November 2009 Please note that some links may have expired due to the ever-changing nature of the Internet. Let us know if you find anything unexpected or offensive so we can remove or change a link.Youthwork magazine and CCP ltd are not responsible for the content of external sites accessed from youthwork.co.uk Facing life’s problems In a new look Web Browser, John Allan provides some places to turn when young people are in need, along with clips and tools to keep you inspired this month. Web Browser has a new look this month. In one of my periodical fits of neatness (every youth worker should tidy up at least once every five years) I’ve decided to put all my stuff in boxes. In other words, rather than one long rant, this column will now be carefully catalogued into different useful areas – one site to improve your efficiency; four or five that can help you teach; one pretty random video to launch a short talk; and a main feature, which you’re now reading. Hope you like it. So let’s kick off with something pretty big: problems teenagers can have. I’m not talking about acne or girlfriends, but really big ones: when a friend dies; when kids self-harm; when they suffer deep depression. When this hits your group, who do you turn to? Obviously, you can’t solve massive problems by quickly glancing at a webpage, but ideas online can get you started. Tom McLeod’s stuff on teenage bereavement is sane and practical, while Alan Wolfelt, who advises churches about grief counselling, provides shrewd ideas for ‘Helping Teenagers Cope With Grief’. Self-harming? Teachernet is aimed at teachers (duh), but youth workers can learn loads from its authoritative advice and useful links. Distant Healer is partly advertisement, but includes useful and original things kids can do to fight compulsions. Best of all, probably, are the National Self-Harm Network (NSHN), with forums where youth workers can gain advice, and The Site, which hosts a great page for young people themselves. Finally, investigate YoungMinds, which covers all aspects of ‘the mental health and emotional well-being of all children and young people’. When major problems make you feel completely clueless, don’t panic. There’s more advice around than you might imagine. Keep these sites bookmarked, and then at least you have somewhere to start! YOUTUBE PARABLES Each month in this space we’ll feature just one viral video clip which you can use as a teaching point, or an illustration of the gospel. There are loads of bizarre clips on YouTube (and similar places) which not only make important truths accessible and entertaining, but also leave images in people’s minds that help them hang on to the ideas you’ve highlighted. This month: a 2-minute clip called More Crazy Video, an amazing catalogue of disasters caused by people with the right intentions doing things very badly. I can see two uses for this one: (a) illustrating the fact that your intentions may be good, but what matters is the result you actually produce (‘the road to Hell is paved with good intentions’); (b) underscoring the importance of thinking first, and not rushing stupidly into commitments or activities (Ecclesiastes 10:8-14). But you’ll think of other applications – it’s irresistibly funny! EFFICIENCY EXPERT You can really brighten up a Powerpoint presentation by adding a couple of colourful, imaginative graphs or maps – but they take hours to produce, don’t they. Oh yes? Not with Chartle, a site where you don’t even have to register to start producing pie charts, bar charts, progress meters, or interactive world maps in full colour. Just type in the data, select what effect you want, and there you are. You can use the results in publications, Powerpoints, Facebook or your youth group website. Might be fun to do a pie chart showing who’s done most washing up, or eaten most pizza, this term so far! TEACH IT One of the thorniest questions for Christians to answer is: what about the Crusades? Nowadays this slice of history is being used increasingly by hostile commentators to prove that Christianity is dangerous and evil. So what really happened? What can your group say to their friends? Are there websites that can give you the facts you need? Yes, there are. First of all, the Crusades were as much a political struggle for Mediterranean domination, as a religious quest; Paul Crawford gives you a sketch of the background. Second, they were founded on a completely unbiblical idea that Crusaders’ sins were remitted automatically by fighting (Wikipedia gives you the details) and so had very little to do with the real gospel. Third, the Crusades were much more complex than a simple struggle of Christians versus Muslims: the very first city to be sacked by Crusaders was a Christian one, as Skip Knox recounts. The Crusades had more to do with greed, politics and fanatical superstition than with genuine Christian faith. But don’t forget to look at the Muslim take on the issue (Crusades.org) or to bring it alive for your group by playing one of the many arresting video clips on YouTube (just put ‘crusades’ in the search box). John Allan is based at Belmont Chapel, Exeter, UK, and is a regular contributor to Youthwork magazine. Back to main page