relational ministry that countsLee Valley Ranch - Black Hills of South Dakota
Late night after hearing one of the top Christian speakers in the country for youth I asked my group what they thought. “He was funny,” “He was good,” “I liked him,” were the replies. I agreed, but I doubt any of us made any life changes.
When youth describe Christian leadership they most often name models represented by microphones or a committees. Kids see in the church people holding microphones – speaking or singing on platforms, pulpits and stages. Kids see people sitting in committees – elected to boards, appointed to task forces, joining advocacy groups, sittings around tables, talking and planning. These are the models we see, we reward, we applaud, give money to, and train people for. I am not against microphones and committees. We need them, but these models only fit a few people. It seems to me that the microphone and committee leaders exist only to motivate, organize, inspire, and teach so that we can be servant leaders in daily life?
Isn’t ministry about caring for one’s neighbor? Are not the real leaders the least likely person who walks along side, comes close, reaches out, takes risks, crosses boundaries, takes action and does not expect recognition or rewards?
“I don’t think this counts,” says the high school girl who describes hanging out with a friend on Friday night whose parents just split up. This is her response when asked how she was beginning to use her Peer Ministry training. “I don’t think this counts” seems to be the response of most youth who talk daily with friends about relationships, self-worth, misuse and abuse of drugs and alcohol plus a whole host of other concerns. Such caring conversations are seldom recognized as ministry. They are! I believe kids are already doing ministry! It is just that we have failed to name that what they are doing is about God!
It seems to me our first priority in youth ministry ought to be in helping every youth recognize their vital place as ministers. It seems to me that if want kids to value the church, the church must hold up their relational abilities as essential valued life giving response that any and all Christians are called to do. Maybe it is time to stop playing meetings, stop exposing kids to funny speakers, and empower them with the skills of caring and welcoming ministry. It seems to me we need to be sending letters of call to our kids, laying hands on them and blessing them as front line ministers of our churches.
As the National Director of Peer Ministry I am certainly a bit biased, but not without reason. Peer Ministry takes kids number one concerns, their friendship and relationships and gives them the skills, meaning and purpose to recognize them as ministers. Instead of preaching and teaching the Good Samaritan story Peer Ministry puts skills behind it to live it. If microphone and committees are not resulting in kids knowing that they count as essential ministers, than it is time to learn why Peer Ministry is a powerful training to equip kids in ministry.
www.peerministry.org peermin@peerministry.org
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2 comments:
Lyle,
I'm advertising the facilitator training Chip and I are putting together here in Omaha. May I reprint this posting as part of that effort. You clearly and sucinctly articulate the points I am trying to get Nebraska youth related folks to buy into.
God's Peace
Jason+
Everyone hears over and over again the phrase “Personal trusted relationship with Jesus Christ.” I often ask groups how many times they expect to find this in the Bible. They are surprised to discover it isn’t there! This may not make it wrong language, but what the Bible talks about is an “us” relationship, “the body of Christ relationship.” God gives me gifts, which is cool, but on the flip side, that means God shorts me on lots of gifts. I only get a few. I think it must be God’s joke to say, “You have to live out this faith in community. It only works as a body of people in Christ. You were not created to be separate.” This body is meant to be the church. Yes, I want kids to value this body. The alternative is to try to live separate from all others.
Has the church evolved into a place where gifts are shared? Where together we learn to share faith, respond to the gospel by caring for our neighbors? I think God’s idea of the church was a good one, but than God put people in it! What was God thinking?
Okay, the church isn’t perfect. I some times wonder if churches are good places for kids to understand faith. I also often ask kids what happens when you share faith with others. They say, “It turns into a fight.” But, yes I want kids to value the church. It ain’t perfect. Never will be. But the alternative is going it alone, which is very incomplete. We need an “Us relationship with Jesus Christ.” I want kids to value it, shape it, learn from it, participate in it and be valued by it.
Lyle
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