Personal Archives - Page 2 of 25 - Jonathan's Blog From The Source

Lost a friend

Posted on: 04/17/17 7:03 PM | by Jonathan McKee

Youth Ministry lost a good friend this past weekend. My friend Rob Maxey, Executive Director of Youth for Christ here in Sacramento passed away Friday after a long battle with cancer.

Even if you didn’t have the pleasure of meeting Rob, many of you actually knew him by reputation. Rob is the friend I featured in my book CONNECT who literally taught me how to talk with kids on campus (the guy who said, “Hi, I’m his parole officer”). Rob is the friend whose stories I’ve used at countless youth ministry trainings and parent workshops because of his amazing grasp on how to connect with today’s young people Continue reading “Lost a friend”

Posted in Personal | Tags: lost a friend, Rob Maxey, Youth for Christ | Leave A Comment

A remarkable man

Posted on: 03/14/17 3:46 PM | by Jonathan McKee

Last weekend I encountered a man so remarkable, the experience was life changing.

I didn’t expect it. I was visiting Maui by myself for the quickest trip to the island I’ve ever had, there and back in just a weekend for a friend’s wedding (not the choice way to do Maui). The ceremony was ocean-side in the beautiful Kahanu Gardens in Hana, a truly precarious drive, but breathtaking scenery.

As we were waiting for the ceremony to begin… this man caught my eye.

He was Hawaiian with a chiseled jaw, a tribal tattoo on his left cheek, and his grey hair pulled back tightly into a bun. He was probably one of the eldest people at the wedding, but no doubt one of the most physically strong. He was perfectly composed Continue reading “A remarkable man”

Posted in Evangelism, Faith, Personal, Travel | Tags: Alii, aloha, elder, Hana, Hawaii, Jesus, respect | Leave A Comment

26 years with this girl

Posted on: 02/9/17 2:00 AM | by Jonathan McKee

Today Lori and I celebrate 26 years of marriage, and it’s kinda weird… but we still like each other!

We’ve taken a week off and today we are embarking on a dolphin zodiac excursion. The plan is to take a zodiac into the middle of the pacific and swim with Flipper and all his friends! (We’re pretty excited)

If you never hear from us again, that means we mistook sharks for dolphins. Oh well… at least we’ll go out together!

I love being with this girl!

Happy Anniversary, my love!

Posted in Marriage, Personal | Tags: anniversary, celebrate, marriage | Leave A Comment

My Top 5 Time Traps

Posted on: 12/12/16 4:00 AM | by Jonathan McKee

I love the year-end, because that’s when we post all the fun lists with the year’s top stuff!

That means we’ll be looking back at the entertainment media in our culture like the top movies, the top songs (our annual recap of the No. 1 hits of the year, see last year’s here)… and then we’ll look at your top clicks as readers like my articles you read the most, my most popular books, etc.

But let me start with the most random of lists…

MY TOP 5 TIME TRAPS OF 2016
Yes… these distractions have cost me countless hours in the past year!
Continue reading “My Top 5 Time Traps”

Posted in Personal | Tags: 4K movies, aldo shoes, blue letter bible, Jonathan McKee, precept bible study, the walking dead, top 5 of 2016 | Leave A Comment

“Guy’s Guide” a Cyber-Monday Hit

Posted on: 11/28/16 4:27 AM | by Jonathan McKee

It’s always interesting to see which resources are a hit during that key shopping weekend Black-Friday through Cyber-Monday. And this year… it’s a bold little devotional for young men!

It’s crazy to watch which books Amazon move. Amazon ranks the books hourly so anyone can see how books are ranking among books in a certain category… or among ALL BOOKS EVER! And this weekend my candid little book for guys is going gangbusters!
Continue reading ““Guy’s Guide” a Cyber-Monday Hit”

Posted in Books, Personal | Tags: Amazon books, discipleship tool, Guy's Devotional, Jonathan McKee books, Spiritual Growth, The Guy's Guide to God Girls and the Phone in Your Pocket, Top selling books | Leave A Comment

Top 5 Impactful Christian Music Artists in the 80’s

Posted on: 08/22/16 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee

Did you grow up in the 80’s?

Did you listen to Christian music in the 80’s?

My wife Lori was playing Amy Grant’s Straight Ahead album in the car the other day and my girls began complaining. Lori and I both defended the album because it was nostalgic for each of us. In a time where there wasn’t a lot of good Christian music options, Amy delivered something that resonated with young believers.

Amy wasn’t the only one. In fact, I recall 5 Christian artists that really made an impact on Continue reading “Top 5 Impactful Christian Music Artists in the 80’s”

Posted in Music, Personal | | Leave A Comment

Behind the Writing

Posted on: 08/2/16 9:11 AM | by Jonathan McKee

We just made a funny little graphic for my blog’s new book store with a picture of all my books… and it had 20 covers. That made me pause.

Twenty! Wow. It doesn’t even feel like twenty.

If you asked me about each one of them I could probably tell you the story of writing it, where I was (The New Breed I pounded out the majority of my half in one weekend, The Guy’s Guide to God, Girls and the Phone in Your Pocket… I wrote on my back patio, 52 Ways to Connect with Your Smartphone Obsessed Kid… on a LazyBoy)… it’s fun to reflect. But it just doesn’t seem like Continue reading “Behind the Writing”

Posted in Books, Personal | | Leave A Comment

Top 30 Youth Ministry Blogs

Posted on: 03/21/16 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee

This month YouthMinistry.com posted the Top 30 Youth Ministry blogs and thanks to readers like you, we made the list… twice!

They listed THE SOURCE FOR YOUTH MINISTRY in slot No. 5, and then my personal blog JonathanMcKeeWrites.com in slot No. 12.

Take a peek at the whole list Continue reading “Top 30 Youth Ministry Blogs”

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

Recruiting Volunteers… in Hawaii?

Posted on: 01/28/16 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee

Lori and I are celebrating our 25^th wedding anniversary this week, and that’s why I was pretty excited when the county of Maui booked my dad and I to teach a workshop on the island this Friday on mobilizing the power and passion of a New Breed of volunteers (we’ll be teaching this same workshop to church leaders in Colorado late September at Group Publishing).

I love teaching workshops on this subject with my dad based on our book, The New Breed. My dad talks about harnessing the power and passion of Baby Boomers, and I talk about understanding and mobilizing the younger generation Continue reading “Recruiting Volunteers… in Hawaii?”

Posted in Marriage, Personal, Speaking/Training | | Leave A Comment

Category: Personal