Thought Factory Podcast

It would be an understatement to say that our world has been through a lot in the last nine-plus months of the year, maybe beyond what was expected when Covid-19 first invaded our lives.  The severity of the impact is measured on a person by person basis, as it has affected all of us in a variety of different ways.  In this episode, Host Jeff Eckart and Jayson Brewer discuss the impact the coronavirus has had on the organization of Never The Same, on our faith in God and humanity, and the by-products of the pandemic that has already affected youth ministry. 

As weeks roll into months of this current crisis we find ourselves in, you may be evaluating and re-evaluating what you have been doing in your ministry to students.  This time has caused all of us to slow down in some way or another and there may be questions you are asking yourself.  What have you found to be unnecessary?  What do we need to let go or repent of that we have been doing?  But, what's the big question that this crisis is forcing all of us to answer?  What are you calling your students to when the normal program is disrupted?  In this episode, Jeff and Jayson discuss the big question we should be answering when it comes to our ministries as well as the wrong questions we may be asking instead.  Are we offering a product to be consumed, or are we creating an environment for students to meet with God?  

How do you make decisions in a time of crisis, especially when you do not know when the crisis is going to end?  How do you approach each daily decision when tomorrow's forecast is so uncertain?  What approach should we have toward the long-term when the short-term will likely change?  In this episode, Jeff and Jayson discuss three concepts in an article found in the Praxis Journal, "Leading Beyond the Blizzard" - talking about making decisions in a blizzard, a winter, and a little ice age.  When a crisis occurs and it appears that it will last longer than anticipated, how do we operate our ministry, church, non-profit, or business when things appear to not be going back to normal?  Rean more at: https://journal.praxislabs.org/leading-beyond-the-blizzard-why-every-organization-is-now-a-startup-b7f32fb278ff

As we shift into the groove of being removed from our normal routines of ministry, we have established what our ministry will look like digitally for the extent of this pandemic as we socially distance ourselves. What is the number one thing we should be focused on?  This crisis has caused us to think creatively and execute plans in innovative ways, but are we providing what our students actually need or are we simply filling time until we can physically gather again? Have we stopped to listen to God's direction in all of this?

We are navigating through the new normal with the coronavirus pandemic affecting all areas of society throughout the world.  Churches and youth ministries have not been immune as we try to scramble to provide digital content for our students and communities.  But, what will our digital destiny be like as the landscape of the church changes and students' expectations shift?  Will we have a compelling enough reason to gather again or will this new normal of the digital world become permanent for many youth ministries?

We are in the middle of a crisis with the Coronavirus pandemic spreading across the world.  As ministry leaders speaking into the next generation, it is our responsibility during these moments to be ready for what is about to take place in the coming months and years, not only in our country, but also in our churches.  This 4-part series will be released starting the week of April 13, 2020, with two episodes per week.

Jesus' disciples got to witness Jesus ascend into the skies and into Heaven.  Jesus claimed He would return again one day.  The disciples believed this to be true and anticipated Jesus' returning very soon.  This return was what motivated them to spread the gospel to all nations.  Fast forward 2000 years and the Church is still waiting for Christ to return to Earth, but do we approach each day with the same eagerness and anticipation as the disciples had?  In today's episode, Jeff and Jayson are joined with Dave Butts, Chairman of the National Prayer Committee, who is also on the board of the National Day of Prayer.  Dave discusses the importance of keeping the perspective of Christ's near return centered in the Gospel message and how it is vital in our Christian walk.

If you were to take a minute to think of the greatest issue in the Church, what would come to mind for you? Hypocrisy, greed, division, sexual immorality, biblical illiteracy...?  We all have our thoughts and opinions of what major issues face the Church today.  But there may be an even deeper issue that no one is thinking of nor talking about.  This issue is holding the Church back from its full potential.  In today's episode, Jeff and Jayson are joined with Dave Butts, Chairman of the National Prayer Committee, who is also on the National Day of Prayer Board. He discusses what he thinks is the greatest issue in the Church today.  And no, it is not the lack of prayer. *Episode Originally Recorded on 1.17.2020 (before the outbreak of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the United States)

The school campus is a focal point in society and is present in any community.  Students occupy a school building over 6,000 hours of their life between 6th and 12th grade.  If they attend our youth ministry, they occupy our church buildings around 300 hours in that same span of time.  And that number is declining.  Today's discussion is centered around the school campus as we ask the question, “Where are the students in our churches?”  So what do we do about it? Go where the students are.  Jeff and Jayson discuss six ways to engage the school campus.

Several years ago a question emerged amongst the youth ministry community that we’ve been debating ever since. ”Why are so many students leaving the church after they graduate high school?” For those involved in local and national youth ministry know that’s an old question.  Now the question has morphed to be, “Where are the students in our churches?”  Are we in a crisis with the next generation disappearing from our faith communities and congregations? Some would say yes. Today, Jeff and Jayson discuss a growing trend in how we can reach the next generation. 

Common Core is a set of standards that the educational system uses for teaching and testing English and mathematics between kindergarten and 12th grade.  This is what teachers not only teach, but what they want students to know by the time they graduate.  If youth ministries had a "common core" of behaviors that we would want our students to have when they graduate from our ministry, what would they be?  What is that standard that we should set or aim for based on the Christian faith?  In this episode, Jeff and Jayson created their own list of 10 behaviors they think an ideal student, hypothetically, should have after they leave the influence of our ministry.

Students have a lot of say in cultural trends.  What they decide to participate in, listen to, watch, wear, or what they choose to do, tend to become a popular aspect of culture.  When students are faced with decisions regarding how they dress, what they listen to or watch, and how they use social media, does their faith influence their behaviors?  How much is faith a factor in the decisions that students make regarding their friendships and romantic relationships?  In this episode, the discussion is centered around whether or not students are making behavioral decisions based on the values of their Christian faith.

Sharing our faith can be challenging, regardless of age.  How do you naturally turn any conversation toward talking about God or following Jesus?  Has it become too taboo to be so focused on evangelism as a youth ministry?  What is more important, simply be a good example of the gospel or share the good news verbally? When it comes to evangelism or sharing our faith, is it necessary to use words or can we avoid them altogether?  In today's episode, Jeff and Jayson discuss the current state of evangelism and how we may be doing it all wrong. They are joined with Dare 2 Share's President Debbie Bresina to discuss this topic further.  

We know the Kansas City Chiefs not only made it to the Super Bowl, but won the championship game.  Patrick Mahomes can now fulfill a dream of going to Disney World after winning it all.  But, before even getting to that point, they found themselves down 24-0 to the Houston Texans in the game before.  At that moment, Mahomes did something to change things around and exhibited a lesson we can learn from when it comes to evangelism and sharing our faith. There are many reasons why people don't share their faith, whether it is fear, don't know how, or thinking their life is not perfect.  Hosts Jeff Eckart and Jayson Brewer discuss the one thing that needs to be present to be effective when it comes to sharing our faith, as well as, looking at whether students think it is offensive to share their faith with people of other religions.

Revival broke out on the campus of Asbury College on February 3rd, 1970, which went for 185 hours, it spread to other schools, and revival broke out in other areas across the nation.  It has been 50 years since that day and we speak to one former student who was the epicenter of that movement.  Jeannine Carol Brabon committed herself to pray and was pleading to God for 3 years to bring revival on her college campus.  She sensed it was going to happen.  Then God did just that, He showed up.  Jeannine shares her story of what was happening years before and what can happen when we decide to seek to be in a right relationship with God.

"Screen time" has become another thing we measure.  We are all spending time on our dopamine-inducing devices, but how much is too much?  We receive the notification, compare our numbers from week to week, and then wonder how we've wasted so much time looking at our phones. In this episode, we discuss whether or not managing screen time is worth the fight with a child, what daily dosage is considered a healthy amount for an adolescent, and what students are spending their screen time on while at school. We've read the data, we've heard the reports, and listened to the experts, is there a case for banning internet-ready devices from the classroom and from the bedroom?  Founder of Protect Young Eyes, Chris McKenna, joins the show to provide insight in the ever changing landscape of the online world.  

When society shifted from analog to digital, we were soon introduced to the internet, which allowed our society connect with almost every other one in the world.  Eventually, that birthed the iPhone and every other smart device that followed.  As technology advances at a rapid pace, the laws that regulate them have not kept up the pace.  An iPhone in the hands of a child or an adolescent gives them access to anyone in the world, which can cause safety concerns.  An iPhone in the hands of a young driver can cause significant harm.  What do we do about it?  Hosts Jeff Eckart and Jayson Brewer speak with Senator John Rodgers from Vermont about his bill proposal to ban cellphones from anyone under the age of 21, as well as, Chris McKenna from protectyoungeyes.com about their legislation to help regulate the ratings process in the App Stores.

There are three primary reasons why students don't read the Bible.  They either don't have time, they don't know where to start, or they don't know how it applies to their life.  In this episode, we continue the discussion on the topic of the Bible with Lindsey Gorveatte, Director of Soul Exercises.  The discussion centers around what the number one reason is why students don't read the Bible.  Where is the trend going for the use of the Bible in our youth ministries?  What can we do as a solution to the challenges we face with students not reading the Bible?

Special guest Lindsey Gorveatte, Director of Bible Engagement, joins the Thought Factory Podcast to discuss what she sees in the landscape of youth ministry in regards to students' interest of the Bible.  We hear from students directly what they say about the Bible and how we could steer our ministries to utilize it more in our weekly programming.  Do we think students are reading the Bible because the adults in their life are telling them to or because of a more significant reason?

When it comes to passing down our faith from one generation to the next, how do we go about doing that?  Are students committed to the church as much as the previous generation? Does church commitment mean a faith commitment in a student’s life?  Today, hosts Jeff Eckart and Jayson Brewer discuss the importance of connecting students to church and the youth group and how that can impact their faith later on in life.  How do we connect them now to church and faith and how do we connect them after they graduate?