I believe to the core of my soul that God loves and calls children and youth and that the Holy Spirit dwells in them.
Let’s be honest—I’m not a great youth minister. I don’t remember the fun games. I don’t have a bunch of treats and prizes in my back pocket. I forget that students find the most random things funny. A lot of humour and pop culture references go over my head. No one wants to scroll through my playlist. I can be a bit too paranoid about rules and expectations and need to be reminded to just ‘be’ with students.
But I believe with every fibre of my being that God is up to something…and that children and youth can fully participate in what God is doing. I believe to the core of my soul that God loves and calls children and youth and that the Holy Spirit dwells in them. I am convicted that children and youth can have vital, active, and dynamic experiences of faith and that the rest of us have things to learn from being in relationship and community with children and youth.
And when children and youth meet me and participate in ministry and programming with me, I hope they catch that from me. I hope they walk away from the season our lives crossed paths knowing that for as long as they want me to be, I am in their corner. I hope they hear from me—more than once—that who they are and all the aspects of who they are coming to know themselves to be is who God loves…in this moment and forever. I hope they experience me coming alongside of them, joining them on their level, encouraging them to express their individual identities and gifts. I hope they get a glimpse of the grander story of God’s relationship with God’s people that transcends time and space, and I hope that in some way they are encouraged to get caught up in that story.
At one of the first youth ministry leadership training events I attended when I was a new, insecure, overwhelmed youth leader, I heard a phrase that I have never forgotten: “Authentic trumps cool every time.”
I am not a ‘cool’ youth leader. But I strive to be authentic.