Thursday, February 4, 2010

Youth Ministry Lite

Welcome Back Fellow Youth Ministry Geeks! Our first resource is the dvd lesson series "Youthbytes" which can be found at www.youthbytes.org. The series is great to use every now and then to give the teens something new. Each dvd consists of scripture and solid bible teaching. The teens can easily relate what they learn to their daily lives and they will get a few laughs in as well. You can have a free sample dvd sent to you and you can view small bytes of various videos on the website.
Everyone has seen the huge billboards along the highway saying, "I GEEK...." Our second resource is the illustration "I GEEK JESUS". Talk about the purpose behind the billboards, which is basically to coax the public to go to their public library and learn about whatever topic interests them. Let the kids know that this is the attitude every Christian should have when it comes to following Jesus. We must read our bibles to get to know Jesus and learn how we are to model our lives.
Next I want to talk a bit about what is going on in my life regarding youth ministry. I unfortunately had to leave my original church home due to conflicts in biblical foundations and other issues. We were a small church with an even smaller youth group, but we had kids who were faithful who came from various backgrounds. I did not want to leave them but God was clear in His will for me.
I spent many months praying and crying because my heart was broken.
I was serving as the "unofficial" Head Youth Leader because our Youth Pastor had left. I got a lot of hands on experience because the ministry had to continue and during that time, God taught me much. I know that there was purpose behind my being there because God led me to that church, but I had fulfilled what I was supposed to and it was time to move on. Now months later and several new churches having been "tested", I possibly may have found where God wants me.
This new church is also small and when it comes to Youth Ministry, they have a couple of volunteer adults so there is plenty of room for me and for the ministry to grow. I am naturally a person who thinks outside the box and is a go getter. I have been called to work with teens and to share my personal journey to Christ. I want to reach the teens who are turned off by church and who are hurting right here in my community.
I will keep you up to date on how things are going as I continue down this road. Serving God in any fashion can be difficult and it may mean leaving a church we don't want to and staying at one we would probably leave, if it were up to us. If you have had a similar experience, please leave a comment.