Thoughtful, practical and creative, Drury's book opens up new perspectives on ministry with young people. One of the most original and helpful contributions to practical theology in recent years.
-Richard Osmer,
Princeton Theological Seminary
I love it when I discover an area in my youth ministry practice or thinking where I was wrong. This is God's ongoing revelation to me, peeling back misconceptions and malpractices, causing growth in my life and practice of youth ministry. Amanda Drury's book winsomely confronted me and conclusively helped me rediscover a critically important aspect of adolescent spiritual formation that I - along with thousands of my youth ministry peers - had gradually relegated to the youth ministry storage closet in the basement of the church. Time for a course correction; time for growth; time for testimony.
-Mark Oestreicher,
partner, The Youth Cartel
When it comes to helping young people develop their own spiritual identities, few things are as important as helping them discover an authentic vocabulary for their faith. With our focus on missions and programs, helping youth articulate their faith often gets lost in the shuffle. But Amanda Drury teaches us how - and brilliantly. It won't take more than a few chapters to reveal that Mandy is one of the most profound, accessible, original voices ever to speak into the conversation about youth ministry.
-Mark DeVries,
author of Sustainable Youth Ministry
Amanda Drury is one of the most creative and thoughtful people thinking about youth ministry in North America. Mandy has the rare talent to seamlessly blend deep theological ideas with TV shows, parenting and her own experiences in youth ministry. She writes and speaks effortlessly, with numerous creative turns along the way. As Mandy presents in this book, testimony has become a lost element in the church, and its loss has been at the detriment of our youth, as they've been neglected the nourishment that is dependent on testimony for active Christian living. The stories of God's action in each of our lives are the meal that gives our young people the strength and vision to seek God. Saying Is Believing addresses the famine of testimony we face, and promises a feast for the reader and the ministry he or she is called to lead.
-Andrew Root,
Luther Seminary
Saying Is Believing establishes Amanda Drury as a new and compelling voice in practical theology, a pacesetter for a generation of scholars convinced that the way we form young people's faith profoundly affects our own. Drury quickly nuances and moves beyond the commonly cited research on teenagers' religious inarticulacy; a natural storyteller, she makes theologically rich analysis easy to digest, and serves it alongside generous portions of practical wisdom for helping young people learn to speak their convictions. Saying Is Believing is less about problems than solutions, which makes it a must-have resource for anyone who takes young people's faith seriously.
-Kenda Creasy Dean,
Princeton Theological Seminary
Amanda Drury has done youth ministry - and the church as a whole - a great service by recovering the lost practice of testimony. If we truly desire to see youth develop a winsome, robust and enduring faith identity, we cannot afford to neglect her call. Both thought-provoking and inspiring, Drury's Saying Is Believing represents practical theology at its best.
-David Setran,
Wheaton College
