Those even slightly familiar with me know that my life is youth ministry. This whole concept of “going missional” excites me because of the possibilities available for it in youth ministry. Below I’ve included the six ways Brian Kirk (author of this blog) suggests leaders go about rethinking youth ministry and my comments on the topic. For full article click here. This rethinking doesn’t just apply to the students; it’ll first have to start with the leaders.
“Bigger is better”: How many times do leaders swear they don’t care about numbers and then offer prizes to the student who can bring the most friends? Instead of trying to bribe students into bringing students to our gatherings we should alternatively be encouraging them to engage with their friends at basketball games, during study breaks, and at lunch.
“Don’t play favorites”: There is a great need for us to love the students God places in our lives, but that doesn’t mean all the students have to be loved by the same person. Instead allow for a community of leaders that come from different backgrounds, interests, passions, lifestyles, etc. This way the love can be spread and disciples can be made.
“Games are a must/There must be a program”: This one resonates personally with me. Games are not the only activity in which we can engage with students. Some nights may be better spit shooting the breeze, studying in small group, or serving in the community. We cannot allow ourselves to get stuck in a program that does not allow for flexibility.
“If I just do things right”: I think Brian put it best “So, it’s all about you, huh?” We have the responsibility to actively pursue the will of the Spirit; we do not have the responsibility (or even just the ability) to put on week after week of show-stopping programs.
“I teach. The youth learn”: Maybe once in a while youth ministry should focus more on questions, how do the youth feel about their lives? What do they wish we paid more attention to? How do they feel about their own faith, the church, culture, and their place in it all of?
The list could go on and on, two others I liked that were posted in the comments section were
- “We start at (insert time here) and end at (insert time here) on (insert day here)”
- “Youth events must be coed. We can’t separate the guys from the girls”
The aim of youth ministry is to remain relevant. Students and their culture change dramatically year to year, however the Gospel does not. Youth leader must pray, struggle, and passionately desire to discover the medium between the two; to bring the strength of Christ and his message of salvation to the fragile world of adolescents.
God Bless. Ashley S.
I really appreciate this post. I’ve been working with a local youth group and felt like there are some problems and now that i think of it i see a lot of these issues with the group. This definitely nails the issue on the head.
I especially liked the part on games not being a must. The youth group I was part of in high school played dumb games that just made people feel awkward and embarrassed. In my opinion, these games distracted from the more important things (or even more relevant things) we could have been doing.
Thanks for the post Ashley! In my personal experience a majority of youth ministries are too involved in their programs and not enough time ministering the kids. I would like to see more risk taking involved and moving the programs in a new a different way.
This is a great list Ashley. It was actually doing youth ministry in Spokane that lead to me engaging missional before I even knew what missional was!
Thanks ashley, this is always good for me to hear, especially the “teach…learn” one. I certainly do like the sound of my own voice sometimes…