PODCASTS

Tag: #congregations

Feature – The Shape of Campus Ministry Today – Steve Cheyney – 06/12/23

Feature – The Shape of Campus Ministry Today – Steve Cheyney – 06/12/23

The Shape of Campus Ministry Today

Steve Cheyney tells us about the current priorities of most campus ministries, because of changes in the priorities of most college students of the current generation, often referred to as Generation Z.

Cheyney calls the mental health circumstances of many of these young adults a current “crisis”. The causes, he says, are related to the ways students relate to each other and to other people, mostly via their devices. They want to impact society, improve the world, and find themselves often unable to connect.

That shapes ministry to college students, with a focus on counseling and pastoral care. That also means that campus ministries — and local congregations near a university campus — will miss the boat if they focus on traditional Bible studies, Sunday morning worship, or other “religious” events. The veteran of more than two decades of campus ministry says there are many great ways that churches and organizations can provide positive Jesus-centered influence particularly for this generation.

Listen to this podcast with leaders of your congregation.

The Rev. Dr. Steve Cheyney is university pastor at UNC-Charlotte and leads the Niner United ministry there. He also is on the faculty of the Honors College at Charlotte.

 

Feature – Beyond Mother’s Day – Jenny Coffey – 05/16/23

Feature – Beyond Mother’s Day – Jenny Coffey – 05/16/23

Mother’s Day was Sunday.

We talked with family counselor — and mom of four preteens — Jenny Coffey about what most moms might really like for Mother’s Day.  Her answer for the weekend was “rest” and balance.

Those are still gifts which can bless mothers the other 364 days of the year.

Coffey gives us advice for families, including stories from what is working for her own household. She also has encouragement for moms themselves — how to avoid the internal and external pressures and stereotypes can improperly focus women on unattainable accomplishments and unrealistic status.

Also in this extended version of the feature we aired at noon, she shares additional insights for women who are parenting alone (either as single moms or without good support from others), as well as ways congregations can adapt their families to be better supportive of mothers (and fathers). Coffey sees this as an important evangelistic tool too, because older church leaders may not realize how parenting styles and family patterns have changed for today’s young adult generations.

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