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Student #2: Andrew
(7) You’re not better than these teenagers. Most of them probably aren’t going to listen to a thing you say unless you respect them.
(8) Politics don’t matter. Your youth group isn’t your opportunity to sway young people to one side. If it gets brought up, you can talk about it, but only from an objective point of view.
(9) These kids are going to be at an age (if not already) where they want to experiment with drugs and alcohol. You can’t tell them not to. You can only be there for them. Open yourselves up to them. Being a youth pastor is a 24/7 job, not just Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings.
(10) Let the kids have a say. The best thing I ever got out of my time in youth group was the ability to lead. We didn’t just attend youth group, we were youth group. Encourage the kids to come to you with anything they want to do. Basically, let the kids be creative, but don’t force it. For example: A great example is Rocketown. Rocketown is a nonprofit in Nashville that serves as a venue for punk, pop-punk, hardcore, metal and other “substandard” genres to perform where they normally wouldn’t get a gig in Nashville. They also have a skate park and skate shop that is open to all ages. Most of all, they run youth group programs for teens. Every Tuesday is “Skate Church,” a Bible study that takes place in the skate park. Look them up, it’s quite the place.
(11) You will lose kids. Some kids grow up to realize that they just don’t believe in everything you’ve been teaching them. You can’t force it into them. You can do your best to help them grow in their faith, but at least when they leave, you know that you helped them through the most painfully awkward years of their lives. Be there. Be the cool uncle. The one that picked them up when they were down and didn’t want anyone else to know. Be the one who writes letters of recommendation when they go to college. Foster friendships among them. Be forgiving and understanding. Also be firm.
(12) Forget about numbers. As long as you have kids showing up, you have a youth group.
(13) Scripture doesn’t mean much to all teens, so use it wisely. The last thing the world needs is Bible-beaters who can’t see outside the text and outside of their current context.
(14) Be on fire for God, but don’t go starting fires for God. Some people feel it’s necessary to constantly shout to the world that they love Jesus. The only people that ever listen to those people already love Jesus.
