As a YoungLife leader, you will be asked to do many embarrassing things that are past your comfort zone. Whether that is going to a high school and trying to meet kids and convince them that you are cool and they should come to YoungLife because they’ll have fun, or it is wearing a costume to club just to get kids to laugh.

I’ve had my fair share of embarrassing moments; having to walk back to campus after YoungLife with no shoes, covered in food from an all-area food fight. Leaders put themselves out there to embarrass the daylights out of themselves on stage or in front of kids. We dress up as Harry Potter characters and put on a skit, or give blind makeovers with butter and lipstick while pretending to be a set of conjoined twin spies with lisps. Then, there are the horridly embarrassing dance moves that come out when the music plays to try to get kids to join in the fun, but if nothing else give them something funny to laugh at.

But why, you may ask? Why do all of us volunteer to get embarrassed? Usually, most people avoid being embarrassed at most all costs- but Young Life leaders, people who are truly desiring to serve God’s kingdom, no we say bring on the embarrassment all for the sake of loving our kids well.

This still might not make sense, but that’s okay. We, as leaders are willing to put ourselves out there to be embarrassed so that the one kid in the back of the room who was consistently picked on all day at school, and even at home—he isn’t being picked on for the few minutes of the skit, or the time when people are laughing at our dance moves. We are called to use laughter as a means to break down walls, and to give kids someone to laugh at so they aren’t laughing at each other, but WITH each other. This goes for the girl who walks in the room and feels constantly judged, by others based on what she’s wearing, or worried about what others think of her.

If you've had a bad day, you've been there in that position as the kid who just wants five minutes with everyone's eyes off them asking about what happened or what’s wrong, or simply to not be picked on. Laughter can be a powerful form of love, but it can also be a very hurtful thing. We as leaders are able to take control of that power and use it for good to break down walls and to provide a loving and safe atmosphere that kids feel welcomed in.

This isn't always the most fun thing to do, or the easiest, but when it comes down to being willing to take the embarrassment and spotlight on ourselves, and take it off our kids, it will always be worth it.