When teenagers share the Good News of Jesus with their friends, teammates, and classmates, not only does the Gospel advance in others’ lives, but it also has a personal impact on them. I’m convinced that nothing seals the deal for students to own their faith than sharing their faith. As Paul wrote to Philemon:
I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. (Philemon 1:6)
Teens who share their faith own their faith, and teens who own their faith are much more likely to keep their faith after they graduate. So it’s vitally important that you crank up the heat of evangelism in your youth ministry.
Here are seven ways you can raise the temperature:
1. Program Prayer for Unreached teenagers.
Whether you’re opening the youth meeting or leading a small group of teenagers, don’t forget to pray for the lost. Bowed knees for the unreached can keep evangelism top of mind for teenagers and adult volunteers alike. This doesn’t have to take a long time, but it should be passionate, powerful, and persistent. Why? Because when you consistently call out to God on behalf of the lost, not only is Heaven moved to action, but so are your teenagers.
In Romans 10:1, Paul made his evangelistic intentions clear to the mostly Jewish believers living in Rome:
Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved.
Paul’s passionate prayer raised the temperature of the Jewish believers’ evangelistic efforts to their own people. Your prayers will do the same for your students.
2. Teach Your Teenagers To Identify One to Three of Their Unreached Friends They Will Pray for Consistently.
At Dare 2 Share, we use a simple strategy called Prayer – Care – Share to facilitate this process. Teens identify a handful of friends or classmates who need to be reached, start praying for them consistently, and eventually share the Gospel with them, out loud (with words).
3. Give the Gospel Every Week in Youth Group.
Paul told the Corinthian believers:
And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. (1 Corinthians 2:1-2)
If Paul was a youth leader writing to his youth group, this passage could read: “When I came to you, I didn’t make my biggest priority playing crazy games or building a fancy youth room. My main focus was Jesus Christ and Him crucified.”
