Embrace
Embrace
Youth Ministry
Support teens and their families as they navigate their unique challenges of developing sexuality
Generational differences are real and require contextualized discipleship approaches—perhaps especially when it comes to human sexuality and issues of gender identity in today’s rapidly changing culture. Embrace has sought to provide resources that are especially tailored for youth and those who love and minister to them.
Featured Resource
Embrace for Youth Case Studies
This resource was developed by a team of Covenant youth workers. They invite quality discussion among leaders about how to better care for people in your churches and communities who identify as LGBTQ+. These case studies are based on real-life situations happening in our churches, camps, and ministry contexts across the Covenant in North America. These studies are not designed to provide official answers to the questions raised. Rather, they are designed to help you explore and gain clarity about how you would like to approach complex situations in your unique context.
Embrace Webinar #8: Tough Talks on Sexuality in Urban Contexts
Follow the link below to view the webinar recording along with the resources that were mentioned during the conversation.
Embrace Webinar #12: Teaching Biblical Sexuality in Youth Ministry
Follow the link below to view the webinar recording along with the resources that were mentioned during the conversation.
Embrace Webinar #18: Embrace for Youth Case Studies
Follow the link below to view the webinar recording along with the resources that were mentioned during the conversation.
Embrace Webinar #20: Emerging Gender Identities: Understanding the Diverse Experiences of Today’s Youth
Follow the link below to view the webinar recording along with the resources that were mentioned during the conversation.
Embrace Webinar #22: Christian Sexuality: The Truth About Jesus, Sex and Gender
Follow the link below to view the webinar recording along with the resources that were mentioned during the conversation.
Gay Girl, Good God: The Story of Who I Was, and Who God Has Always Been
In Gay Girl, Good God, author Jackie Hill Perry shares her own story, offering practical tools that helped her in the process of finding wholeness. Jackie grew up fatherless and experienced gender confusion. She embraced masculinity and homosexuality with every fiber of her being. She knew that Christians had a lot to say about all of the above. But was she supposed to change herself? How was she supposed to stop loving women, when homosexuality felt more natural to her than heterosexuality ever could? At age nineteen, Jackie came face-to-face with what it meant to be made new. And not in a church, or through contact with Christians. God broke in and turned her heart toward Him right in her own bedroom in light of His gospel.
Guiding Families of LGBT+ Loved Ones
This 140-page illustrated guide is a treasure trove of practical insights on how to honor God and deeply love the LGBT+ people in your life. It covers a number of topics, including how to:
- Respond well when LGBT+ people come out
- Understand risks LGBT+ youth face (family rejection, bullying, suicidality, and homelessness)
- Avoid using unintentionally offensive words and phrases
- Build a support team for LGBT+ loved ones and their families
- Engage LGBT+ individuals in trusting relationship over the long term
Devote yourself to prayer that blesses LGBT+ loved ones and yourself.
Spanish available at https://www.guidingfamilies.com/es.
EQUIP’s Gender Incongruence Course
“Understanding Gender Incongruence & Caring for Trans* People” is a four-session course that (1) helps Christian leaders and parents think empathetically and theologically about gender incongruence and (2) equips Christian leaders and parents to offer God’s love and wisdom to trans* people.
Emerging Gender Identities
By Mark Yarhouse and Julia Sadusky
This book offers a measured Christian response to the diverse gender identities that are being embraced by an increasing number of adolescents.
Understanding Sexual Identity: A Resource for Youth Ministry
This resource is a practical, compassionate explanation of how teens form their sexual identity in today’s culture. Yarhouse introduces readers to the developmental considerations in the formation of sexual identity, which primarily occurs during the teen years. He offers practical ways to think about homosexuality along with suggestions for talking with people who experience same-sex attraction. He also helps us learn to graciously respond to children and teens who struggle with questions of sexual identity, and discusses how youth ministry can become more relevant in the lives of youth who are navigating these issues. Pastors, youth ministry volunteers, and parents will understand how to help youth navigate today’s culture and form a sexual identity that honors Jesus Christ.
