As I drive around Baton Rouge, I have noticed less school zone lights flashing in the afternoons. This can only mean one thing...students are finishing their school year and being released back into the wild for the summer! Not that long ago, summer was a time for rest and relaxation with a few summer reading books thrown in to keep your mind sharp. It seems that students today, especially teenagers, are filling their summers with activities, trips, and service. Gone are the lazy days of summer for lying around the pool and playing ball in the streets.
What does that mean for those of us in youth ministry? We need to make our summer programs matter. The reality is that teenagers are just as busy in the summer as they are during the school year. We should focus our energies on doing a few things really well.
As for the diocesan youth ministry staff, we focus our summer energies on our Catholic Leadership Institute. In just two short weeks, we will be leaving for St. Louis University for an eight day journey into what it means to be Catholic leader. We live on campus in student housing at the Jesuit university, giving students a taste of what it is like to go to a Catholic college. Meanwhile, we learn important leadership skills, spend time working on our personal relationships with God, and develop lasting friendships within our CLI community. Those who attend CLI will spend time learning about their own unique gifts and discerning their vocations to see how God is calling them to use their gifts in the world. It is an intense 8 day journey, but it is definitely time well spent.
If you would like to get a taste of what St. Louis University is like, visit their website and read the student blogs. For more information about our CLI program, click here. Please pray for the 90 people traveling to St. Louis from June 2-9 as part of our CLI community. For those of you who are past Baton Rouge CLI participants and staff, check out our Facebook group to re-connect with old CLI friends!
Make the most out of your summer! I know we will at CLI!
What does that mean for those of us in youth ministry? We need to make our summer programs matter. The reality is that teenagers are just as busy in the summer as they are during the school year. We should focus our energies on doing a few things really well.
As for the diocesan youth ministry staff, we focus our summer energies on our Catholic Leadership Institute. In just two short weeks, we will be leaving for St. Louis University for an eight day journey into what it means to be Catholic leader. We live on campus in student housing at the Jesuit university, giving students a taste of what it is like to go to a Catholic college. Meanwhile, we learn important leadership skills, spend time working on our personal relationships with God, and develop lasting friendships within our CLI community. Those who attend CLI will spend time learning about their own unique gifts and discerning their vocations to see how God is calling them to use their gifts in the world. It is an intense 8 day journey, but it is definitely time well spent.
If you would like to get a taste of what St. Louis University is like, visit their website and read the student blogs. For more information about our CLI program, click here. Please pray for the 90 people traveling to St. Louis from June 2-9 as part of our CLI community. For those of you who are past Baton Rouge CLI participants and staff, check out our Facebook group to re-connect with old CLI friends!
Make the most out of your summer! I know we will at CLI!
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