Albert Huizing, IV

OK....now give us some concrete examples (about a dozen or so) of how that would look like. Faith, Prayer, Educational, Worship, Educational Frameworks (especially interested in that one) LMK....sparked my creative interest....

I was going to say after reading the 1st sentence that whether we admit it or not, ALL leaders started as followers, to some degree. I believe followers are extremely important and I think it is preached from the pulpit if you are preaching discipleship. Isn't that essentially what discipleship is? However, where I would disagree strongly is that all Christians should - no, are commanded - to strive to become leaders (Kuperian model - because we are reaching for the stars in everything we do), but are totally content with whatever stage God has prepared for us. Then even if we are only followers, we are still prepared as leaders, even if that will not be our particular calling in life. Man, not only does that set the bar so much higher, but we are engaging in leadership building our entire lives. What a sight that would be for a community, eh?

Paul: I tried this many years ago; I was skeptical (oh me of little faith) that anyone would accept the offer; so I came up with this incentive; I told them that if they accomplished this task that I would give them a FREE spot at the next Blizzard rally. I only required that they show me the journal that they compiled. I told them I would not check up on them and that I was it with full confidence that they were being truthful. 3 out of 63 followed thru....and I honored the contract we made. My thought was, that even if only 1 followed through....even if 20 tried and didn't entirely finish, there were things that were going to be read that they would not have read if the "OPPORTUNITY" wasn't given to them. Maybe there are others who might try this in their youth groups....I'd love to hear those specific reactions/results if  they have [email protected]   a great challenge!

We've done a Maundy Thursday Seder Dinner/Meal. The food gets the kids interested, and before they know it, they are swept into the readings....it's certainly memorable even if you only do it once....

Paul:

Alot of it has to do with geographics, demigraphics, building solid relationships and staying connected with what their passions are.....and they change every 5 years. Geogrphics you can't choose; young adults going away to college these days are going to be practical and find the best job in the best location (that means just about anywhere these days). Demigraphics you can't choose either; if the economy is bad, young people are not going to stay or come back to work. A lot of time thi is tied in with the responsibliity of raising a family in the present or the near future. Relationships play a small part. If you've built a grea repore they may come back to continue and nurture that friendship; but that could be negative also, if that's not the best choice for their future. Those who are staying around, coming back for positive reasons....you've got to develop their passions; whatever, they may be. One HUGE statistics, nowadays, is that today's generation is super service oriented. They are looking desperately to be useful in service projects. If the CRC (or any church) fails to realize this and doesn't incorporate it in some way, while they are still in high school, they will not nurture that desire and the youth will leave in droves to attend a church that is service-minded. I always have to be creative, because they are kids and need to be doing something different, but even Youth Unlimited could do a better job of coming up with resources of service projects that are fun and challenges their competency. (See Winter Equip and see what we did with our Fall Scavenger Hunt in PEI)....these are the kids of things we have to be prepared to do at least once a month!!!

OK, so I suppose, I'm the black sheep of the bunch because I plan most of my entire year in September, and I have no time, ever....because knowing what I am going to do allows me to be involved in many other activities, as well. (lol) I still only give it to my kids piecemeal, which allows me the flexibility to change the schedule as the year goes on, as other people want to speak to the kids and as other "brilliant" ideas that come to me throughout the year, but planning ahead even in a skeleton outline is so much easier to tackle and drive the group in a focused direction.....OK....wrong topic - maybe another great topic for the future...back to what the issue is...Sorry :>}

.Yes, I think materialism is actually a VERY easy topic to talk about for many reasons. If you've experienced poverty, REAL poverty, the first thing that becomes cemented in your brain is HOW MUCH WE HAVE THAT WE DON'T NEED! Let me say that again, with a little less emotion, , how much we have that we don't need! We squirrel our stuff away, we save double for "just in case", we constantly waste the resources we have and on and on and on! Two simple things to incorporate: Teach by example! show them where they are falling into the trap of having so many things (starting with clothes) and they will soon get the hint. I noticed it with my kids without even trying. I started to here them saying things I was saying without even knowing I was saying it. ALSO: Don't give up on the service projects in your community; the higher awareness and exposure they have to what reality is around them, the more it will be on their mind. How can we share to those who actually NEED it more than us....ultimately downsizing our addiction to having, MORE, More More......

Another thing that my wife has had success with, is being the English/British Literature professor she is, She has a "Grinch Who Stole Christmas" PowerPoint presentation that she shows to various groups every year (Schools, churches, youth groups....whoever will listen) She emphasizes the Christian parallels to the story and it is her way to honor the true meaning of Christmas, to ward off the ever-growing monster of materialism that can jade our senses to real joy.

I don't know if this helps, but I think if you are truly honest with yourself and understand how big a problem this really is, that it will be quite easy to tackle this topic, not only during this time of year, not only as a 1-time, 1-night devotion topic, but to be challenged to uphold this ideal to ward off this cultural humanistic - and essentially rooted in the sinful nature of man - addiction throughout our lives; plant seeds that twill flourish and they can use long after they have left youth group; probably there will be some who will even go away empowered to do something about it....Merry Christmas :>)

That's because Youth Ministry is a long-term "investment". Whenever I hear stories of success of youth ministry being measured by performance, you can always look right around the corner and see people in charge that are looking for short term results. Until you accept the fact that Youth ministry is a long-term venture, and start evaluating the success of the program by the quality of relationships that are being established, your youth group will never, ever, in a million years grow. ALL the youth groups that I have seen flourish have those two goals as their foundational core. Whenever those goals are applied (along with some other smaller add'l elements) the youth groups almost ALWAYS explode immediately.

I text with my kids, and think it's absolutely a useful tool, but you have to be careful on many different levels;

1) Stalking (for the receiver and sender)

- if it's done/received excessively, the youth thinks you are watching him too closely... like a parent.

2) Perception

- things txted are taken out of context...sometimes positively but also negatively.

3) Generational Gap;

- Sometimes, it depends on the age of the leader and how the kids respond to that leader as to whether it works or not.

TIP: If you're going to use Txting, then you MUST teach Texting ediquette also. Every group is different; some don't allow cells, some have specific rules, some are lax.....but whatever the guidelines are, they MUST be enforced and the leaders MUST adhere to them also.

It is extremely difficult finding good curriculums both for Sunday School and youth ministry outside the denomination; over the years I have created my own. I find that the Word of Life model of 5 or 6 topics with 3 modules per topic and one entire theme for the year, works best. If your a youth pastor/leader, Keep it simple, concise and clear and you won't lose their attention span (which is tiny - I know I have 2 teenagers).....REMEMBER: culture has changed drastically; we are speaking to a media  minded group of kids; try to include a short video clip from a movie or elsewhere that grabs their attention. They'll remember the point longer, as well.

I have to agree wholeheartedly with Ty....thanks for clarifying this for everyone....Another defining issue is thinking with Kuyperian Leadership theology....capturing every sphere of our lives for the Lord. Integrating our spheres of life into our faith and NOT trying to squeeze our faith - as an afterthought - into our spheres of life....that's like trying to put a circular peg into a square hole! and, re-emphasizing again what Ty was articulating very well, to transforming and reclaiming, every square inch of our society around as as God's....God restores society through our works of service and obedience.

Visiting the elderly has always been a positive experience. I don't think anyone has ever given the indication that it was a dreary exercise. It's exciting to hear the stories and the wealth of knowledge they have from years past and living through historical tragedies. I like it on a number of levels. One is that the kids find out that it isn't quite as bad as they thought it might have been, and sometimes even fun. The kids learn a human, tangible side of Senior-ness and that connection is what sparks relational activities on a new and different level, immediately, as well as, much later in life.  Also, I love to see the elderly peoples face light up when they are entertaining the youth. Yes, you read that right....they are doing the entertaining! I have made a special effort this year to include Senior in numerous activities, such as, service project, crafts, games, good-will in an effort to realistically and practically attempt to make the Seniors feel that they still have something to contribute....that's really where the rubber hits the road, isn't it? Seniors, who many times, have spent most of their time involved in every aspect of church life, now feel useless; no refund, no return. And they no longer feel connected. It's extremely important and necessary that we spur on these interactions with the elderly that will carry them through this period in their life, while they are waiting for their eternal resting place, and treasure.

Certainly, youth ministry takes a certain type of gifted individual;

The proof that it is an extremely difficult task is in the statistics..."the average life of a youth pastor in any given church is 3 years" I have been working with youth/young adults since 1984 and wonder where did all those years go and how much of an impact did I really have on the lives of youth. But that's not for me to ponder....God has that all figured out (thank goodness)!

Certainly, when a church supports you (rather than directs you), there is no question that the job becomes easier and has a life of it's own. What many youth pastors aren't told is that you need to love kids, love what they love (sports, music etc), be flexible (because everything always changes), be a great multi-tasker, not take things that kids/parents say too personally, have lots of ideas and understand like life, some will be huge successes and others will fail miserably. These are the things they don't usually tell youth pastors which is why so many get frustrated and leave either a church or the ministry altogether.

When you have a church community that is invested in the entire process (eg interested in actually how the kids are engaging in their faith journey) and not just another program (or worse a "christian babysitting service") then you have a viable program and a youth pastor that is challenged to take the playing field with his team of young adults and to seek the prize.....developing Christian leaders of tomorrow.....youth, parents, add'l leaders, church members, support (service, prayer, financial) and a youth pastor (the coach that calls the plays) is ALL needed to carry out a God-honoring program....

Here is my suggestion: the most "successful" youth development programs I have witnessed over almost 25 years have occurred when churches have made it part of their Church's Mission Statement. It may take a yr, 2 ys or more, but when it is put as a challenge for the entire church body, every member has a vested interest in directing their youth.

In my humble opinion,

Albert Huizing IV