A friend of mine who I serve alongside with in youth
ministry recently wrote about her love for what we do as youth leaders in the Evangelical Christian church. (Read
her blog here.) Her thoughts, coupled along with God’s tugging at my heart,
caused me to think about the impact we have and should have in youth ministry.
I just re-watched (probably for the 1,000th time) To Save a Life.
This movie, though a little exaggerated, is a great way to get teenagers
thinking about their life and others around them. I continually receive conviction
and inspiration though the spiritual truth nuggets that are spoken throughout
the film. Here are a few of my
favorites:
“Until we allow the Bible to go
through us and change us, it’s a waste of time.” Whoa; powerful, convicting
words. The Bible that we preach so energetically on a Sunday or Wednesday night
is the living Word of God. I believe this whole-heartedly, though what happens
far too often is that we don’t let God get our hearts and change us. But isn’t
that the point? We should be going to church to get energized about God moving
in our lives. If not, we are wasting our time.
“At some point you have to ask
yourself what you want your life to be about…I had to answer that question in
my heart. If you are really willing to look, you’ll find He’s more than worth
it.” Oh, good; there’s hope! It is about personal decision and conviction to
follow Christ. And it is through testimonies of others that we can see how the
Word of God does change and move. I love being able to push teenagers into the
arms of Christ. I love to see when they take their faith to the next level and
make it their own. I love it when I see the light bulb go on, and they
understand how life-changing Jesus can be! I know for a fact that God is worth
it, because I see Him changing people.
“This is a place where you don’t
have to pretend that you don’t have problems, or that you got it all together.
This is a place where you can be who you are and not feel judged.” This is a
place where I need to offer grace to others, but I am so strongly convicted
that this is not true in many of today’s youth groups, or churches, for that
matter. However, I need to be careful that I do not complain, but instead that
I pray for and act on these convictions. But oh, how badly I want to say, “Shame
on you.” It is so important that as a youth leader we model love, honesty, and
Jesus. We don’t always have it together, and I think it is important that
students know and understand that. It gives leaders transparency and helps
students connect with a real person, not just a Christian leader. What kinds of
mentoring relationships might we develop if we just connect on a basic human
level! And to those who might live a lifestyle that the “church” may not agree
with, we should be reaching out and loving them, not judging them. For anyone
reading this that might have been hurt by the church for this, I want to
apologize. Jesus loves you no matter what, so please give Him another chance!
“Life is a journey. Not so much to
a destination, but a transformation. Doesn’t it feel like our richest times
come right in the middle of our hardest times. But God made us to live in
community; to laugh, cry, hurt, and celebrate with each other no matter what we
are going through. Transformation is tough… (but) He fills our lives with
purpose and passion if we just let Him. The best part of the journey is that
the God of the universe sometimes allows us to play a part in changing the
world.” Oh, man; those words send shivers down my spine! This is what it is
about, people! Letting God change people and worshiping Him through the
changes! We are here to be with each other, do life with each other, and point
each other to Christ!
Why youth ministry? Doesn’t all of this apply to everyone in
the church? Sure it does. But here’s my heart about why it is so important in youth ministry.
According to Christianity Today*, 70% of church-going students drop out of youth group and other church related activities. Some of these students may return, while others will never
again set foot in a church building. So what are we doing youth leaders? Why
isn’t the living Word of God changing our kids? From the statistics, it looks
like we are wasting our time while we have them in our youth groups. So let’s
change that!
We need to let God get our teenagers! We can eat junk food,
play games, and listen to a little Jesus, or we can help infuse God’s word into
people He cares about. It just takes being involved in their lives. If you are
a youth leader, don’t just show up, ask some questions that your pastor gave
you, and then leave. GET INVOLVED! Go to their sports games and concerts,
invite them to your house, do life together! And in these activities you have
the chance to model what Christ looks like in your home too, both the good and
the bad. God uses messed up people like you and me, and we can make a difference.
Authentic relationships with Jesus at the center is what is gonna get our students
excited about God again. If they see that we care about them, no matter what,
and point them to their own journeys, I think we will see more youth living out
their faith. Let God transform our youth in ways you would never imagine!
“To
Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations,
forever and ever. Amen” – Ephesians 3:21
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