Five Minutes with Marko

5 Minutes with Marko - Episode 157 How are you stewarding the hard-wiring of teenage brains for a lifetime of vibrant faith? To learn more about our youth ministry coaching programs, visit https://theyouthcartel.com

5 Minutes with Marko - Episode 156 This episode unpacks the two areas of the teenage brain that tend to be underdeveloped: the prefrontal cortex, and the temporal lobes. To learn more about our youth ministry coaching programs, visit https://theyouthcartel.com

This episode identifies the five major areas of change teenagers are going through, with 3 of them being directly the result of the onset of abstract thinking. Learn more about the Youth Cartel and the Youth Ministry Coaching Program at https://theyouthcartel.com.

5 Minutes with Marko - Episode 154 In part 2 of this 6-part series, Marko unpacks the onset of abstract thinking, potentially the most important aspect of understanding teenagers.

Minutes with Marko - Episode 153 Marko launches this new season with a 6-episode series highlighting the key aspects of adolescent brain development that every youth worker should know about. To learn more about our youth ministry coaching programs, visit https://theyouthcartel.com

5 Minutes with Marko - Episode 152 Deuteronomy 32:11 encourages us, indirectly at least, to be filled with hope as 8th graders and seniors move on from our ministries. To learn more about our youth ministry coaching programs, visit https://theyouthcartel.com

Marko explains why he stopped using a previous metaphor to explain the process of doubts with teenagers, and replaced it with a new metaphor.

There’s a wild fact about brain development from pre-teens through the middle teen years that you need to know about and wrestle with its implications.

“Who I am” and “What I do” are way too enmeshed for so many people in ministry roles. Marko teases out how to re-frame them.

In too many churches, the title Youth Pastor (or Youth Director or other variations) really means “Lead Program Planner for Youth.” Marko suggests a goodlier option. To learn more about our youth pastor coaching program, visit https://theyouthcartel.com

Being well-resourced can SO easily become an adventure in missing the point. Being under-resourced is a blessing! To learn more about our coaching programs for youth pastors, visit https://theyouthcartel.com

Marko unpacks a simple developmental framework that should shape our approach to ministry with middle schoolers. To learn more about our youth ministry coaching program, visit https://theyouthcartel.com

Marko unpacks the four primary approaches to small groups in youth ministry and invites you to consider what’s best for your context. Learn more about our youth ministry coaching at https://theyouthcartel.com

Marko uses the plot of the 2013 zombie film Warm Hearts to reflect on the status of our hearts and souls. To learn more about the Youth Cartel's youth ministry coaching program, visit https://theyouthcartel.com.

Marko shares an interview Josh Griffin conducted with him about why it’s so hard to get young teens reading the Bible on their own. Visit https://theyouthcartel.com to learn more about our youth ministry coaching programs.

Marko identifies and briefly unpacks four context in which change and transformation (in ourselves and the teenagers we lead) normally occurs. Visit https://theyouthcartel.com to learn more about our youth ministry coaching programs and training.

Lots of shanked shots and questions about the value of this effort; but then there’s an amazing shot that fuels you to keep playing. Visit https://theyouthcartel.com to learn more about our youth ministry coaching programs.

After hearing the story of another youth worker couple booted for unclear and seemingly unfair reasons, Marko reflects on why this is so common.

Marko reflects on a comment from a youth worker that there’s no such thing as a 12-year-old loser. Visit https://theyouthcartel.com to learn more about our coaching program.

As much as we’d like to think that developing an adult team for youth ministry might be a universal practice, Marko finds it’s still WAY too common for youth workers to be lone rangers.

Marko responds to a question he’s asked all the time: How do I know when it’s time to leave my youth ministry role?

Marko was asked to write a letter to the daughter of a friend. He shares this letter both as an encouragement to you, and a reminder of what we should be speaking into the lives of teens. Learn more about the Youth Cartel coaching program at https://theyouthcartel.com.

This question was louder 15 years ago; but there’s still some lingering pushback on any and all age-specific ministry in churches. Marko shares where this question came from, and responds to it.

Marko’s thinking on this question has shifted quite a bit on this question over his many years in youth ministry — in some ways, the answer is clearer than ever, and in other ways, it’s much more blurry. To learn more about Marko's coaching program, visit https://www.theyouthcartel.com/the-youth-ministry-coaching-program .

Neuroscience tells us that young adult brains aren’t yet fully developed when it comes to decision making and wisdom. Does that mean we should boundary them more as volunteers in youth ministry, or maybe just the opposite?