Welcome to Rooted’s Top Ten, a curated reading list for youth ministers. Each month we find ten articles, and sometimes videos or podcasts, from various sources that we believe will encourage you in your ministry to teenagers and their families. Some give explicit instruction on gospel-centered ministry, while others are included because there is a message of common grace that is helpful to youth workers. (The opinions presented in these articles do not necessarily reflect the position of Rooted.) For more articles to share with the parents in your ministry, make sure to check out our Parent Top Ten, which runs every month.
If you find an article that could educate, equip, or encourage the Rooted community, please email the editors at submissions@rootedministry.com.
Gospel-Centered
Engage Teens with the Whole Bible by Anna Meade Harris and Chelsea Kingston Erickson (The Gospel Coalition)
Learning to love Scripture is the work of the Holy Spirit, but adults can show a little Spirit-inspired creativity to help spark curiosity, eagerness, and reverence in young readers.
The Youth Pastor as Shepherd by Jon Coombs (Youth Pastor Theologian)
To picture what a pastor’s role is, the Bible gives us a shepherd. Jesus uses this picture Himself in John 10, declaring “I am the Good Shepherd.” It’s picked up again throughout the New Testament, particularly in Acts 20:28 and 1 Peter 5:1-4. As I’ve pondered these passages, I’ve been struck by how this shepherd picture plays out in youth ministry.
Partnering with Parents
How to Reach Generation Alpha by Equipping Their Parents by Shane Pruitt and Shelly Melia (Lifeway Research)
If we are going to reach Generation Alpha, in addition to creating strategic ministries for children and students, we also need to focus on the parents and guardians.
How To Do a Tech Detox with Your Teen by Jean M. Twenge (Generation Tech)
Time for a reset. Any break from school is the perfect opportunity to find out what your kid is like without devices. I’ve always done a version of this over the summer, giving my kids an hour a day of their laptops and then physically taking them back. But now they’re teens with phones, friends, and strong opinions, making a tech detox harder.
Youth Culture
Distillation by Sidney Muntean (Mockingbird)
My optimization bender left me overly caffeinated, constantly twitching, and with a habit of shutting my phone screen on and off over and over again. I ate foods that corresponded with my projected energy levels of the day. I studied in the morning when I was at my sharpest and let my creativity take the back burner since there was no direct way I could tangibly profit from it. Upon getting my feelings hurt, I surmised that the best way to cope was to take ice-cold showers to physically restart my nervous system and force neurotransmitters to surge and shake up my mind. I gained momentum, fervor, and boatloads of free time. But I lost slowness. And rituals. Tenacity to sit through discomfort. And the ability to repurpose that free time into something beautiful.
A Shifting Digital Landscape by Jake Bier (The Center for Parent Youth Understanding)
Social media, it turns out, is not all that social anymore. The social element is gone, and the internet is now a completely different animal. For that reason, I think “social media” is an outdated term, and we need a new one. For a while I was using the term “the digital World”—as in, it’s another world that you step into—but now I think we’d be better off going back to a term from when the internet first began: the Web… in the sense that it has been designed to ensnare you. What is a spider web? It’s a trap. More and more, that’s what the internet is.
A Comprehensive Report on Teens, Tweens, and AI (Common Sense Media)
To find out what that actually looks like day-to-day, we surveyed more than a thousand 9- to 17-year-olds across the country. We asked them how they use AI, how often, and for what.
Ministry Skills
Discipling a New Believer? Lay These 5 Foundations by Steve Auld (Logos)
Just as a newborn baby must be nourished and nurtured by those who are older and more mature in order to grow, so a newborn Christian needs the care and guidance of believers who are further along in the faith. This is the work of Christian discipleship.
Questions, Pain, & Presence (The Kickback Podcast)
Jordan sits down with Val O’Brien, seasoned youth worker and founder of Aspen Ministry, who shares her experiences and valuable insights on how to bridge the gap between the church and the youth of today.
Good News About Today’s Faith-Centered Gen. Alpha Teens by Brad M. Griffin (Fuller Youth Institute)
Every Sunday, I see students in our church serving in ministry, leading worship, and participating in all kinds of ways in the life of the church. And in our work at FYI, I hear stories of growing ministries, listen in interviews with teenagers who tell me about their deep faith, and look at data that challenges the doomsday narratives.
Rooted’s Two Most-Read of July
Teenagers and the Doctrine of the Trinity by Ryan Oakes
As ministers, we don’t have to know all of the answers; we simply believe in the One who does. Our students can find comfort in knowing that God leads the way into belief, proving himself faithful. Then by his grace, deeper understanding will follow.
Want Your Students To Love The Word? Love It First by Allyn Bock
When we teach the Word, we teach about the Son of God, Jesus Christ himself. There is no greater name, no greater privilege. Want your students to love the Word? Love him first.
In Case You Missed It (Rooted’s July Honorable Mention)
Let Grace Transform Your Ministry by Dillon Mack
Your students need this Jesus as much as you do. As they navigate successes and failures in their own lives, they need to know that God’s grace is a ballast for them.
