When I was in junior high and high school, massive mountains and struggles started coming my way. With peer pressure, overwhelming drama, and bullies, I wasn't sure how to handle it. Honestly, my faith wavered. I decided to reinvest myself in the Word and let others love me the way I needed to be loved. Youth ministry love is a love like no other.
Let me tell you, my life truly changed. I had been saved and baptized for years, but my life changed for the better when I started pursuing. I was no longer alone when it came to my struggles and the drama. I had a true support group. There were leaders there to uplift me in my pain and to show me the bright future I had ahead of me.
Sometimes, all someone needs is a support group, or a single person, someone who will listen to you and want to see you in a better place than where you are. To just feel known, important, and loved can change someone's outlook on life. That's why youth ministry is important. It gives kids those people who they need, in their lives, the people who show them that they are known, important, and loved.
I know, many times, it's simpler to let teens do what they want and think they don't desire or need adults in their lives. They may be easy to ignore, but the truth is that they are desperate for adults to show up and invest in their life. Teens are being forces to make choices about their futures at a time when they are just figuring out who they are. We need to believe that in a culture that is continually changing, Jesus is the one thing that will always remain the same. Jesus is relevant yesterday, today, and forever.
Youth ministry is to give the young people a place to go and to learn to worhsip God, His nature, His plans for them and their future. It is a place to develop them into future leaders of the church. Face it, the youth of today are the church of tomorrow. The goal is to lead them with God's provision and teach them how to function as Godly men and women in just a few short years. Some will move away, go to college, and get married, but hopefully, no matter where they end up, they will begin serving a church.
The impact that youth ministry had on my life when I was in youth, has inspired me in more ways than I can say, one being that I continually want to lead a youth centered bible study. The connections and lifelong friends/sisters I made while in youth group, continuously remind me of the importance of being there to help students who need it. Being the person that I once had is continuing the cycle of living life with purpose, giving hope to the hopeless, and to love those who feel everything but loved. It's a chance to impact the youth the way they need it.
Show kids that they are loved and cared for. Be the person who attends their after school functions and show them support. They need people to show up in their lives even when it looks like a disaster. You could be the person that shows them what a life following Christ can be like. It is not always easy, but it is always worth it. Be the hope and support a child needs, it could truly change their life.
