Washing feet, not dishes

Group, Sep/Oct 2003 by Case, Steve

NUMBER 3. THERE SHOULD BE NO SUCH THING AS YOUTH SUNDAY.

I'm all for banning Youth Sunday because it reinforces the wrongheaded notion that the church's young people belong on the other side of the building, except for one day. Suspiciously, Youth Sunday often falls on the same day your senior pastor is out of town (often, about half of the congregation will take this Sunday off, too).

Go to your administrative board or worship committee and respectfully ask that they no longer schedule a Youth Sunday. (Hey, do they schedule a Middle-Aged Lady Sunday?) By all means get the youth involved in your worship service-but on a regular basis. At least once a month our youth should be greeters, ushers, readers, singers, and so on. If they're involved every Sunday, Youth Sunday will quickly become an anachronism.

Here's another idea that's near and dear to me: Get permission for your young people to lead an underplanned event or recognition, such as your Good Friday service. Several years ago my senior pastor was grumbling about the poor attendance at our Good Friday services. So our youth group kids took on the challenge. Using drama, appropriate secular music, some dark psalms, candles, and silence they created a powerful and unforgettable experience for our congregation.2

NUMBER 4. EVERYONE, AND I MEAN EVERYONE, HAS A GIFT.

In your group you have artists, singers, writers, poets, strong backs, and strong minds. What a coincidence-your church needs all of those. Your students, each of them, are destined and called to offer their own ministry to the church. Release your artists to create bulletin covers, banners, or altar clothes. Release the singers to sing in choirs and bands. Release those who love kids to serve as volunteers in your Sunday school program. And every youth group has a few computer geeks who could easily offer their expertise in building and maintaining your church's Web site.

Help your kids identify what they have to give by spending several sessions focusing on spiritual gifts. Identify "tree trunk" gifts by studying Romans 12:4-8 and 1 Corinthians 12-imagine that each gift mentioned is a tree trunk. Then ask students to brainstorm specific "branches" that grow out of each trunk. For example, the "knowledge" trunk might have a branch that's called Web site development. See how many branches your kids can come up with. And challenge them to identify their own gifts, then match that gift to a tree trunk.

NUMBER 5. YOUNG PEOPLE ARE NOT CHRISTIANS-IN-TRAINING.

Teenagers, because they are not yet adults, are often seen as not-yet-followers-of-Christ. But that's ridiculous when you consider what some of them are already doing. I'm sure you have some kids who are at church three or four times a week for Bible studies, small groups, Sunday school, choir practice, and youth group meetings (not to mention mission trips and serving in vacation Bible school). How many people in the "real" congregation give as much of themselves?

I was once at a church where the youth in the confirmation class were expected to take a test on the history of the church and the Bible before being confirmed. I gave the test to an adult Sunday school class-only about half of them passed. If we refer to our teenagers as the "children in Sunday school," how do you think they'll behave? If we "assume up" teenagers will rise to the occasion every time.