Books Archives - Page 17 of 19 - Jonathan's Blog From The Source

Which Cover Do You Like?

Posted on: 10/6/10 8:41 AM | by Jonathan McKee

I mentioned in an earlier blog that October was a month where we were going to give away some serious prizes. Here’s a chance for you to qualify. We want your two cents on my new book cover.

It’s simple. I’m going to show you four covers below, and I’d like you to comment and tell me your first and second pick. If you comment, you jump in the running for our contest this month where we are giving away a pair of Oakley’s, a bunch of my six youth ministry books and more (more details on that to come… just trust me… give us your comments).

Here’s the four cover “comps” that Standard Publishing is considering for my new parenting book, Candid Confessions of an Imperfect Parent. Tell us your favorite first and second pick by using this blog’s comment feature and answering these 3 quick questions:

Tell us who you are: are you a parent, youth worker, both?

1. Which cover captures your attention and makes you want to buy the book?

2. Is there another cover that grabs you as well?

3. What, if anything, would you change about either of those covers?

Here they are. Tell us your thoughts! And remember- we want your thoughts… so decide your favorites before you look at any other comments- we want your “unbiased” opinion!

Posted in Books, Contests | | Leave A Comment

Burning My Book

Posted on: 09/7/10 2:52 PM | by Jonathan McKee

I never thought I’d live to see one of my books burned, but on a recent trip… I saw about 30 of them burned!

It’s not what you think. They weren’t protesting (I swear, I didn’t say the word “Jackass” in the book)…

Let me back up just a bit.

A year or so ago when my CONNECT book first came out, there was a misprint. I blogged about it at the time, but the short of it is, someone who worked for my publisher hit a wrong button before the final print and the text came out like gobblygoop. The cover looked fine, certain pages look fine, but once you dig in… a total mess!

My publisher recalled the whole batch… and two weeks later I received a couple boxes of the misprints that had shipped to me separately. They told me I could keep those. So I just threw them on a shelf in the garage.

So… fast forward to recently when my family and I went camping with a bunch of other families at our church. I was packing all our camping stuff in the garage and began looking for some kindling. I didn’t realize that I was so short on kindling… and that’s when I saw a box of those misprints of my book! 🙂

4 hours later we’re unloading camping gear and my son asks me, “Dad… why do you have a box of your books here?”

I simply told him. “Those are the misprints. Put them over there by the firewood.”

He got a huge smile on his face.

When nightfall arrived (or did it “fall?” …I’m not sure), it was time for a campfire. Several of my kids’ friends got wind of the “book burning” and I had about 10 teenagers asking me, “Can I burn some of your books?”

How do you say “no” to that?

So next thing I know a bunch of kids are gathered around a fire throwing my CONNECTs on as fuel!

No worries… until… some of the kids started commenting, “Hey… look at his face burn! Cool!” My book has my picture on the back by my bio. Before long, about a dozen kids are laughing at my picture burning in the fire!

I walked over to my own kids who were laughing hysterically. I said to my son. “Et tu Alec?”

Sigh.

Posted in Books, Family, Humor, Personal | | Leave A Comment

On the Front Lines With Teenagers

Posted on: 08/26/10 9:11 AM | by Jonathan McKee

In my CONNECT workshop, I always teach a section called “Connecting on the Front Lines.” This is where the rubber meets the road– when we step out of our comfort zone to try to meet some kids on their turf… and we have NO IDEA what to say!

Have you ever been there? I have. It’s terrifying!

Michelle has too. She just emailed me this idea she uses when she’s on campus trying to connect with kids.

Hey Jonathan!

I just wanted to share an idea with you. I have been visiting our local middle school every week for the past three years. Something that works really well for me to meet students is to bring snack-size candy bars. I put a few on the table where I sit, and it doesn’t take long for kids to ask, “Hey, can I have a candy bar?” My response is always the same. “Yes, but there’s a catch. You have to tell me your name.” They do, and then I tell them my mine. Okay, so now I’m learning some names (and I do write them down and try to learn them!).

The next week, some of the same kids will approach (plus a few of their friends), and hopefully I remember their names (or at least a few names). So I tell them, “If I remember your name, you have to answer a question for me. If I don’t know your name, the candy is yours.” I bring a “Would You Rather?” book or another discussion starter book along with me. The kids love this! They run up every week yelling, “What’s my name? Ask me a question!”

Eventually, I had a small group of them that just wanted to answer questions, and the principal allowed them to skip the “free rec” time outside to sit with me in the cafeteria and talk.

I thought this might help some of those out there with a fear of going on campus to meet kids. This way is pain-free!

Thanks for a great site!

Michelle, Michigan

I love Michelle’s idea.

It’s tough out there on the front lines. That’s why I wrote CONNECT. Chapters 5 thru 8 talk specifically about going to the front lines to reach the three types of outreach kids on “their turf,” laying out the process step by step. Youth workers- Now is a great time to get this into the hands of your volunteers! (We have this book on sale right now on our site– lowest price on the web. We even have bulk package deals with a greater discount if you want to buy it for your whole team.)

Posted in Books, Discussion Ideas, Youth Culture, Youth Ministry Philosophy | | Leave A Comment

What Teens Need

Posted on: 07/21/10 1:53 PM | by Jonathan McKee

A persistent gap exists between what teens need and what adults in this nation actually offer them. Best Buy has put up the money to fund the Search Institute’s study on that gap. The main finding? The call for positive adult influences.

Heard that before?

Many of you probably remember me telling the story (I tell it in my CONNECT book and my CONNECT workshop) about my friend Brandon coming up to me and asking me, “What is the most important thing we can be doing in youth ministry?”

The answer wasn’t great talks or awesome games… it was connecting with teenagers one-on-one. Nothing beats the influence of a positive adult role model loving kids and spending time with them. (And that’s what led me to write that book, CONNECT)

Ypulse.com just got a chance to connect with Tim Showalter-Loch, Senior Manager, Community Relations at Best Buy and Gene Roehlkepartain, Vice President at Search Institute, interviewing them about this second annual Teen Voice report. Just a snippet from Tim:

One of the most important findings in this year’s Teen Voice survey was that too many teens lack positive, sustained and meaningful relationships with adults beyond the family, such as teachers, mentors, grandparents, neighbors and other caring adults. In fact, we found that just 19 percent of 15-year-olds scored high on the index measuring adult-youth relationships, indicating that there is significant room for improvement when it comes to strengthening positive relationships between teens and adults.

Sound familiar?

You can find out more about this Teen Voice 2010 study here.

I just find in interesting that most people doing research about “what teens need” find the same thing: a need for positive adult role models.

Hmmmmmm.

Posted in Books, Youth Culture, Youth Ministry Planning | | Leave A Comment

Wow… just $7

Posted on: 06/3/10 2:15 PM | by Jonathan McKee

Okay… and I thought I had a good price.

Youth Specialties just pumped one of my books this week, DO THEY RUN WHEN THEY SEE YOU COMING?, on sale for just $7 bucks!

That’s an awesome deal. (I love it when YS runs those slammin’ deals!)

The sale is only through Monday, so I encourage you to grab a few of them.

If you haven’t read this book, it’s my second book, a book about reaching out to the rapidly growing number of “unchurched teenagers” in this younger generation. This book actually won an award in 2006 for “Best Outreach Resource” by Outreach Magazine. I have tons of youth leaders who take their leaders through this book as a training tool.

Good deal.

Posted in Books | | Leave A Comment

Another of Our Brand New FREE Training Videos

Posted on: 04/6/10 12:25 AM | by Jonathan McKee

About 10 days ago I tested one of our brand new short training videos on a group of several hundred youth workers in my training workshop at a conference on the East Coast. The video lays out little cartoon drawings of my “Six Types of Kids” on a whiteboard, unveiling a little bit about each kid. Fun stuff! The response we received was amazing. They all asked me where they could get the video.

I was happy to tell that group of youth workers that we’d be offering that video soon as another one of the free resources on our website.

And I wasn’t lying. Now it’s up!

The video is a tool I use in my CONNECT training workshop, helping youth leaders set the stage for connecting with the wide spectrum of teenagers they’ll encounter in youth ministry today. The video really fleshes out the six types of kids I introduce in chapter four of my new book, CONNECT.

Take a peek… and then feel free to chime in with your comments below.

Posted in Books, Church, Evangelism, Faith, Youth Culture, Youth Ministry Planning | | Leave A Comment

Nicholas Sparks

Posted on: 03/25/10 6:11 PM | by Jonathan McKee

Yesterday I received a phone call from one of the media companies that sends me to screenings for movie reviews, and they asked me if I wanted to interview Nicholas Sparks today, author of A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, and most recently, The Last Song (which he also wrote the screenplay for the film, starring Miley Cyrus and releasing this weekend).

I didn’t know much about Nicholas, other than the fact that I had seen most of the films made from his books. When I think of him, I think of a big box of Kleenex… because that’s what everyone needs when you watch his films. His stories are heart wrenching!

My schedule was swamped, so I declined at first. But then I read a little about him from his own pen on his web page. Fascinating bio… one of the best I’ve ever read! And wow! Nicholas has lost a lot of his immediate family in the last two decades. I can see why so many of his films deal with death, grief, and pain.

The more I read, the more I was impressed with who he was. So I called back and scheduled the interview.

I didn’t know this, but Nicholas grew up about a mile from my house. We went to rival schools, both ran (although he was fast), and played in the same spots along the American River. I found his live story and his journey as an author intriguing.

We had a fun conversation this morning. Great guy. He’s a generous man and seems to be a man of faith. We didn’t have a lot of time to talk, but I think you’ll find the conversation fascinating. We’ll release it in two weeks on our podcast page.

Posted in Books, Entertainment Media, Faith, Movies | | Leave A Comment

A Video of My Sticky-notes Training

Posted on: 02/2/10 5:54 PM | by Jonathan McKee

Many of you already own my new book Connect or have heard the buzz about my sticky-notes training exercise, helping youth ministry leaders not only take the spiritual pulse of their students, but also keep accountable to reaching them and helping them grow spiritually. Now we have an online video available where you can see me do this training.

We’ll be posting this video for our subscribers next week… I wanted to give you guys the first peek!

This entire exercise and detailed descriptions of the “Six Types of Kids” are laid out in my book Connect (and we actually provide you with the Powerpoint you see me using in this video when you buy the book from us).

Posted in Books, Youth Ministry Philosophy, Youth Ministry Planning | | Leave A Comment

8-18 Year-olds Average 7 hrs 38 minutes Daily to Entertainment Media

Posted on: 01/20/10 11:17 AM | by Jonathan McKee

Yes, it’s true, 8-18 year-olds average 7 hrs and 38 minutes per day consuming entertainment media. Do those numbers sound high? They should. Because today’s average daily media consumption in the lives of 8-18 year-olds has increased by over an hour per day since the last study 5 years ago.

7 hours and 38 minutes is the brand new total released just TODAY from the Kaiser Family Foundation that you’ll be seeing quoted in reports everywhere for the next 5+ years. The report is called Generation M2: Media in the Lives of 8-18-Year-Olds.

Five years ago Kaiser released their March 2005 report, Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 Year-olds. Since then, the Journal of Pediatrics, Pew Internet, CNN… EVERYONE… have used those numbers in their own reports about young people and media consumption.

Well… the new numbers are in. And media consumption is way up across the board. (Duh!)

This Sunday David and I will release our article with the summary of these findings in our weekly Youth Culture Window article. For those who want to get a sneak peak at the full Kaiser report, click here. Here’s some of what you’ll find:

Check out that increase in just the last 5 years!

Wow… kids are really reading that print-media, huh! 🙂

That’s just a snippet. You’ll also learn fun tidbits from the full report like the fact that cell phone talking and texting is NOT counted as media use (page 18, paragraph 2). That’s right, on top of the average of 7 hours and 38 minutes that young people spend per day in the above activities, there is also texting and talking on the phone.

11-14 year olds spend an average of 1 hour and 13 minutes per day texting, and 36 minutes per day talking.
15-18 year-olds spend an average of 1 hour and 51 minutes per day texting, and 43 minutes per day talking.

Add those numbers to 7 hours 38 minutes!

I’ve been looking forward to this report for a while now. Last week, Amanda Lenhart from Pew Internet told me that it was coming out today. (Another fascinating conversation… I had emailed her because I saw a report released from an organization I won’t name, a report that said that young people were spending 2.5 to 3.2 hours a day online. I read these reports all the time and that sounded high. A similar Nielsen report showed young people- depending on age- only spent a little over an hour per day. That’s an hour to two hours per day different! After examining both reports, I feared that this “un-named” organization was doing an internet survey. Think about that for a moment. “Let’s use the internet to poll people on the internet how often they are on the internet!” 🙂 Sure enough, my guess was correct. But I also emailed Amanda- I really respect her research– and asked her as a third party what she thought. She basically said, “Let’s see what Kaiser says next week!” Sure enough, this new report released today only reveals an average of 1 hour and 29 minutes of daily internet time.)

Again, we’ll give you the full summary next week on our Youth Culture Window page. But for those who have time, I really encourage you to read Kaiser’s full report. Just glimpse at some of their charts. Fascinating stuff about this young generation and their love for media.

Posted in Books, Entertainment Media, Internet, Movies, Music, News, TV, Youth Culture | | Leave A Comment

The Sticky-note Exercise

Posted on: 01/6/10 10:43 AM | by Jonathan McKee

The sticky-note exercise- It’s a great little exercise laid out in my new book that I’ve been doing in my Connect training workshop to help youth ministries not only take a spiritual pulse of their students, but also keep accountable to spiritual growth. I’ll actually be flying out to Nashville this weekend to be leading a church through the exercise. Fun stuff!

It goes like this. I hand everyone sticky-notes and have them each write the names of students they encounter in their ministry, one name per sticky-note. Then I have them each come up and place the sticky-note on an easel or chart on the wall, divided by the six types of kids (something they are familiar with at this point in the training). At this point we spend some time analyzing the trends that we notice, not only noticing any patterns, but taking note of the individual needs of kids.

That’s just a snapshot… it’s really revealing stuff.

This exercise is finally in print in my new book Connect. I was curious how people were going to respond now that I’ve “spelled it out” for them in my book, helping them take all they’ve learned about the six types of students they’ll encounter and applying it in their ministry with some action steps. We tried to make it easy, even including a free ppt training to anyone who buys the book from us, that way youth workers can take their entire team through this exercise.

I’ve been doing the training for a few years now. I can’t tell you how excited I am to finally be able to hand people the entire training, in essence, in book form.

So far I’ve been hearing good feedback about the book. Yesterday I received these two emails:

I just finished chapter 5 this morning! I love the great tips, humor, and how easy it is to read! I’m sharing a bunch of stuff (including F.A.R.T.) with my leadership team tonight in our meeting. Thanks for writing this book! I met you at a YS convention a few years ago, won 2 of your books, and at this point, I think I’ve bought every book you’ve written. They have been so helpful to me! Thanks for your ministry! – Chris

Excellent stuff. I am all about relational ministry & looking for your book to help train volunteers. You seem to say what I do better than I can. Been in youth ministry for 20 years and not sure why God still has me here except that I have a passion for kids & still am able to connect to them. I appreciate your work! Thanks -Mike

I got another influx of emails yesterday from people who just received the book and are starting it this week. Feel free to email me your feedback once you dive in! I love hearing responses.

For those who haven’t got this book yet, make sure and grab it from us on our website. We’re the only ones who are giving away the free ppt training.

Posted in Books, Youth Ministry Planning | | Leave A Comment