How Can The Church Help Its Young People?

Youth ministry has been a topic of conversation in the church ever since its substantial rise in the late 80’s. It continues to be a topic of conversation with the escalation of relativism in our country and the amount of teenagers who leave the church after high school. But what can the church really do to support their teenagers?

Cooperative Play

Cooperative play in video games occurs when two or more people work together to meet a goal. It may be beating a level or conquering a fortress but no matter what it is, it’s always best to have teammates who are willing and able to help you get the job done. Youth ministry is a lot like cooperative play. In order to effectively raise our children in Christ and the church, we have to work together. This idea of cooperative play is important to ministering our youth for two reasons.

1. Let’s All Get Involved. The Bible says that it is ultimately the parents’ responsibility to provide the spiritual instruction and nourishment their children need. It is a sad situation when the biggest impact spiritually that a parent has is just getting their kids to church and leaving it up to the youth minister. It is also sad when a youth minister keeps the kids to himself, segregating them from the body, and creating their own mini-church. What ought to happen in the church is cooperative teaching, where all the parents work with each other and the youth minister and preacher to help their children in their daily walk with Christ.

2. Let’s ALL Get Involved. How much more likely are you to do something beyond your job description or your comfort zone when you are told to do it by an authority verses working with someone who asks for your help? Are teenagers any different? Sometimes the best way to help teenagers grow and be encouraged is to get down and dirty with them. Often times, people will see something that needs attention and say, “That’s something our youth could do!” Why should they be the only ones involved in service projects when the older folks and parents are capable too? One of the most sure-fire and most encouraging ways to increase the growth of our kids is to work with them. Working and doing acts of service with our kids builds relationships (creating spiritual role-models), gets them used to the idea of the church serving others, and provides opportunities for us to glorify God with them.

Let No One Despise Their Youth

One of the most discouraging things to me as a young person is the blatant contempt that some older adults have to me for being young. “You haven’t studied as much as I have,” “You don’t have enough life experience yet,” “You’re young and just don’t know,” are a few of my favorites that I’ve heard in just the past few years. As someone who desires more than anything to serve the Lord and serve the church, hearing comments like that is disabling and hurtful. Paul says to 1 Timothy 4:12, “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.” Try as I might to be this example, some people will still nail me just for being young. I recognize that we young people have a lot to learn and have much wisdom to gain, but being reminded about it does not help. In fact, we already know that older folks are wiser than us. Being told that you’re not as wise, however, is just a discouragement and actually comes off a tad bit arrogant. The adults who make the best impact to our youth are the ones who treat them like people (adults, equals, brothers/sisters, etc.) and show them respect. As the old saying goes, “You must give respect, to get respect.” Providing understanding and compassion to our youth by showing them respect will go a long way in making them not only faithful Christians, but servants and leaders in the church.

The Overarching Theme

Here’s the main point. Being a faithful Christian is not determined by age. There is no minimum or maximum age, no prerequisites other than belief and repentance, and no level of knowledge required to be a faithful servant in the church. No Christian is more a part of the body of Christ or more important or needed than another. As Paul said in 1 Cor 12:12, “For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.” Just listen to his words and see if they apply not just to you older folks but young Christians as well.

14 “For the body does not consist of one member but of many. 15 If the foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,’ that would not make it any less a part of the body… 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell?... 21The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you,’ nor again the head to the feet, ‘I have no need of you.’ 22 On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty,”

If we’re going to be the church that Christ wants us to be, we all have to respect each other and work together like a human body. Being the body of Christ means that we treat each other the way Christ has already treated us, with compassion, love, understanding, and sacrifice. Are you doing your part to integrate young people into the church and its work? Are you encouraging them as brothers and sisters in Christ? Whether you are young or old, remember to show love to each other and to treat other with the respect that you desire.

Yours in Christ,

Zack