So so long ago Pink Floyd put words to it. “I turned to look but it was gone; I cannot put my finger on it now; The child is grown; The dream is gone; And I have become; Comfortably numb.”

An anthem for too many people today. Comfortably numb.

Pink Floyd’s choice for numbing, at least in that song, was heroin. But there are so many other choices to numb that don’t involve the puking that injected heroin causes. Spending.         Busyness.          Addiction (all of them). Depression.         Perfectionism.             Eating disorders.           Porn (taking the most intimate moment and isolating it all for yourself).           Bullying.             Violence.      Cutting.         Thoughts of suicide.

And one more that appears to be good and necessary. Your device. That thing in your hand that keeps you connected to everyone and all the knowledge out there. Or is it really keeping you disconnected? Continue reading →

We had a MOO meeting the other night. MOO is a small group at my church for Moms Of Offenders. It is a painful and vulnerable group to be a part of. To be a part of us means you are suffering the great pain of knowing your son or daughter is living reckless, has committed a crime, and is now a part of the roller coaster that is the justice system. And you as the parent get to go along all the ups and downs and many bumps just because.

One of our moms is preparing herself for the next step of this roller coaster which is the court date for the sentencing for her son. She told us, “I’m so thankful for this group. When I first started coming, I thought I was at fault for what he was doing. I learned that it’s not my fault.”

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Beatlemania. Monkees (I still swoon). The first death due to a teen idol was at a David Cassidy concert. Then there was Shaun Cassidy (guilty). New Kids on the Block. (Insert name here) of a boy band from the 1990s. And now…

Nash Grier.

A Vine star. A 6-second video star. He and his friends were the feature at a “meet and greet convention” that sold out to screaming teenage girls. Yes, screaming teenage girls.

According to the creator and promoter of Magcon, “I’ve had so many girls come up to me and say, ‘Bart, Magcon saved my life,’ …and… ‘I quit cutting, I quit having suicidal thoughts, I quit wanting to hurt myself because I look forward to Magcon.’” How many David Cassidy fans are alive today due to his concerts? Continue reading →

Some background information. I am a passionate baseball fan. I am a Minnesota Twins fan. I’m not necessarily a fan of Yasiel Puig. The Twins had a recent 3-game series against Puig’s Dodgers and he proceeded to have 14 at bats and 8 hits against us. Plus more. I wished failure on him (the player) so many times those three days.

Yasiel Puig (the player and the human) has been one of the big stories this early baseball season. And not just because he’s a dominant baseball player. He’s actually a Cuban defector with quite the story. He tried five times to defect to Mexico so he could then sign with Major League Baseball. He used a murderous Mexican drug cartel to sneak him out of Cuba. His adventure doesn’t end there and this is where the story gets a bit fuzzy because it is still being figured out. Puig was sold to various Americans who then got him a contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. According to court records, Puig has paid $2.8 million to those who “bought” him.

What is this young man made of? How did he value himself so much–while growing up in Cuba–to live a story like this? Continue reading →

I’ve been making this statement for nearly 15 years now and I remember debating it fiercely during those early internet years of forums. Does anyone else remember those days?  I’ve consistently stated that because of our love of teens we can lead such meetings and because of the love of the parents for those teens, the lessons are there. (For more info, go to CFBYM.org)

For example, just Saturday we had a parent meeting. I put together a plan that had discussion points based off of a parenting concept. I assigned the “homework”, the parents came ready to discuss, I asked my pointed questions and backed away and let the ministry happen. I didn’t have to be the “parenting expert” for that meeting. I just needed to put the parents together with a favorable topic, good questions and stir. Out came wonderful and encouraging discussion filled with truth. And I said very little. Continue reading →