Mike Yaconelli composes his thoughts and passions regarding the nine core realities of youth ministry:
veracity (youth ministry must expose students to the life-giving truth of Jesus Christ),
authenticity (authentic youth workers will draw young people to Jesus Christ),
audacity (youth ministry must push students, parents, and the church outside their comfort zones),
sanctuary (youth ministry must provide a safe place for students),
diversity (youth ministry must challenge young people to embrace diversity),
humility (youth ministry should be clothed in humility),
intimacy (our relationship with Jesus is our youth ministry),
mystery (youth ministry must foster mystery, rediscover astonishment, and leave room for unanswered questions), and
creativity (youth ministry must free students and youth workers to discover and express their God-given creativity).
This book unpacks the training youth workers nationwide receive during Youth Specialties' one-day resource seminars--now called The Core. And adding a ton of meat to the pot, each member of the CORE seminar team (a stellar list of authors and speakers, including Laurie Polich, Efrem Smith, Marv Penner, Duffy Robbins, to name but a few) contributes sidebars throughout the book in response--and in concert with--Mike's thoughts.
