BibleSponge

Truer words have never been spoken that in John 8:32. Because once you start down this path, you may be freed from your youth pastor or youth leader position quicker than Pavel Datsyuk sniping a goalie in a shootout (it’s a NHL thing). You will undoubtedly be labeled an ‘un-realist’ or ‘crazy’.

When I started down the path of trying to create a biblical-youth ministry, I knew going in to have my resume updated. How? The Lord began to deal with me and I started with a series of articles from one of the most intelligent men of God that I know, Pastor Voddie Baucham. You can find his articles on this subject here, here and here.

After reading and studying these articles, I began to line them up against the Word and funny thing, they match. However, just because God may lay a truth before you, if it is not inline with the current trends of church, it may not be embraced by all. Even worse, by the leadership of the church.

While these articles are a great starting point, there is plenty more places you can look and listen. I spend some time on the road, and Voddie’s sermons on the subject will inspire and light a fire inside you that will burn everyone around not willing to embrace the Word instead of the norm! Go to his podcast page, the message you should begin with is “The Centrality of The Home”.

As I began this journey, I never in a million years thought that it would go the way that it has gone so far. Since I’ve began pursuing this, I have been removed as the youth pastor and “offered” the opportunity to teach youth in rotation with other teachers (not even considered on the first month’s rotation), as our youth ministry has become an abstract in the the church landscape.

After 3+ years of blood, sweat, tears and countless hours from potential family time, the ministry has taken on a new direction under a common misconception. The idea of a family-based youth ministry that lines up with the Word isn’t satisfied by simply adding more parents to the fray.

So what is the approach to youth ministry I will be exploring? I’ll finish this entry with a mission statement that both lines up with the Word and addresses a current problem. This is what my entire approach to a bible-based youth ministry will be built on.

Youth Ministry Mission Statement:

To equip and assist parents to fulfill their biblical obligation to disciple and evangelize their children and to reach out to spiritual orphans in the church.

Stay tuned as we continue with our next entry focusing on how our current approach is not only unbiblical, but perhaps antithetical to the Word of God.