5. If All Of Your Friends Think It's Cool... If you've got a "great" idea, a revolutionary idea even, that you are going to spring on your youth group and you call up all of your youth pastor friends and they think it's "cool" and slap you on the back and hold their thumbs up, you might need to be worried.
Do you have one or two, maybe even a small group of young people who are your advisers? Could I use the word "mentor" here and you not be offended? I have now, and for several years since I passed out of the "cool" stage, had a few teens and post high school students who are my C.A.B. (I just made that up) Cool Advisory Board. My job isn't to be cool, it's to know what cool is.
"I'm not cool and I'm OK with that." Yeah, my friends all laugh at me and finish my sentence when I start saying it, and if you visit Granite City you'll see some "cool" stuff happening and every bit of it has been filtered through a young person because that is who it's for.
We are trying to reach into a different generation, like missionaries. The first thing a missionary should do when they put their feet on the ground on the mission field is find someone that can translate the culture, not just the language. You need to do the same. You have young people around you (or you should) who understand their culture and the mission of the youth ministry. They are Ambassadors and are as important, if not more so, than the youth pastor because they are who truly interfaces with the youth culture.
You are reaching into their culture, they are in the culture. So before you move forward with this amazingly cool idea, ask a few of your mentors what they think. Chances are they might think it's cool, too. But maybe not.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
How To Lead A Youth Group | Post 4 | Be Intentional
4. Be Intentional. Most of the things I'll be posting in this series will seem like no-brainers. It's these simple things, however, that can make the difference between a good youth ministry and an effective youth ministry.
Can a youth ministry be good and not be effective? The answer is yes. It depends on the goal of the ministry. If your goal is to create a venue where teens can congregate, have good music and hear preaching you can certainly do that, but that doesn't necessarily equate effectiveness. If it doesn't change the lives and/or direction the teens are going in outside of the venue, and there is no transformation, no development, no difference in the lives of the teens than the ministry in Biblical terms it is not effective. Is it good? Yes. Fellowship in a positive environment is good, but is good what we are looking for as a youth ministry?
Effective comes from intention. You will see specific results if you have a specific plan. Are you trying to create community in your group? What community enhancing events have you planned? Do you have a group of kids that need to be born again? What have you done to create a pathway for them to gain the understanding of this somewhat abstract concept and apply it to their lives? Do you have a group of church kids that are inward focused and not reaching out to their school, family or world? How have you decided to lead the outward.
Effectiveness doesn't just happen, it's planned for. We sat down in November of 2008 and had a planning session for the first quarter of 2009. Our objective was to share the message of salvation with our students, many of whom were not familiar with the Biblical message. We planned to preach and teach about repentance in January. We then went into February teaching about baptism in Jesus name, what it meant and how it applied.
When we started into February we let the teens know that on the last Wednesday of the month we would be having a baptismal service. Needless to say on that last Wednesday we baptized 12 people and had several more over the following weeks. Were we surprised? No, we planned it, we were specific and focused. In March we taught about the Holy Ghost and it's availability to us. Several students have received the Holy Ghost. This is what we planned, what we intended to happen and it did.
What needs to happen in your group? Find it, plan it, focus on your plan and see it happen.
Can a youth ministry be good and not be effective? The answer is yes. It depends on the goal of the ministry. If your goal is to create a venue where teens can congregate, have good music and hear preaching you can certainly do that, but that doesn't necessarily equate effectiveness. If it doesn't change the lives and/or direction the teens are going in outside of the venue, and there is no transformation, no development, no difference in the lives of the teens than the ministry in Biblical terms it is not effective. Is it good? Yes. Fellowship in a positive environment is good, but is good what we are looking for as a youth ministry?
Effective comes from intention. You will see specific results if you have a specific plan. Are you trying to create community in your group? What community enhancing events have you planned? Do you have a group of kids that need to be born again? What have you done to create a pathway for them to gain the understanding of this somewhat abstract concept and apply it to their lives? Do you have a group of church kids that are inward focused and not reaching out to their school, family or world? How have you decided to lead the outward.
Effectiveness doesn't just happen, it's planned for. We sat down in November of 2008 and had a planning session for the first quarter of 2009. Our objective was to share the message of salvation with our students, many of whom were not familiar with the Biblical message. We planned to preach and teach about repentance in January. We then went into February teaching about baptism in Jesus name, what it meant and how it applied.
When we started into February we let the teens know that on the last Wednesday of the month we would be having a baptismal service. Needless to say on that last Wednesday we baptized 12 people and had several more over the following weeks. Were we surprised? No, we planned it, we were specific and focused. In March we taught about the Holy Ghost and it's availability to us. Several students have received the Holy Ghost. This is what we planned, what we intended to happen and it did.
What needs to happen in your group? Find it, plan it, focus on your plan and see it happen.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
How To Lead A Youth Group | Post 3 | "Young Person" Is Not A Noun
3. Expect Greatness not Perfection.
When people say the words "young people" they are really saying "youngpeople." One word, as a noun. Try it, out loud say young people the way you would normally say it. Why does this matter? Because when you say "youngpeople" instead of young people, you change the meaning of the words.
Youngpeople are a kind of quazi-human creature that are outside of the realm of normal expectations. On one hand we don't expect a whole lot from them. We're just glad they come to church and don't have drugs in their pocket. On the other hand we expect perfection from them. "The 'youngpeople' should be the supreme example of what a person should be as a Christian. Their friends and family and the entire world are watching them and may be turned away from God if these "youngpeople" don't do it exactly right." I am exxagerating (a little) but you get the point.
Let's look at the term the way we should, though. They are young, and they are people. I'm not trying to be sarcastic and yes, I know this is a simple concept, but it could change the way you relate to your "youngpeople."
They are young. This means they aren't going to have a lot of wisdom because they haven't lived long enough to develop it. It means they are going to trust freely (for a while) and trust the wrong people and the right people. They are going to be fiercely loyal to their ideas, their music, their friends and the other things that make up their identity. They are going to be reckless and impulsive. The reason they are is because they don't have a lot to lose. All of the investment has been from their parents. That's not wrong or abnormal, it's youth. Think maybe God designed them like that so they would be willing to go out and change the world? Do you remember when you thought you could do anything? They are going to be passionate. Your job isn't to shut this all down and make them like you, they are not miniature adults, they don't think like you because they don't have all of the risks you have. Your job is to help them harness all of this energy and power, yes power, and point them in the right direction so they can make a difference in their world.
They are people. They are going to do amazing things, normal things and incredibly stupid things. They are going to be subject to their emotions, peer pressure (you still are), ups and downs and everything else everybody goes through. Don't put them in the "youngpeople" category and limit them to that paradigm. They are people, created by God for a purpose with a capacity for greatness, but the propensity for failure. Expect greatness, but don't expect perfection.
When people say the words "young people" they are really saying "youngpeople." One word, as a noun. Try it, out loud say young people the way you would normally say it. Why does this matter? Because when you say "youngpeople" instead of young people, you change the meaning of the words.
Youngpeople are a kind of quazi-human creature that are outside of the realm of normal expectations. On one hand we don't expect a whole lot from them. We're just glad they come to church and don't have drugs in their pocket. On the other hand we expect perfection from them. "The 'youngpeople' should be the supreme example of what a person should be as a Christian. Their friends and family and the entire world are watching them and may be turned away from God if these "youngpeople" don't do it exactly right." I am exxagerating (a little) but you get the point.
Let's look at the term the way we should, though. They are young, and they are people. I'm not trying to be sarcastic and yes, I know this is a simple concept, but it could change the way you relate to your "youngpeople."
They are young. This means they aren't going to have a lot of wisdom because they haven't lived long enough to develop it. It means they are going to trust freely (for a while) and trust the wrong people and the right people. They are going to be fiercely loyal to their ideas, their music, their friends and the other things that make up their identity. They are going to be reckless and impulsive. The reason they are is because they don't have a lot to lose. All of the investment has been from their parents. That's not wrong or abnormal, it's youth. Think maybe God designed them like that so they would be willing to go out and change the world? Do you remember when you thought you could do anything? They are going to be passionate. Your job isn't to shut this all down and make them like you, they are not miniature adults, they don't think like you because they don't have all of the risks you have. Your job is to help them harness all of this energy and power, yes power, and point them in the right direction so they can make a difference in their world.
They are people. They are going to do amazing things, normal things and incredibly stupid things. They are going to be subject to their emotions, peer pressure (you still are), ups and downs and everything else everybody goes through. Don't put them in the "youngpeople" category and limit them to that paradigm. They are people, created by God for a purpose with a capacity for greatness, but the propensity for failure. Expect greatness, but don't expect perfection.
Monday, March 23, 2009
How To Lead A Youth Group | Post 2 | Establish Identity
2. Establish an Identity.
One of the most important, if not the most important thing for a teen and/or young adult is identity. A foundational part of developing a solid and vibrant youth ministry is to create an identity for your youth group. This can be tricky because we have bought into the idea that youth ministry is basically about slick marketing and advertising savvy. If you hire somebody to design a good logo, or come up with a catchy name you have not developed identity. You have developed a brand.
Branding is good and it can be important, but it's not the same thing as identity. Kids don't wear a certain brand because of the name or the logo, they wear it because it means something, something they can and/or are willing to "identify" with. The brand and logo are secondary to this more important concept: What does your youth ministry "mean"?
Define the ministry not in terms of cool graphics, catchy slogans or nifty logos, but in terms of purpose, value, cultural significance, and community. Is what the name and brand embody big enough? If you boil it all down is their something significant about what your youth ministry is doing other than creating an audience for you to speak to or a large number of teens gathered for bragging rights by you or the congregation you're a part of?
What difference would it make in his/her life or world if a teen decided to buy into your concept? It's got to be about more than coming to your church. If Christianity is about going to church it's not about much.
One of the most important, if not the most important thing for a teen and/or young adult is identity. A foundational part of developing a solid and vibrant youth ministry is to create an identity for your youth group. This can be tricky because we have bought into the idea that youth ministry is basically about slick marketing and advertising savvy. If you hire somebody to design a good logo, or come up with a catchy name you have not developed identity. You have developed a brand.
Branding is good and it can be important, but it's not the same thing as identity. Kids don't wear a certain brand because of the name or the logo, they wear it because it means something, something they can and/or are willing to "identify" with. The brand and logo are secondary to this more important concept: What does your youth ministry "mean"?
Define the ministry not in terms of cool graphics, catchy slogans or nifty logos, but in terms of purpose, value, cultural significance, and community. Is what the name and brand embody big enough? If you boil it all down is their something significant about what your youth ministry is doing other than creating an audience for you to speak to or a large number of teens gathered for bragging rights by you or the congregation you're a part of?
What difference would it make in his/her life or world if a teen decided to buy into your concept? It's got to be about more than coming to your church. If Christianity is about going to church it's not about much.
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