5 Minutes with Marko might be the shortest youth ministry podcast ever; but that doesn’t mean it’s shallow. Marko (Mark Oestreicher, of The Youth Cartel) gets right to the point, sharing thoughts and insights about some aspect of church work with teenagers.
Inviting Decisions without Manipulation
May 16, 2023 • 0 MIN
Marko shares a tension he used to struggle with, between his ability to manipulate teenagers into a faith decision and still wanting to offer those opportunities. He found help in a new mindset and language.
How Do You Want to Receive Feedback?
May 9, 2023 • 4 MIN
Marko shares five prompts to get you thinking about this important question, which you can use for your own growth in self-knowledge or with a team you do ministry alongside.
Teenagers and Anxiety
May 2, 2023 • 9 MIN
Marko quickly interviews Brock Morgan, author of The Anxious Teen, about the rise of anxiety in teenagers, and what we youth workers can do. (note: this is a double-size episode!)
Acknowledging and Addressing Our Weaknesses
April 4, 2023 • 5 MIN
Marko unpacks an area of his leadership that needed to change, how he became aware of it, and what he did about it.
Happy Police (Happiness, week 2)
March 28, 2023 • 7 MIN
Marko tells a story about a time he realized the lie perpetuated by so many in the church, that we can make ourselves happy by choosing it.
Happy Teenagers in a Lousy Parenting Goal (Happiness, week 1)
March 21, 2023 • 7 MIN
A message to parents of teenagers about what our goal should be, unpacking the misguided cultural shift to teenage happiness as the culturally-promoted focus of most parents.
Spiritual Formation Boarding Schools
January 24, 2023 • 5 MIN
Marko provides a quick history of how we got to this place of isolated youth ministry in the church, and points out the need for change.
Let’s Talk About Sex, Baby
January 10, 2023 • 5 MIN
Why we avoid talking about this topic, and what that unintentionally teaches. As a bonus, Marko sings “The Sex Song” he used for years with middle schoolers when teaching on this topic.
The Ministry of Remembering
December 13, 2022 • 5 MIN
Marko connects the memory of a child in a Haitian orphanage with the difficulty of ministry in the early months of the pandemic, with principles that still apply today (particularly for those teenagers who have not returned).
Regret
October 25, 2022 • 5 MIN
God doesn’t want me, or you, to live a life of regret. But I can’t pretend my regrets don’t exist. I have to face them square on, and push into and through them, to the freedom offered on the other side.
Post Youth Ministry
October 18, 2022 • 5 MIN
After years of ranting about various changes needed in our youth ministry approaches, values, mindsets and methods, Marko got caught off guard by a suggestion from a friend about the future of youth ministry. It raised more questions for Marko than easy answers.
Paradoxes of Middle Schoolers
October 11, 2022 • 5 MIN
After 40 years in middle school ministry, Marko has identified a handful of paradoxes that those of us who work with this age group have to be aware of and lean into. It’s messy and confusing and beautiful stuff!
Four Practices of Great Parent Ministry
May 3, 2022 • 5 MIN
Winning with parents and helping them live into their own callings includes Listening, Communicating, Equipping, and Inviting Involvement.
Four Types of Curriculum
April 26, 2022 • 6 MIN
Marko unpacks Formal, Hidden, Nonformal, and Null curriculums, and asks us to bring more intentionality to all of them.
Responding to Brain Discoveries, Part 2
March 1, 2022 • 7 MIN
Marko has talked and written quite a bit about teenage brain development; but in this two-part episode, he reflects on how we should respond to brain discoveries.
Responding to Brain Discoveries, part 1
February 22, 2022 • 6 MIN
Marko has talked and written quite a bit about teenage brain development; but in this two-part episode, he reflects on how we should respond to brain discoveries.
A Reminder of Why We Do What We Do
February 1, 2022 • 3 MIN
Marko shares a short and moving story about a youth worker who thought he’d blown it, but was actually being used by God in exactly the right way.
Being Open to Changing Your Mind
June 15, 2021 • 4 MIN
Marko unpacks an area of his leadership that needed to change, how he became aware of it, and what he did about it.
Growth Practices of Leaders
May 18, 2021 • 5 MIN
Balance is a misguided goal and not even biblical. Way better, and more in alignment with the life of Jesus, are the goals of sustainability and thriving.