I do agree with the “bait and switch” problem in ministry as a whole. We purposely avoid any conference, “youth rally”, or anything else promoted by another youth ministry that does not divulge their true intent from the start. I believe that if teens are at “youth group” they should hear about Jesus. They came knowing that we are a place of religion, so to shy away from that would be wrong. It is only when I am outside of the church and on their turf so to speak that I practice relational evangelism and do not try to get them to “like me” so that I can share Jesus. This is where we should all “Be” Jesus to those kids.

Your personal reply means a lot. It shows me that you mean what you say. Thanks again Greg, and all you and your ministry is doing for the teens and the youth workers following God’s call on their lives. And since you offered I will take you up on the free book. I cannot wait to get it!

If you really want to see what I think about youth leaders check out a book I wrote called Ministry Mutiny. You may be surprised. I’d be glad to send you a free copy if you give me your address. Send it to me through my assistant stacey@dare2share.org and I’ll drop one in the mail next week.

Thanks again for stirring up the conversations. Accolades are boring. But criticism gets the party started.

And yes I do believe that there are some great curriculums out there (heck, we produce curriculum too so I can’t be totally against it!) I am not at all trying to get youth leaders to stop using curriculum or having fun. If you got to know me you would realize that I am a spaz and have “fun and games” everywhere I go. What I was trying to communicate (but must have not done so effectively) was the far extreme of youth leaders who are unconsciously on a constant search for the new and the cool (UFOs). But even these youth leaders I think usually have good intent. It’s just easy to get caught up into a mindless search for the shiny without having an intentional plan for spiritual and evangelistic growth.

When it comes to “fun and games”(and yes! I was raised in a youth group that used this stuff effectively) I’m talking about those who overuse the “bait” (fun and games) without having a big enough hook (the Word of God being taught in a relevant way). As a matter of fact I think that fun and games are a great way to get the crowd ready for real and deep conversations about spiritual truth. I am convinced that the real reason unreached and churched kids will stay attracted to a youth group is becuase they are having significant conversations with a spiritual mentor (a youth leader like you) in a tribal context.

I love youth leaders and I love you (awkward) and I genuinely appreciate you counterbalancing my point. Its well thought out and well articulated posts like yours that do just that. So thank you.

I too am sick of every ministry doing the same thing. But what I am more sick of is every big time ministry guru telling us we suck at teaching teens the truth! This needs to stop! Stop making us feel insignificant and stupid for doing ministry the way we do it. Stop using your ability to sound like you know something we do not, and tell us we are doing it wrong!

There are many youth ministries out there that have been doing a good job with what they have. Let’s remember that churches are dying across the country right now and youth budgets are always the first to go. When you and others write books and blogs that tell us to stop attracting teens to the church in ways that we all know work, it makes it diffulcult to consider staying on in ministry.

I use curriculum, games, upbeat music, and FUN to attract teens to our ministry. Do I believe that wil ground them in the Truth of Jesus Christ and disciple them NO!! Of course not!! That would be very irresponsible of me. I have a group of teens that are further in their walk with Christ that I have a deeper discipling ability with then the others. I also have a group of teens that come on a regular basis that do mostly to have something to do. Then I have many in between. Either way, we have to have a place for all of them, and are ready to move them ahead when they are ready. This takes constant calibrating and redoing our ministry to meet the needs of those that are here, but it also means that in order to stay consistent, we use curriculum to keep a good common skeleton in place. We make each week spontaneous in different ways, but the night is basically the same. Does that mean that the teens that come to our youth group will never know Jesus? Watch your words here. I bet you grew up in a ministry and came to know Jesus and God in a personal way through something similar.

I am fortunate enough to have a senior pastor who worked in youth ministry for years and knows what it takes to get teens to know Christ in a passionate way. In 4 and 1/2 years I have seen a lot of kids come to know God and make him their number one priority. And I do not believe this had anything to do with curriculum, or anything “shiny”. This had to do with the conviction of the Holy Spirit and the ability for us to help them see and hear the truth of Jesus death on a cross, and God’s love for them that He forgives them if they ask. Does it bother you that the curriculum I used spoke to them personally through the Holy Spirit, or maybe that we played a fun game, and had some relevant worship that made them want to come back over and over again?

You and all the other Youth Ministry Gurus need to stop beating up the guys that are on the front lines of youth ministry everyday with no budget except for what is in their wallet, or hopefully in the churches budget, and start to encourage us to keep on speaking God’s truth into teens lives.

You want to realy help out? Encourage me! If you have a problem with something take it out on the guys that are producing it, not the guys who are trying to do the best they can with what they’ve got. And please don’t be too upset that I commented on this as if I am attacking you. You are not the first youth ministry guru guy that I have expressed my opinions on this subject to. I would be more then happy to continue this if you’d like to. Email me if you can. If not then reply to this with a request for my email and I will get it to you.

Just to cap this off, please keep in mind that what you see here is black and white. I mean no hatred toward Dare 2 Share or Greg Stier. I do have respect for Greg and what they do consisitently for the Kingdom of God. This is just a reply made from a disgruntled youth pastor who is trying to stay above water in this ministry God has called him to. In doing so, I will try to keep the ones I follow and hold up as cyber mentors accountable.

You hit the nail right on the head!! Great insight. We travel nation wide and see a lot of youth ministries, and I laugh in a disheartened way, that what you are describing is what I see in a lot of youth ministry circles. Good word. Hope all is well with you. Have not talked to you in awhile. Keep fighting the good fight of the faith as we strive to do the same. God bless.

By His Power,

Paul May
Director of Clear Vision Drama Company
cvdrama.org
417-860-9015