“Here’s the passage”

Posted on: 07/5/17 3:34 AM | by Jonathan McKee

I’m as type-A as you get. My wife says I’m borderline OCD. I don’t go on a picnic without exhaustive preparation and planning. That’s why Africa is always a stretch for me. Africa is on the complete opposite end of the spectrum.

“I’ll meet you at 9:00.”

That means maybe 9:00… or maybe 10:00. Depends on if something else comes up.

They call it Africa Time. Continue reading ““Here’s the passage””

Is college for me?

Posted on: 01/24/17 4:38 AM | by Jonathan McKee

How much do college grads make compared to those with just a high school education? How many college grads are unemployed compared to others?

As our kids grow up, they’ll inevitably face the question, “Is college for me?” As a caring adult, we can give them good information to help them make an informed decision… and the answer to these question might be eye-opening for them.

Today I was writing our next Continue reading “Is college for me?”

The Delusion of the American Dream

Posted on: 01/17/13 3:01 AM | by Jonathan McKee

Last week a youth worker friend called me up and began asking questions and advice about personal finances. The gist of his question was, “How is a youth worker supposed to try to make ends meet when starting a family, paying for diapers, trying to afford a minivan and actually having a little bit left over to go on a date every once in a while?!!”

Great question—one I know many can relate to.

I think a lot of the nation is thinking about finances and debt right now (I’ll purposely steer this article away from making political commentary), because I’m seeing more and more articles surfacing about how to get out of financial crisis. My own teenagers are even learning these lessons right now. My son just started at Azusa Pacific University, an amazing Christian college in Southern California. He loves his classes and his roommates, but he’s facing the same struggle every college kid encounters: the reality of being a poor college student who can’t buy everything he desires when many of his GEN Y counterparts are living check to check, buying everything on impulse. An article in TIME today just cited a study revealing more than 3/4 of renters age 18-24 spend more than they earn each month.

Unfortunately, when we graduate from college, land a job, get married and buy a house, the money shortage doesn’t necessarily go away. Sadder yet, many of us still dive headfirst into spending, trying to achieve that American dream, and before we know it… we’ve created a nightmare.

So what’s the solution?

Sadly, I think many people are looking for a golden egg. We want our problem solved NOW! There’s good news and bad news about that.

  1. You can start on the road to good financial decision-making right NOW! (I know, that sounds like a sales pitch, but it’s actually just a fact)
  2. If you’re in debt, that can be a long road, requiring discipline, and sacrifice. (I understand, I didn’t put a lot of sugar on that. But I risked just saying it, figuring you’d prefer the honest truth.)

What does that road look like?

I was inspired my youth worker friend’s sincere questions about financial troubles, so I began sharing some candid thoughts on paper… and that became a frank, but helpful article about saving ourselves from financial crisis. My friends over at Youth Specialties posted the article yesterday: Waking Up From the American Dream: Saving Yourself from Financial Nightmares.

OTHER ARTICLES YOU MAY ENJOY FROM JONATHAN

When the Ministry Budget isn’t Big Enough

When My Wife Had Enough—Balancing Family and Ministry

Posted in Marriage, Money |  | Leave A Comment

Running for You

Posted on: 09/21/10 9:48 PM | by Jonathan McKee

I’m doing it again… I’m running for you. And I could use your help.

As one of my blog subscribers, you know better than most that I love to provide youth workers and parents with truly free resources, articles and youth culture research. Well, on Saturday, October 2nd, I’m doing something to help make that happen. I’m running to keep the resources free!

Last year many of you might remember me running 10 miles for all of you in our ministry’s little fund raiser called ENDURE. This year I’m running again, and my goal is to raise $3,000 in pledges that will go directly toward the free resources we provide at www.TheSource4YM.com. The Source is a 501(c)(3), Federal Tax I.D. #47-0855213.

Here’s where you can help.

I know that there are literally tens of thousands of people that use our free resources that have no budget. We want to be able to keep providing to those people. So for those of you that have the means to help just a little, jump onto this page: http://www.thesource4ym.com/endure/Donate.aspx and make a tax deductable donation via VISA/MC or paypal. You can make it a general donation, or you can sponsor me; either way, the money goes 100% toward the free resources we provide!

It can be $10, $25, $50, or $100. Just do whatever you feel. I’ll run the race… you run your credit card through. 🙂

If you don’t like using VISA/MC, you can simply mail your tax deductable donations to:

The Source for Youth Ministry
8863 Greenback Lane #333
Orangevale, CA 95662

(make checks out to “THE SOURCE FOR YOUTH MINISTRY”)

Pray and see what God lays on your heart to do. I sincerely thank those of you in youth ministry for doing the incredibly important work you do. You truly are the reason why we do what we do. Thanks for loving and serving millions of kids in Christ’s Name.

Posted in Money, Personal |  | Leave A Comment

That’s Some Wig!

Posted on: 08/31/10 2:21 PM | by Jonathan McKee

Even if you don’t know his name, you might have seen his hair. His name is Troy Polamalu and his long dark locks are often seen cascading from the back of his Pittsburgh Steelers helmet.

No, it’s not a wig. The three foot long mane is not only genuine, it’s now valued at $1 million dollars.

No joke. Yahoo news gives us the skinny:

You’d think that an All-Pro safety who missed 11 games in 2009 due to a knee injury would be most concerned about other body parts, but Pittsburgh Steelers superstar Troy Polamalu(notes) also has endorsements to consider. One of his endorsements is with the Head & Shoulders company, which makes sense when you consider Polamalu’s famed three-foot-long hair. It’s a tribute to his Samoan heritage, and it’s not something he plans to cut anytime soon.

Apparently the insurance carrier, Lloyd’s of London, has done publicity stunts like this before, insuring Tina Turner’s legs, Keith Richard’s fingers, Jimmy Durante’s nose, and Celine Dion’s pipes!

Do they insure J-lo’s badunkadunk?

If I was famous, I wonder what they’d insure of mine? My big mouth?