If you have ever tried to jump start a car, you’ll know that the time where most effort is required is at the start. As we push hard and as the wheels slowly begin to turn, inertia takes over and the effort required diminishes as the car begins to roll down the road.
One of the challenges of youth ministry at the start of a new year is inertia.
At the end of the previous year things were rolling along quite nicely but after the summer break there are new leaders on board and new young people coming along. Old patterns need to be reestablished, and leaders need to be brought up to speed.
There is much to remind our leaders of but let me suggest that the most important thing to stress is one most commonly overlooked – not because it is not important but because it does not loom as urgent as teaching responsibilities and expectations.
The thing I would most stress to my whole team at the start of a new year, whether they are new leaders or not, is that they are called by God to lead.
Why this? Why is it so important? There are three reasons.
Firstly, knowing we are called by God gives us confidence. For many (most?) of us, youth ministry feels like cross-cultural mission. With culture changing so rapidly we soon realise that the world they are growing up in has changed from our own teen years – no matter how recent they might be. Young people are different from us because they have grown up in this different world.
A normal internal reaction is to doubt. Will I understand them? Will we be able to relate to each other? Will they like me?
In the midst of these doubts and questions, knowing we are called by God means that when we walk into the youth room each week, we do so knowing we are there because the Creator of the universe wants us there. Without all our faults failures and lack of understanding, we are God’s people called by Him to an important task.
Secondly, and almost paradoxically, knowing we are called by God keeps us humble. Yes, we have confidence in our calling, but we act on this calling with a profound sense of our own lack of worth apart from Christ.
When the devil accuses us (and he will!) of being unworthy to lead others we don’t fold out of guilt and despair, but nor do we attempt to justify ourselves. We simply respond, “Yes, you are right… but God knows that… and He has called me anyway because I am forgiven and loved!”
Finally, knowing we are called by God gives us perspective. When we turn up to lead each week we are not just “running a programme for a few kids”! We are engaged in work of eternal significance. It is never “just another night”. God is there with us and He has plans for young people’s lives. This of us who are called by God to lead, have the amazing privilege of partnering with Him, watching as He works through us, apart from us, and even despite us!
“But you should keep a clear mind in every situation. Don’t be afraid of suffering for the Lord. Work at telling others the Good News, and fully carry out the ministry God has given you.” 2 Timothy 4:5