A Little Taste of Christmas

Posted on: 11/27/13 3:01 AM | by Jonathan McKee

My Twitter and Facebook followers know that my wife Lori has been itching for Christmas since a little before Halloween, already playing Christmas music in our office mid October.

Here’s a little sum-something trending on YouTube to help you bring in that Christmas spirit– great vocals:

(the group is Pentatonix, an a cappella group who won the third season of NBC’s The Sing Off)

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Thankful

Posted on: 11/25/13 3:01 AM | by Jonathan McKee

One thing I really love about Thanksgiving is the fact that it triggers much of the country to stop and reflect about what they’re thankful for. Here’s the top 7 items on my “thankful for” this year:

  1. My 18-year-old daughter Alyssa came home from college for a week! (Man, we miss her!)
  2. My 16-year-old daughter Ashley Continue reading “Thankful”

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A Heart for the Unnoticed

Posted on: 11/20/13 10:43 AM | by Jonathan McKee

The-Way-Way-BackDo you notice that kid who seems to disappear under the radar?

In the shadow of a tragic teen suicide, and a weekend training youth workers to notice and connect with teenagers, I was pleasantly surprised by a film that, interestingly enough, has also slipped under the radar. This movie tugged at my heart for young people in a unique way and is no doubt the best film I’ve seen in literally years now.

The 2013 gem of a film is titled The Way Way Back, with Steve Carell, Sam Rockwell, Maya Rudolph and Toni Collette, to name a few. This brilliantly written story introduces an awkwardly shy 14-year-old teen named Duncan whose single mom (Collette) has started dating an unfortunate choice in a boyfriend (Carell). The mismatched bunch go on summer vacation to a beach cabin where Duncan tries his best to escape each day. Duncan finds community in an unlikely place, the Water Wiz Water Park managed by Owen, a free spirited man who befriends Duncan.

This film captured the essence of parenting and youth ministry, specifically three elements Continue reading “A Heart for the Unnoticed”

R.I.P. baby sister

Posted on: 11/18/13 3:01 AM | by Jonathan McKee

type“I just love being straight up ignored when ever I need you.”

It was the last thing she posted on her Facebook page. Then she went to her high school the next day and hung herself in the school bathroom.

That was last Friday.

Saturday, the day after this tragic suicide, I spoke at an event in the town where this occurred. Many of the youth workers knew kids from the school; they showed me this young lady’s Facebook page.

Some of the posts contained ‘text speak’ like “lawl sike” (basically saying, “just kidding”). But was she kidding? Continue reading “R.I.P. baby sister”

Dad, Can I Download Katy Perry’s New Album?

Posted on: 11/13/13 11:14 AM | by Jonathan McKee

Katy-Perry-PrismKaty Perry’s new album Prism has been out for just a couple weeks, and it already landed a number one spot on the Billboard charts. But this doesn’t seem to be the same Katy Perry we once knew. What can we expect from this new album? Or more specifically… what kind of guidance can we offer our kids who want to download it?

Without a doubt, whenever someone purchases my book, Candid Confessions of An Imperfect Parent at one of my parent workshops, I always see them turn straight to Chapter 6: Dad, Can I Download This Song? Parents are looking for ways to help our kids make good media decisions Continue reading “Dad, Can I Download Katy Perry’s New Album?”

First Two Winners

Posted on: 11/11/13 9:00 AM | by Jonathan McKee

Facebook-LikeLast week I let you all in on a little contest we’re having this month where I reward you for connecting with me on my Facebook page (you can read all about how to win HERE). Well, last week I already randomly chose the first two winners. One was someone who had FRIENDED me… the other was someone who LIKED a bunch of my posts. As you know, each time you LIKE… your name goes into the hopper.

It doesn’t get much easier than that!

So congrats to David Barton and Matthew Erickson!

Still lots of prizes left, including Man of Steel on Blu-ray. So don’t forget to keep hitting LIKE when I post something that intrigues you!

Guys, Girls… and Zombies

Posted on: 11/7/13 3:11 AM | by Jonathan McKee

Kid-reading-Zombie-bookI’m still scratching my head a little bit about this The Zombie Apocalypse Survival Guide for Teenagers we put on the shelves just two month ago. It was difficult to get a Christian publisher to print anything with the word Zombie, but once we did… it’s now our top selling book on my site, the Youth Cartel site, and on Amazon.

Youth worker Josh from Kansas just emailed me today about his guys’ small group:

I’ve started my high school guys small group on your The Zombie Apocalypse Survival Guide for Teenagers.  They are ecstatic about it.  I had given them several options for resources for us to go through and they unanimously and rather vocally all wanted “The Zombie Book” as they call it Continue reading “Guys, Girls… and Zombies”

Only If You Get Caught

Posted on: 11/6/13 3:01 AM | by Jonathan McKee

GTA5I received some interesting emails and comments in response to my How to Kill a Hooker blog post a couple weeks ago. The post was about the new wildly popular, violent and sexually charged video game Grant Theft Auto 5 (GTA 5).

Here’s a response from a gamer named Anthony who shared some intriguing insight from the perspective of someone who has played the game. Anthony tried something unusual. He tried to play GTA 5 and “obey all the rules.” The results were Continue reading “Only If You Get Caught”

November Give-aways

Posted on: 11/4/13 3:00 AM | by Jonathan McKee

Facebook-Like-ButtonIt’s this simple: connect with me on Facebook, and you’ll be entered to win one of 10 different prizes I’m giving away in November (like the new Man of Steel on Blu-ray/DVD).

Why now? After hiding for years, I just went public on Facebook. So FRIEND me… because I’m in a friending mood this November! Anyone who FRIENDS or FOLLOWS me on my personal Facebook account since this going public will be Continue reading “November Give-aways”

Not So Sweet Dreams

Posted on: 11/1/13 11:34 AM | by Jonathan McKee

unmade bedLast night I had a really cool dream… and then, like always, it fell apart. Literally.

I dreamed that I was with my family at a restaurant that served the world’s biggest burger. The burger came on this huge platter and was so tall, that it was laid down sideways across the platter so as not to spill. It had multiple layers of bun, huge patties and every cool topping you could imagine (You have to understand my love for food to comprehend why this would be such a good dream).

So just as we began to dig into this amazing burger, my dream pulled one of its typical maneuvers and became Continue reading “Not So Sweet Dreams”

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