3. Get them sharing the Gospel with their peers!
In Philemon 1:6 Paul wrote, “I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith so that you may know every good thing you have in Christ Jesus.” When teenagers share their faith actively, they begin to own their faith personally.
Peer-to-peer evangelism among teenagers risks losing social equity with their peers. They could be mocked, marginalized or ostracized for sharing their faith, and this very risk is a kind of “dying” to oneself, which is at the very core to the call of discipleship (Matthew 10:38,39). This risk steels and seals their commitment to Christ and can help them keep their faith long-term.
For a highly interactive and fun way to equip your teenagers, check out the Shine curriculum from Dare 2 Share. Follow the curriculum with your teenagers and they will be fully equipped to share the Gospel in a loving, thoughtful way. And in the process they will own their faith on a deeper level.
4. Engage the community of believers around them!
“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
“Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. 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 4:11-16
Sometimes the idea of “family ministry” can trigger thoughts of mom and dad doing all the heavy lifting spiritually. But family ministry, at its best, is engaging the entire church around a teenager (especially mom and dad) to help produce long-term spiritual growth.
I’m so thankful for all those in the church who’ve poured themselves into my son and daughter. I’m not saying “it takes a village.” But it does take a body, the entire body of Christ, to produce fully developed disciples.
That’s why I’m convinced a strong, vibrant youth ministry in every church is needed now more than ever. It gives adults an opportunity to pour into teenagers on a discipleship level, powerfully bolstering parents’ efforts. Of course the more Gospel Advancing these youth ministries are, the more they will be effective at developing disciples who make more disciples. And the more these ministries engage parents to take the primary lead in discipling their own children, the more long-term impact they’ll have.
These are four practical ideas to help teens escape the great graduation evacuation. What are some other simple ideas to help teenagers keep the faith long-term?
This article about helping teens keep the faith originally appeared here.
