Getting Fired for the Glory of God: Collected Words of Mike Yaconelli for Youth Workers

by Mike Yaconelli

Overview

Scripture is full of the voices of prophets who convicted, irritated, edified, exhorted, chastised, instructed, encouraged, and proclaimed the Truth. Many followed these prophets; many hated them; some dismissed them; others laughed at them; still others wanted them silenced. The same could be said of Mike Yaconelli. Like the prophets of old, Mike was a blend of the sacred and the profane, the outspoken and the insecure, the gentle lamb and the roaring lion. This paradox lives on in his writing and in his recorded words. In Mike Yaconelli you’ll discover a bold, passionate, and ultimately prophetic voice reminding us to stay focused on Jesus, to hold life lightly, to walk together as we love kids, and to devote ourselves to an outrageously gracious God who loves our souls into being. If you’re in youth ministry today, it’s likely that—someway, somehow—Mike Yaconelli played a part in it. Much of the playfulness, creativity, and humility that exist in youth ministry were first nurtured by the life and work of Mike Yaconelli. Reactions to Mike Yaconelli are rarely neutral. He forces you to react, to feel, to think and to question: He loved youth ministry, but at the same time he wanted to dismantle it; he pastored a church yet proclaimed churches to be dull and stifling. He poked fun at powerful Christian celebrities but was disarmingly open about his own pride and weaknesses. Despite founding one of the largest youth working organizations in the world, Mike advocated for a counter-cultural faith that emphasized small over big, few over many, and silent over loud. His words carry all of these contradictions, leaving readers both inspired and frustrated...often at the same time. Years after his death, Christians across the globe still turn to the words of Mike Yaconelli to uncover the divine mischief, the shameless truth-telling, the love of kids, and the passion for Jesus that make youth ministry the irresistible calling he claimed it to be. People turn to Mike Yaconelli not just because of what he wrote, they turn to Mike Yaconelli because of what he aspired to live.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780310309093
Publisher:	Zondervan
Publication date:	10/21/2008
Sold by:	HarperCollins Publishing
Format:	eBook
Pages:	144
File size:	482 KB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Mike Yaconelli is the author of bestselling books Dangerous Wonder and Messy Spirituality. He was the senior editor for the Wittenburg Door (1971-1996), a satirical religious magazine noted for its irreverent humor, in-depth interviews, and commitment to reforming the evangelical church. He was the cofounder of Youth Specialties, an international organization devoted to equipping youth workers through training and resources. Mike was a prophetic voice in the church-at-large and was a devoted husband and father until his death in 2003.

Read an Excerpt

Getting Fired for the Glory of God
Collected Words of Mike Yaconelli for Youth Workers

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By Mike Yaconelli
Zondervan
Copyright © 2008
Karla Yaconelli
All right reserved.

ISBN: 978-0-310-28358-4

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Chapter One SOULS IN DANGER (JULY 1999)

In his book In the Name of Jesus, Henri Nouwen writes that after 25 years in ministry, "I found myself praying poorly, living somewhat isolated from other people, and very much preoccupied with burning issues ... something inside was telling me that my success was putting my own soul in danger."

I'm very concerned about the souls of America's youth workers. Youth ministry here is precariously close to collapsing under the weight of its own success. We seem to be caught in the spell of a media-driven, techno-event culture that's dazzling the life out of us. We have a spectacular array of seminars, products, conventions, rallies, crusades, and programs that draw large crowds and make lots of noise-and we wait expectantly for the next spectacular array of events. Sadly, an increasing number of youth workers have opted for more instead of deep. All over the country, one youth ministry after another is becoming a monument to our charisma, a tribute to our technology, a testimony to our management skills ... and one more nail in the body of Jesus.

Our ministry staff meetings are more like management meetings than prayer meetings. We spend our time talking about how to relate to our new computer systems instead of talking about our relationships with Jesus. The modern senior pastor operates like a CEO instead of a spiritual director, mentor, or fellow struggler. Numbers, activities, and programs dominate our agendas, and we soon discover that in today's institutional church, mission statements, strategies, and results matter most. Efficiency and control rule. The bottom line is tangible growth. The youth minister's soul is irrelevant. Then we wake up one day with very successful youth programs, only to discover our success has cost us our souls.

A high-profile, parachurch youth ministry approached a veteran youth worker friend of mine and tossed her name in the hat for one of its executive openings. She was excited to be considered for the job and saw the position as a great place to launch a care program for the staff members' souls. In her interview, one executive told her, "I know you're passionate about our staff members and their relationships with God, but frankly, your job will cover a lot of responsibilities. I'm at the same level you'll be. In terms of my job description, helping staffers with their relationships with God is 27th on my list."

No youth ministry, church, or parachurch should survive if the condition of its youth minister's soul is 27th on the list. Today's youth ministry culture is consumed with doing rather than being. So many of us know what it means to believe in Jesus-but we don't know what it means to be with Jesus. We know how to talk about Jesus-but we don't know how to listen to Jesus talk to us. We're experts at doing youth work-but we don't know how to let God work in our hearts. We know much about saving souls-but we have no clue about soul making. We're comfortable with God's people-but uncomfortable when we're alone with God.

We've forgotten the real bottom line: Our souls. Let's reclaim them. Let's start with our relationships with Jesus. Let's start the new millennium by reaching inside our souls before we try to reach the world. Let's start at the feet of Jesus and go from there.

1. STAFF MEETINGS. Let's begin our pilgrimage with Jesus by changing the way we do business. Let's make intimacy with Jesus our business. Let's suggest to our church staffs that we spend the majority of our meeting times talking about our relationships with God. Let's spend that time praying and paying attention to what God is doing.

2. YOUTH STAFF. Instead of starting with what we're doing with the kids, let's spend our meetings talking about who we are to the kids. Maybe we can cut back on activities and spend more time together in silence and solitude so our young people can sense the presence of Christ in our staffs.

3. IRRELEVANCE. Think of all the hours you and your staffs spend programming. What if that time were spent being "irrelevant" by seeking God's presence, listening to God's voice, looking at God's beauty, tasting God's Word, and resting in him? Maybe in the frenzy of modern culture, the most relevant thing youth workers can do is cling to Jesus-so those who're scurrying from one cultural icon to another will trip over him on their way toward relevance.

It isn't easy to stay with Jesus in ministry ... but we must. Deep in our souls, he's whispering how much he loves us. If we'd just take the time to listen to those words and believe them, then our ministries would be gloriously ruined by Jesus-and our souls would no longer be in danger.

(Continues...)

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Excerpted from Getting Fired for the Glory of God by Mike Yaconelli
Copyright © 2008 by Karla Yaconelli. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Table of Contents

Contents INTRODUCTION: THE ELDER WITH THE ADOLESCENT HEART....................5
SOULS IN DANGER (JULY 1999)....................15
A FREEDOM STORY (SEPTEMBER 1999)....................19
THE SINS OF YOUTH MINISTRY (NOVEMBER 1999)....................23
WHAT WOULD JESUS SAY? (JANUARY 2000)....................27
GIRL, INTERRUPTED (MARCH 2000)....................33
RUN FOR YOUR SOUL! (MAY 2000)....................37
WHERE'S JESUS? (JULY 2000)....................41
TEN EASY STEPS TO GUARANTEE A SUCCESSFUL YOUTH MINISTRY! (SEPTEMBER 2000)....................45
"PLEASE SAY GOODBYE TO JESUS FOR ME" (NOVEMBER 2000)....................49
HURRIED DISCIPLESHIP (JANUARY 2001)....................53
THE "TROUBLE" WITH YOUTH MINISTRY (MARCH 2001)....................57
SPEAKAHOLICS (MAY 2001)....................61
PILING ON THE MILLSTONES (SEPTEMBER 2001)....................65
"I DON'T KNOW" (NOVEMBER 2001)....................69
THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU ODD (JANUARY 2002)....................75
YOUTH MINISTRY RANT (MARCH 2002)....................79
TALKING DISCIPLESHIP (MAY 2002)....................83
THE PROBLEM OF PARENTS (JULY 2002)....................87
A BETTER IDEA THAN YOUTH MINISTRY (SEPTEMBER 2002)....................91
GETTING FIRED FOR THE GLORY OF GOD (NOVEMBER 2002)....................95
YOU JUST HANG ON (JANUARY 2003)....................99
HOW PASTORS CAN KEEP YOUTH WORKERS (MARCH 2003)....................103
THE FAILURE OF YOUTH MINISTRY (MAY 2003)....................107
AN APOLOGY (JULY 2003)....................111
DISCIPLE ABUSE (SEPTEMBER 2003)....................115
CARING FOR YOUR OWN SOUL WHILEMINISTERING TO OTHERS....................119
AUDIO AND VIDEO QUOTES AND NOTES....................135