Why? Because these thriving teens eventually become thriving church members and leaders! Youth ministry is a farm club for the church. And, as with any championship baseball team, a great farm club feeds it great players.
3. Teenagers are looking and longing for a cause that matters and a community that cares.
A Cause That Matters:
Now is the time to reframe the Great Commission as the ultimate cause. When we make disciples who make true disciples, human trafficking is curbed, the hungry are fed and the homeless are housed. Everything good shakes out from the one thing that is great. And that’s the co-mission Jesus gave to us through his disciples in Matthew 28:18-20.
When we present the mission of making and multiplying disciples to teenagers, we’re calling them to become Gospel activists of sorts. We’re inviting them into the cause that matters most.
Does your current youth ministry strategy reflect this cause in clear, compelling ways? (Think of programs, talks, trainings, focus, etc.) If not, sign up for training to mobilize your teens for the ultimate cause!
A Community That Cares:
“Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.” Ephesians 4:15-16
I love this Bible passage when it comes to youth ministry. That’s because the focus is on a community that builds itself up in love while everyone works together with their unique gifts toward a common goal.
Youth ministry should be where teens find true community. It should be where they experience the closest friendships that are sealed and steeled while seeking to make and multiply disciples together.
I thank God for the friends I developed as a teenager in a youth group that was laser-focused toward the advancement of the Gospel. To this day, I remain close with this crew. And we’re still united together for the faith of the Gospel. Unbreakable bonds of friendship are built around common mission and true community. Our youth groups should be the epicenter of building lifelong, Gospel-focused friendships!
3. Teens are more likely to stick with the church long-term after experiencing the right kind of youth ministry.
I have no statistical evidence to prove this statement. But I do have tons of stories. During the last 27 years, I’ve had the privilege of equipping over a million teens to share their faith. And I’ve assisted tens of thousands of youth leaders to build Gospel-advancing, disciple-multiplying youth ministries.
Again and again, I’ve heard stories of kids who’ve grown to know, live and own their faith (long-term) as a result of sharing their faith as teenagers. Perhaps it goes back to what Paul wrote to Philemon. “I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith so that you may know every good thing you have in Christ Jesus” (1:6).
When teens share their faith verbally, it drives faith-ownership deep into their psyche and soul in ways we could never imagine. Maybe it’s because when a teenager shares the Gospel, especially with a friend, they’re risking something super important to them. Their social equity. This very risk deepens their commitment to the Gospel long-term.
By graduation, kids are somewhat battle-hardened in their faith because they’ve shared it along the way. The Philosophy 101 university professor’s arguments against the existence of God don’t sound quite as convincing. That’s because these incoming college freshmen have already had those conversations with atheistic friends in high school. They’ve worked through finding answers between God’s Word and a mentoring youth leader. They’re strong in their faith.
We have an urgent need to double down not just on youth ministry but on the right kind of youth ministry. America has more than 300,000 churches and only 67,000(ish) high schools and middle schools. If even 10 percent of churches got fully on board the Gospel Advancement train, the situation could drastically change.
If you want to be one of the 10 percent, then click here and join the growing Gospel Advancing movement. It’s time!
This article originally appeared here.
