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Perhaps I am a little biased on
this subject, but I have to admit that each time I hear someone
referring to high school students as the "future of the church" a
part of me cringes, Don't get me wrong. I agree with the idea that
teenagers must be trained and equipped to one day become the
leaders of the church. However, it seems to me that we do a
disservice to the next generation if we treat youth ministry as a
holding pen for students until they are old enough to do the real
work of the church.
Just a few years ago, the Baylor University School
of Social Work conducted a study where they found the students
with the most mature, vibrant faith that carried on from the teen
years to adulthood were those who were actively involved in
the ministries of a church as teenagers and those
who were engaged in meeting the needs of people in their
communities. Given the overwhelmingly negative statistics
concerning young adults and church involvement, I am willing to go
out on a limb here and suggest that engaging teenagers in the life
of your congregation is one of the more important things you can
do in your student ministry. Stepping a little further out on the
limb, let me also suggest that though the application of the Great
Commission must be contextualized, the call to make disciples is
equally as valid for the teenagers in your congregation as it is
for the adults who inhabit your pews.
I was reminded of these truths
again this summer as I had the privilege of directing Youth
Excelling in Leadership (YXL), CEP's denominational student
leadership conference, and taking part in our sister conference,
YXL Glorieta, held in Glorieta, New Mexico. The goal of both
conferences is similar: to develop student leaders through the
strong preaching of the Word. dynamic worship experiences,
interactive leadership initiatives, leadership assessment, and the
expansion of their biblical world and life view. One unique aspect
of the YXL conferences is that the local church is asked to
identify and recommend high school students that are ready for a
week of intense Christian leadership training.
This past summer, over 100 students and adults
participated in YXL at Covenant College and another 85 took part
in YXL Glorieta. In keeping with YXL's theme of COMMIT, men such
as Southern Methodist University RUF Campus Minister Chad Scruggs,
Covenant College Chaplain Aaron Messner, and Assistant Pastor of
Redemption Fellowship EJ Childs challenged students
to explore more fully the
commitment that Jesus expects from his disciples. The worship
leader, Kirk Ward, Worship Director at New City Fellowship in
Saint Louis, added music from around the world to encourage
students to think more globally as they worship together. Add to
the list a ministry project with Hope for the Inner City
(www.hope4.org), paintball, caving in Raccoon Mountain, hiking on
Lookout Mountain, and dozens of other leadership activities and
YXL 2008 at Covenant College was a life transforming experience
for not only the students who attended but for many adults there
as well.
At YXL Glorieta, students were encouraged to RISE
UP because "the resurrection changes everything." Under the
direction of John Ranheim, Development Director at Covenant
Seminary, YXL Glorieta was a huge success. RUF campus pastors
Justin Clement and Tom Franklin unpacked from Scripture the
resurrection and helped students understand the implications of
this event in their lives. Musician Ryan Anderson used his unique
music style to draw students into wonderful worship experiences.
The natural beauty of Glorieta, New Mexico, coupled with
paintball, whitewater rafting, high ropes, and various leadership
initiatives help set YXL Glorieta apart as a premier Christian
leadership conference for PCA churches in the western United
States.
However, it was during the nightly prayer times as
I listened to high school students at both conferences crying out,
grieving over personal and corporate sin issues, with almost
childlike faith asking to be used of God that I realized again
that students are more than just the future of the church.
I have been a believer for a little over two
decades. For most of that time I have been involved in youth
ministry. I am seminary trained and will soon possess the
necessary credentials to be a pastor in the PCA, but I don't know
that I can recall many adult prayer meetings where prayers were
offered with the sincerity and abandon that I experienced at YXL
and YXL Glorieta this summer. let me go as far out on the
proverbial limb as Ican this time and make one last suggestion.
Perhaps the next time your church has a significant prayer need,
you should move your teenagers out of the "future of the church"
holding pen and into the ministry of your church by asking them to
lead the prayer meeting. Based on my
YXL experiences
this summer, I have a sneaking suspicion that the adults of your
church may be
encouraged and challenged at the way the Holy Spirit can use young
people to further the kingdom of God.
If you would like to know more about the
conferences, feel
free to check
out the
websites
www.pcacep.org/yxl
and
www.yxlglorieta.org and mark your
calendars for YXL 2009:
July 6-11 at Covenant College
and YXL Glorieta June
20-27.
— Danny Mitchell, Youth and Family Ministries
Coordinator
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Fourth
Quarter 2008