I’m in the midst of fine tuning and refocusing what we’re doing at Grace. Some of my thinking is based on what I’ve been reading in Simple Church. Here’s some thinking I’ve done so far that I’ll be sharing at our upcoming parent nights. Keep in mind it’s a work in progress…
Our current purpose statement does not line up with our church’s purpose statement that reads:
“Grace Church exists to make and be fully committed followers of Jesus Christ.”
The new one I’m playing around with for the youth ministry would be the same. It would also be the process we’d use for getting kids there. Here’s an illustration:
In a lot of examples Simple Church uses there’s three steps in the purpose and process that boil down to evangelism, discipleship, and service. At first I was dissappointed that our church’s statement only had two but then I got to thinking… can you “be” a disciple but not grow, tell, or serve?
I like this now and am slowly and cautiously loving it more. It’ll tweak what we do but bring loads and loads of clarity to everyone about what we’re about – particularly the loads of visitors we get and folks that check out our website.
If you have a moment, I’d appreciate the input even though it’s a work in progress.
P.S. In case the pic doesn’t show up (like when I preview it), it goes something like this:
Grow
Make—>Be—>Tell—–>Make (completes the circle)
Serve
Filed under: Grace Church, Jesus Stuff, Leadership, Youth Ministry
Evangelism. Discipleship. Service.
The kiddos count down the days until they are 18 and dropped from any of this. They then make a true Simple Church.
And most churches are delirious to say adios to the teens, at a critical juncture as school friends depart, family dynamics change, and they are finally on their own to face the world.
We all watch those TV shows with a crouching animal watching a herd of gazelle to prey upon for dinner. And what does he attack for a meal? The youngest one he can find. It is but a snack; but easy to devour compared to chasing down a daddy.
Our youth are just as vulnerable.
In construction, one does not begin with a roof.
A foundation must be laid and solid it must be.
Framing follows. Then wiring for electric moments, and walls, fixture, plumbing, and the rest.
Once the house is completely established, only then does an occupant move in to create a home.
The apostle Paul referred to us as “tents”.
Even a simple tent must be established correctly or it collapses or blows away in the wind.
Youth need but one thing all along.
The need to learn relationship.
They need to learn of Christ and them.
In stiffening the framing of Christ, abiding within each youth, a vertical relationship is established and strengthened each year (hopefully).
Even the cross established a strong vertical, before any horizontal was attached.
Discipleship, evangelism, and service…..though worthy goals, are horizontal relationships placed upon children and youth without a vertical relationship built strongh enough to meet the other items powerfully and effectively.
If only a church could get this right, our youth would be easily able to tackle the dynamics of Christian life, but we no longer allow that love of Christ to blossom and abide. It is work, work, work, all the time.
Try this. Buy a pile of hardcover journals, lots of them.
You get the kids as a handoff from the play/babysit years. Now it is time to know Christ. Study His word.
Don’t read it.
Write it!
As in a journal.
New and Old testament are needed. But I would begin by having each child proceed at their own pace.
Perhaps starting a journal on the NT with Matthew, and continuing.
Later for change, write out the Psalms, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes as a primer on the OT. These journals belong to each child and accumulate. The Word of God comes differently to a person when they write out a sentence of the Bible, for a thought is captured and pondered.
Tell them they have their whole lives to write out the Bible (few will ever read the whole Bible under all current church scenario programs because no relationship has been established to the lover of their souls). Teens may do Song of Songs (hopefully).
Talk to them about what a sentence they wrote means to them. Lovers talk. Indeed, they never shut up. They are delirious to be in each other’s company.
Writing love notes has gone oput of style and texting messages is in, as a distraction.
Write the entire Bible, beginning it as a youth and equipping them to write for discernment of each line.
There is no right, wrong, or time frame to fill a journal and start a new book. Just write legibly for the child to look back and read again one day, pulling and gleaning the message of that moment back throughout all of life.
The church must strengthen the vertical relationship of child and God, along with prayer. The rest will come later. You have nothing to lose, for we are doing a splendid job at that, under all current churches, where youth grow up and leave (usually for college) and then church hop for decades, trying to find a God to love.
Short circuit that dilemma and teach a relationship with God to the exclusion of everything else.
It would be revolutionary, for it has not been done since the three year ministry of Christ, and the writing down of an oral tradition.
Make the book come alive, make the God come alive, by journaling every line at each child’s speed of comfort. This means one-on-one guidance and discussion for each child and some adult.
Churches are also hard on kids to understand family life. Babies go to nursery. Kids to color and listen to stories. Youth to their groups as well. Loud music time.
Adults go to Sunday school.
The family is never together.
A shepherd keeps his flock together for a reason.
Families must come together, to worship and love the Lord, and each other, not be busy, busy, busy.
And they need to learn the relationship 24/7 as in “a life”. Journalling the Gospels, NT and OT beginning selectively, but acquiring a lifetime of writing habit will help them remember forever.
I submit, that showing these journals in their rooms at home to friends and neighbors who visit will open more discussions, evangelism, etc, than any “programmed approach”.
it will be genuine.
And the love will grow.
I doubt any church will do it.
They will burden the children with horizontal relationships as Christians, and supply no vertical to hold it up. At the earliest moment, the kid drops the horizontal as well. It is tough getting them back after that.
Good luck on your changes.
New approaches are needed to reach a new generation living in warp speed.
I would be happy to expand on this, appropriately.
(Your wife is overdue a post or two. I miss her writing)
Youth should be honest,faithful and sincereThen the youngsters will be in the right way.