Student Ministry

There's nothing wrong with me
It's just that I believe things
Could get better

So over the years, I've come to be involved in helping lead two student ministries. One at school and one at church. And I'm realizing more and more that ministry is hard.

It's hard because I look around and see the place these ministries are at and then see in my mind where they could be and it feels like we are so far away from being at that place. I feel in my heart where they could be, but the difficulty comes in producing organizational change that brings the ministry to that place spiritually and in the ideology and mindset of the people there.

Often times I find myself thinking that if we were to model what we do off of other ministries that have worked, then we'd be pretty well off. More and more I am seeing that there are (at least) two totally different philosophies on student ministry and I am torn between which is better and which is most effective. I say that because I have seen both work, at least to some extent.

There are ministries that focus on being cool, being "relevant", being big, being powerful, and being emotional. They are very black and white in how they see a human being. They see somebody as either saved or unsaved. There is a clear distinction between somebody who is a Christian and somebody who is not. A distinct us and a distinct them. Christian and Non-Christian. They then cater their services to either the christian or the non-christian because in their black and white mindset, you cannot provide an experience meaningful to both. They then further classify the "saved" person as either "on-fire" or "not on-fire" which refers to the emotional level of passion they exhibit for God. The goal is to make people "on-fire Christians." They want people to experience something powerful. They want people to "encounter" the glory of God emotionally and then devote their entire lives to seeking after it. Too often people seek after the high instead of after the reality of God. But the problem with this kind of ministry is that when the high fades...so does the spirituality that the high brought about. It tends to focus so much on the individuals relationship with God and rarely on the world around them. It rates a relationship with God as if on a number scale. "How close do you feel to God today?" Rarely do they recognize the reality of God outside of a feeling. It rarely focuses on the importance of community. There is this predominating idea that once you are "on-fire", that your life will be amazing and if it's not, then it's because you're letting "the enemy" have too much ground and so it is your fault that you have problems. If you believe enough, nothing can harm you. This brings about this idea that if you have crap to deal with, and you are seen as somebody who is a "leader" in your youth group, then you need to hide that crap because by having it in your life, you are failing in the fight. You musn't bring it to the surface because you are a leader and you are supposed to be "strong in your faith"...a "ten on the relationship with God scale". These ministries focus a lot on musical worship and expression during that worship. Whether that be raising your hands, jumping, or getting on your knees, it is seen as very vital to actually worshipping God. But the thing is, on nights when you just aren't feeling that great, you feel like you cannot worship God because your crap is separating you from Him and you cannot get that crap off your shoulders because you aren't supposed to talk about it...or the atmosphere doesn't make it comfortable to talk about it. Though it is fun, though it is exciting, and though it is very emotionally powerful, it is rarely deep. I guess the biggest thing is this type of ministry focuses on Jesus doing something for a person but rarely do they talk about Jesus doing something IN a person. They want you to experience God and then bring others to experience God...but too often does that experience remain skin deep.

Then there are ministries that are relational. They encourage you to bring your problems to the surface. They don't discourage doubting but see it as vital to growth. They recognize that the truths of God are for all people and all people are welcomed no matter where they originally stand with Jesus. They are not forced to make a decision to be allowed to experience Jesus in their lives. These ministries don't just want you to know about Jesus and what He's done for you, they want you to see what He can do in you and bring you to a place of total restoration. His work is never done. There is no black and white. There is only middle ground. A person is a person of infinite value, whether they know Jesus or not. The goal is not to get a person to say a prayer. The goal is to see them restored from the inside out. Encountering God happens in small but beautiful things, not as much in huge emotional events or big definitive moments/decisions. Community is vital to this ministry. They need each other. They work through their issues together. They wrestle with questions and don't deny doubt. The ministry is less about emotion and more about deep change. They are about seeing God redeem a person's past. They are about bringing heaven to earth rather than getting earth to heaven. They don't focus on a summit once a week but rather try to "live life together". They realize that they were made for this and live life to the fullest. They also realize that this was made for them and that they should not throw the earth and this life away like some its a piece of trash. They see that life is messy and that it is not cut and dry. That people go through crap but that God is still at work redeeming them through it. It accepts the mess of life instead of trying to hide it and rather works through it, realizing that God is not too weak to save them more and more everyday in the midst of the mess.

I like this a lot more than the first one. One, because it is about deep change, permanant change...not temporary emotional experience. And through that deep change comes emotional experience. There are obviously good things and bad things about both philosophies which is why there's frustration. How do you take the overwhelming beauty that you have found in the truths of Jesus and relay it to high school students in a way that will make them want to be a part of this? How do you make the message the heart of the ministry rather than the details? How do you put organization behind the philosophy? And how do you evoke interest and eventually passion for the ideas that you are already burning for because you have found them to be redemptive and true? There's this tension between how it is and how it should be and oftentimes that tension seems too much to bear. Afterall, ministry is about getting people to live the way God intended. I believe God also had an intention for the church and what is whas supposed to look like and I just get frustrated when I see how far away we are from what seems right. Ministry is hard because life is messy and its hard to provide organization that embraces messiness.