Our High Schoolers will be moving to the sanctuary for Sunday morning services beginning tomorrow morning and I know there are a lot of mixed feelings out there. So, I want you to hear my heart on this.
Let me start out by saying that I began leading the youth ministry at Grace in February of 2002. Sam and Sarah joined me in ministry shortly after that. In those 14 years of ministry, 100's of kids have passed through those doors. I can honestly say that we gave 100% to our calling as Youth Leaders.
I loved those kids like they were my own. I laughed with them, cried with them... they were my babies. My time with those kids make up some of the best memories of my life.
BUT... there's the problem- they're memories. Out of all those kids that have come through our youth group over the years, do you know how many still attend Grace?
Eight!!! EIGHT. That's heartbreaking. Truly.
WHY? Where did I go wrong? Where did we go wrong? We put our hearts and souls into ministering to these young people and they just walk away? What happened?
So, I've done a little investigating. After talking to several of my former youth members I found that that they all had one thing in common- they LOVED youth group. And that's great.... right? Sorta.
Here's the problem- Youth Group was their church. Not Grace. When they graduated from Youth Group it was like their church closed. And many of them just quit. What's even worse is that many, if not most, didn't just quit coming to Grace, they quit church altogether. Parents, I think we can agree- that's not good!
So in discussing this with Pastor Dennis and our new Youth Leaders, Jeff and Jessica, WE came to the conclusion that our youth need to be in the sanctuary more. They need to become a real part of Grace Community Church.
BTW: Out of the eight that still attend Grace how many do you think serve in ministry? That's right- EIGHT. Coincidence? I think not.
We believe that our High Schoolers are mature enough to serve in ministry on Sunday mornings. We believe that our High Schoolers are experiencing things in life that make the "big church" messages incredibly applicable to them. And most importantly, we believe that their future relationship with God is worth making this possibly unpopular decision.
Is it the right decision? We don't know. Is it permanent? We don't know that either.
What we do know is that we love these young people and we have prayerfully made this decision.
We now pray that you parents will support it. Support us. How? By taking your High Schoolers to church on Sunday mornings. By sitting together and worshipping God together. By making them a part of your church, of our church.
If you still have your doubts, I invite you to do a couple of things:
- Talk to me or Jeff or Jessica about it.
- If you know any of our former youth members who stopped attending Grace after graduation, talk to them about it.
Finally, ask yourself this question:
Do I want my child to attend church in those critical, vulnerable, young adult years after High School?
As a mom with an 8th grade youth member, my answer is YES! I believe yours is too.
All for Him,
Teresa
