Thursday, October 05, 2006

it's not always peachykeen

...from relevantmagazine.com....
"Student ministry is numbers-driven. If you don’t have a large number of students attending, you must be doing something wrong; either that, or the kids don’t think you’re cool. ...If your ministry isn’t growing, the parents will start clamoring for a new youth pastor, someone more entertaining, someone who doesn’t turn their kids into “radicals,” someone who will teach the kids to be “good boys” and “good girls.” " (The Art of True Rebellion)

I sometimes feel this way about my youth group, like we just do "fun" things and nobody's really challenged, and we're talked "at" and don't really discuss stuff. It's ministry and church, not entertainment. What if we started asking them what God's been doing in their lives, how they're living for God?

"The goal of ministry is to promote pure living, but to instill a heart for social justice as well."

I feel like our youth group is all about bringing our friends to fun events, and not really how to reach out to people and meet their needs even if we're uncomfortable with their lifestyles. This as in contrast to avoiding anyone who could "corrupt" us.

"We once did an event called “Destination Unknown,” taking the kids to an undisclosed location for a night of fun. Some members of our group were conspicuously absent. One mom reported to me that she didn’t send her children because, “We thought you would take them to some homeless shelter or something.” She went on to add, “By the way, when are you taking the kids to Six Flags? That’s the kind of thing they really like to do.” "

WHAT?!? We did a sort of Destination Unknown once, and it seemed like no one really knew what to do. There should be "training" (definitely NOT the kind found in the Jesus Camp movie) that gets teens into studying the Bible on their own, and growing closer to God, so that they will be prepared to live like Jesus did. Jesus wasn't about fun kitschy events.

"“Follow” is a verb. Something must be done in order to meet the requirements of the command."

You're going to have to work hard. You're not always going to be excited about the work you do. You're not always going to have a peachy keen life. It's a higher standard. You're not always around your friends. You're not always in your safe little Christian bubble. You're not always serving alongside the greatest of people. But we're, as a whole, not the greatest of people. We're called to serve others. We're part of the body of Christ. The hand can't say to the eye, "I can do your job better than you." It's not possible.

The end.

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