it can be used for good or evil. A tool in the hand of a master craftsman creates works of art. A tool in the hand of a genius or inventor creates useful, helpful, even lifesaving items. A tool in the hand of a fool, the careless, or someone with evil intent will be dangerous, harmful, or even lifethreatening. This is nothing new.

Perhaps instead of focusing on the technology itself, we need to focus on the user. For if we work to develop ourselves and those we work with as skillful, thoughful, holy artisans, the tools can do great good.

"Go Forth & Blog!"

No, it is not some new, hip translation of the Gospels.

Rather, it is the latest from Pope Benedict XVI. Check out the article from the Washington Post on "Pope to priests: Go forth and blog."

Would love to comment, but this blogger has some real life work to do.

Facebook and Faith

I really promise that I will share more on the Guatemala trip. Especially as I had a meeting yesterday to schedule our next trip with International Samaritan.

Today, though, I want to spend some time on that Washington Post article, Soul-Searching on Facebook.

Religious views: _______________

How do you answer that question? Those who are, like me, employed by the Church (or any faith group) can likely put the one or two words for our denominations. But is that really it?

While their sample is small and we have a brief window into the minds of a few young adults active on the Internet. All gave the question some thought. All had very different answers. Pretty interesting.

Defining Faith on Facebook

A fascinating article showed up on the Washington Post.

Soul-Searching on Facebook

It gives an interesting snapshot on a section of the young adult population and Facebook users as a whole. Of the 250 million users, approximately 150 million respond to the profile prompt Relgion:.

Yet More Web

After a fantastic meeting with the adult volunteer leaders where we ate our way through several "grown-up" pizzas (read: multiple toppings and cost more than $5 each) from Papa John's, I've spent my day with the Internet even more so than usual.

First it was pulling my notes from Google Docs and neatening up the language, getting rid of my shorthand notes, and elaborating on things while they were still fresh in my mind. I emailed the whole revised version out to all the leaders so that they can add their two cents on what I may have forgotten or new thoughts they might have.

As one of the suggestions made was to create an interactive calendar, I set up a Google Calendar giving them admin rights. Now all our youth ministry events are posted to the calendar, adults can put notes in on whether or not they can be there, and we can have better communication. I also was able to post it to the website for the ministry so parents can merge it with their own Google Calendars or just have a nicely formatted version to print out.

With a resident expert on the web (she's in marketing and specializes in New Media), we're going to get some crash courses to better utilize things. In the meantime, I'm fiddling around with what I know and trying to learn on my own.

Pope & Web 2.0

The Pope has now more fully entered Web 2.0.

With the launch of Pope2you.net, there is a much more cohesive and useful foray into the tangle of young people and their web use.

I've only just started to play with it a bit, but there's good stuff on the site already and it obviously recognizes the major items in young people's use of the internet - iPhone, iTouch, Facebook, wiki, etc.

The WikiCath is a nice touch. Some Italian still shows up for the buttons to turn pages and such, though they are fairly intuitive so it doesn't make a huge difference. I am sure some of these hiccups will be repaired.

All in all, after a couple of minutes of playing with it, I like it. Can't wait to see what else they do with it.