I’ve served in various roles and areas within ministry for 11 years. I’m now the lead pastor at our church, but I also oversee the youth ministry. Many people ask me why I continue to work with students, and the simple answer is that I love it so much that I can’t imagine giving it up. I will always continue to work with teenagers. Here are the top five reasons I prioritize them:
1. STUDENTS NEED PEOPLE WHO CARE.
When I was growing up, I had a pastor who said, “People aren’t waiting to be saved; they’re waiting to be loved.” That has stuck with me, particularly when it comes to working with students. Students are looking for authentic relationships above all else. And so often, adults don’t understand students—they write them off as lazy, uncommitted, or irresponsible.
But I see a different side of students. I see them as innovative, compassionate, curious, and searching for something more. This means they need people to invest in them and help them see the best in themselves. Not only that, but they also need adults to truly care about them and show them who they are in Christ.
2. STUDENTS ARE UNDER ATTACK.
For many years, I’ve said that if Satan wants to destroy the Church, he doesn’t need to attack the Church. He just needs to attack the next generation and wait 20 years.
Students are facing issues at a young age that most of us never had to face. They’re experiencing one of the greatest mental health crises we’ve ever seen. They went through a global pandemic before they were old enough to understand what those words meant. They’re inundated with questions about gender identity issues and LGBTQ issues. I could go on and on.
The simple truth is that students are under attack. They need a place to find truth in the midst of those attacks.
3. STUDENTS NEED THE CHURCH.
In a world that saturates young people with lies, students need the truth of the Gospel now more than ever. And without the Church, they’ll succumb to the lies of the enemy that attack their minds daily. But the Church offers them something so different from the world. It offers them the truth that sets them free and the hope of something greater than themselves. It offers them life, because it offers them the Gospel!
And students don’t need the Church to entertain them. They have enough to entertain them every second of every day. They need the authentic Church, messy but full of truth and life. They need community and a place to learn and explore the truth that the world will not give them. The Church can be a safe place to ask questions, to grow, and to build relationships with not only other students, but also adults who can mentor and lead them.
4. THE CHURCH NEEDS STUDENTS.
Teens live in a world where church is not a part of the culture. But they bring an energy and life to the Church that it desperately needs. I’ve never been a fan of the phrase “The youth are the future of the Church,” because I believe they’re a vital part of the Church now!
In my experience, students tend to be more open than adults to sharing their faith and encountering the Holy Spirit. I’ve seen students kneeling in prayer, worshipping passionately, and serving enthusiastically, setting an example for the adults of the Church. It’s time to embrace Paul’s encouragement to Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:12:
Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity.
5. THE HARVEST IS PLENTIFUL.
Students are open to the Word of God now more than ever. They’re craving a deeper meaning in life. They’re open to things greater than themselves. They’re ready to hear and receive the Gospel. They comprise the largest “unchurched” group in the world right now.
Perhaps above all else, they’re searching. There’s an incredible opportunity to change the course of a generation when we work with students and share the Gospel with them. Then, when one student catches the fire of the Gospel, they’re ready to go and share it because they’re a cause-oriented generation.
You can use Dare 2 Share’s free Takeoff to Touchdown curriculum to show them how. Teenagers have platforms to share on that we never had. And there will always be more students who need to know the life-changing power of the Gospel!
