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Youth Ministry Has Taken An Exciting New Directions — It’s Called The New Urban!!!

Happy New Year everyone.

I have just returned from a couple weeks vacation in Paris with my wife’s family.  My time away allowed me to reflect on the past few years and where I see the future of youth ministry.   As I said on facebook the other day – My wife asked me to step away from the IPad, IPhone and email while we were away.  I was able to do some deep reading, contemplative, reflective, introspective thinking and I was able to spend some incredible downtime with God in prayer and fasting.

 

As a result of this time, today we are re-launching our entire Platform – our ministry, social media, workshop series and sermons under the forward looking focus on Leadership in the New Urban.  We will focus on the new models required in ministering to all young people, in keeping our sanity and in networking outside our familiar circles.

 

These are exciting times for those of us who labor in the vineyard.  The urban landscape has changed in such a way that nothing is what it use to be.  The challenges our young people face are so expansive and can no longer be approached through our previous methods.  So what is the New Urban?  The new urban is a lifestyle that permeates all segments of life.  It’s non geographical.  No longer viewed through the lens of suburban, urban or rural.  Check out your young people, everyone’s into the music, the dress, activities and the talk of the new urban.   It’s multicultural, multiracial and multigenerational.  It’s cosmopolitan meets the thug, its hip-hop with a violin and everything in between.

 

 

MINISTERING TO YOUNG PEOPLE

For Youth Workers, the New Urban will require us to be at the top of our relational, relevant and revelatory game.  Young people don’t want to be entertained, taken for granted or spoon feed.  They are living in a world where everything goes and are questioning why they shouldn’t participate.   Peer pressure to conform to the world view is intense.  The world is telling them there are no limits, no morals and no judgement of anything they do.  Yet they want to know how to make God honoring decisions in a world where morality seems to be fading.  They want to see us “Walk The Talk”.  They don’t want us to be their best friends; they want adults who will walk along side them through their mess, guiding them along the way.  Pizza is great, but presence is better.  Lights are nice, but loving is more impactful.  Gimmicks are interesting, but grace is more desired.  Entertainment is fun, but equipping is long lasting.   Dodgeball is engaging,but destiny is the focus is.

 

 

UNDERGIRDING YOUTH WORKERS

Let’s face it, we are challenged with the new urban also.  This world is waxing worse and worse right in front of us and we are about two steps ahead of the young people in keeping up and understanding what’s going on in the secular culture.  We are dealing with situations we never expected the young people we minister to would be involved in at this age.  Our only advantage is our spiritual maturity and experience in dealing with the idols of the world.  The Bible tells us, “we must know the times. . .”.  Even though, I have to admit, sometimes I struggle with the burden of our young people. The weight of their plight brings me to tears.  But we know all of our problems, all of our pain, all of our situations, all of our heart ache can be left at the feet of Jesus.  Place your cares upon Him, He will hear your call.  We serve a God who is able to do exceedingly and abundantly above all we can imagine.  Trust in His Word, you know none of this is new to Him.  Stay encouraged and on your knees.

 

 

NETWORKING TO STRENGTHEN EACH OTHER

If we are willing to share our gifts, talents, resources and knowledge we will prevail.  If we are willing to network with other ministries in and outside of our normal circles; if we stay unified in the Kingdom building, holding each other up, praying for each other, strengthening each other in our walk, we will prevail.  Building strong networks take time, energy, empathy, open minds and passion.  In a world of social media, it is easy to make connections, but these connections are not a network.  The strength of your network is more important than the size of your network because, in the end, a strong network is something that you carry with you.  Today’s youth workers need to be able to build networks and work with others to address our young peoples challenges.  In the past it was possible to minister on your own and stay in your personal circle but today, requires sharing information and collaborating due to the overlapping of our young people’s experiences. Where we live is irrelevant, the size of our church is irrelevant, what we did in the past is irrelevant.  To assist parents in the spiritual development of their children, we must press toward to the mark . . .together.

So my brothers and sisters in Christ, stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel.  I offer this prayer of encouragement from the words of the songstress Laura Stong’s Blessings   :

Dear God;

We pray for blessings
. We pray for peace.


Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
.  We pray for healing, for prosperity.

We pray for your mighty hand to ease our suffering

All the while, You hear each spoken need
 yet love us way too much to give us lesser things

We pray for wisdom
. Your voice to hear
.

And we cry in anger when we cannot feel You near

We doubt Your goodness, we doubt Your love,
 as if every promise from Your Word is not enough

All the while, You hear each desperate plea
 and long that we have faith to believe

.

What if our greatest disappointments
 or the aching of this life,
 is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy
.

‘Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
, what if your healing comes through tears.


What if a thousand sleepless nights
 are what it takes to know You’re near

And what if trials of this life
: the rain, the storms, the hardest nights
 are Your mercies in disguise.

In Jesus name . . . Amen.

 

Welcome to the New Urban, ready or not here we go . . .

 

 

Actions                                    Preferences

 

                         Attitudes                                     Perspectives

 

Aspirations                                    Principles

 

 

 

 

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Learning And Relearning The “Truth About Reality”, Or The Truth About Urban Ministry

Some make it a habit of reading the experiences of Urban Ministry through the lens of stereotypes, symbols and beliefs and its difficult if not impossible to attach other meanings because there are no other interpretations beyond the “knowledge” they carried with them.  That knowledge would be “shadows cast on the wall” that prevent them from knowing the truth about urban ministry.  They take the shadows as objective representations of reality.  It’s time for us to help them confront their shadows so that they may know the truth about urban ministries.

Most times this is not an intentional act against another group but a lack of deep scriptural knowledge.   I am not referring to memorization or reading of scripture, but an exegetical study to understand the linkages and meaning of treatment to and of others in relationship to treatment of self.  The power behind Jesus commandment of loving your neighbor as yourself should flip the script on our day-to-day thinking.  This goes beyond the idea of just helping someone in need. This view does not allow you to look at them as less than, separate, inferior or not deserving of all that you would do for yourself or your family.

It is antithetical to think that we would do more for others than we would for ourselves.  We each see the world from our own self-interest first and then in service to others.  But this view contradicts scripture.  Let’s look at one of the most well intentioned concepts of service – mission trips.  On the surface they seems totally the right, the Christian thing to do and a learning opportunity for young people.  But from the side of those you choose to serve, it is as disrespectful as any action that one could engage.

 

I will use the word of two greatly respected figures, Martin L. King and Bishop Arthur M. Brazier, to unpack this concept in an attempt as was taught in Ephesians, to tear down the walls of separation in the church that worship the same God and has the hopes of a future in the same heaven.

King said – True altruism is more than the capacity to pity; it is the capacity to sympathize.  Pity may represent little more that the impersonal concern which prompts the mailing of a check, but true sympathy is the personal concern, which demands the giving of one’s soul.  Pity may arise from interest in an abstraction called humanity, but sympathy grows out of a concern for particular needy human being who lies at life’s roadside.  Sympathy is fellow feeling for the person in need – his pain, agony, and burdens.   Missionary efforts fail when they are based on pity, rather than true compassion.  Instead of seeking to do something with people, we have too often sought only to do something for them.  An express of pity, devoid of genuine sympathy, leads to a new form of paternalism, which no self-respecting person can accept.

 

Bishop Brazier said – Some in the church contribute money to support missionary hospitals and schools in foreign countries.  They take trips to involve themselves in the total life of people with whom they are working for the sake of Christ.  Why is it that some, while supporting total involvement abroad oppose total involvement at home?  The New Testament sets out clearly a position of equality when it unequivocally states that none of the biological, ethical, social or psychological distinctions by which we compartmentalize men and make some inferior and some superior has any validity as far as their standing before God in Christ is concerned (cf. Col.3: 11).  If this is the case then surely there can be no artificial distinction and barrier in our relationship with each other.  

 

I write this out of love for my brothers and sisters so all races, creeds and religions.  Those I serve with, beside and those yet to be in relationship.   Truth is never uncalled for.  There is no polish without friction and it is with men as someone has said about tea: if you wish to get its strength you must put it in hot water.  So the real opportunity for those outside the urban community is that there is no meaning in a given situation until you relate your own experiences to it, regardless of what you might have been taught about it.  Obtaining personal experience in meaningful relationship with other leaders in the urban communities plays a critical role in this process.  It is through a lived experience of being with others that stereotypical perceptions can be transformed.

 

A general implication of the arguments presented is that, like any diversity related discourse, the choice, conceptualization and the practice in the diverging context not remain essentially a contextual matter.

 

Let’s talk about it.  Hit me back with your comments, thoughts and questions.

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There is no one person that can speak on behalf of the entire urban community

 

GUEST POST: DANIEL WHITE HODGES

 

Today our guest blogger, Daniel White Hodges, is the North Park University Director of the Center for Youth Ministry Studies (CYMS).  Dan brings us his perspective of Urban Youth Ministry; continuing our 7 point series – Debunking the Misperceptions, Misunderstanding and  Misrepresentation of Urban Youth Ministry.

 

 

 

The days of singularized leadership are far gone. Unifying leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Cesar Chavez, and Bobby Seal were great for their context, setting, time and era. However, we have had some major shifts in our Western American society over the last forty years which have affected how, in particular, young people see what the meta-culture defines as a leader. Shifts such as:

 

  • Industrial to post-industrial to information age
  • Technology & media
  • Narratives of life, theology, & God are plural
  • Trust is eroded with those in leadership positions
  • Trust & reliance is gnarled with systems & institutions among youth
  • A loss of generational connectivity & solace with younger generations
  • Titles are typically suspect

 

These are just a few of the many shifts that young people, especially those born after 1988, have had to contend with and live in. We are not even considering the chasm which exists between church leaders and youth. Young people today are more critical of their leaders and, as well so, hold them to a higher standard. Further, as it was seared into my worldview when I was on Young Life staff: you have to earn the right to be heard. And, quite honestly, many leaders do not want to put in that time to actually “earn” that right to be heard. Many urban leaders want to preach, lecture, and tell rather than listen, engage, and live with the young person.

 

Hence, no, there is no singularized leader, authority, and/ or person who can speak for the entire urban community—or even urban youth for that matter.

 

The closest person that spoke for many in the urban context was Tupac Amaru Shakur. Now, some of you might wrinkly your nose and squint your eyes at that persona. After all, wasn’t he a whoremonger, adulterer, drunk, and profane rhetorician? And the answer would be: yes. Yes he was. But, within that whoremongering, adultering, drunkenness, and profane discourse something deeper was at work; a fundamental attempt to make God more accessible to himself and to the people he considered to be the urban community. We as youth leaders cannot overlook that aspect. We cannot merely see the outward behavior and judge the heart. And we must begin to deconstruct such a figure to, dare I say, embody some of his characteristics. More on this later.

 

Leadership and having a voice is powerful. It is, in fact, power. The power to affect someone elses behavior to implement your ideas and thoughts. Power. Power to affect change with the inception of worldivews into the psyche. This does not come easy and many in this generation, as stated prior, are very critical of whom they give those psyche “keys” to. Moreover, the urban community is far too complex, intricate, multifaceted, and multifarious to have a singular voice on that narrative and life experience. Thus, when engaging the urban context we must consider the narratives of all; yes, even those we do not agree with; those who are nefarious in deed; those who are foul in personality; those who have dreadful historical pasts; those who are fastidious in everything called life. Yes, those are the ones God has called us to. Those are the ones whose narrative does not fit nicely in five step processes, alter calls, and one time conversions. This is the population that Christ called us to make disciples in the Great Commission.

 

So, no. There is no singular voice and narrative for the urban context. Why would there be? Can God be explained in one concept? I hope not. The ‘hood represents the complexities of human life that is articulated in outward expressions and aesthetics. Let us continue to embrace the diversity and mystery that is meta-narrative and life!

Let me hear your thoughts, questions, rebuttals, and narrative. Join in on the conversation!

To continue the conversation and go deeper please comment below, also check out:

www.whitehodge.com

Twitter: @danwhitehodge

Facebook: Daniel White Hodge

 

The Soul Of Hip Hop: Rimbs, Timbs, & A Cultural Theology (IVP 2010)

Heaven Has A Ghetto: The Missiological Gospel & Theology of Tupac Amaru Shakur (VDM Academic 2009)

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Urban Leaders – If The Lord Calls You, He Will Establish You

 

God always has a special and unique way to call each one of us into ministry.  The Lord called Jeremiah by His spirit before he was born.  Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations (Jeremiah 1:5).  God chooses the way in which we are called into ministry.  Each of us has been essentially predestined to fill a particular place in the building of the Kingdom.  Everything that happens to us as ministers, from the point of birth is either directly planned by God or will definitely be used by Him to cause His will to be done.  This is part of how he establishes us.  He will open His Word to them and enable them to feed the people of God.  Jeremiah had the words of the Lord to speak to the people(Jeremiah 1:9)  Like Jeremiah our ministries must be based on God’s word and not man’s word.  We are to speak nothing but the Word we have been given from God.  The Lord set Jeremiah over the nations and kingdoms (Jeremiah 1:10).  Our promotion does not come from man but it comes from the Lord.  We will be exalted in due time after we humble ourselves.  Jeremiah was called to root out, to pull down and to destroy (Jeremiah 1:10).  We are called to preach and teach against sin and unrighteousness.  To help young people understand what it means to be separated from this world.  To teach them how to discern and make good choices as they walkout their destiny.

Whatever reservations or hesitations we have about our calling are understandable but not acceptable.  Jeremiah had several excuses, one “Lord, I cannot speak” (Jeremiah 1:6) he felt he was inferior in his ability to communicate effectively.  But the Lord will always put His words into the mouth of those He is equipping for ministry.  A second excuse was his Youth.  I do not know how to speak, because I am a youth (Jeremiah 1:6).  God replied “ Do not say; I am a youth, because everywhere I send you, you shall go (Jeremiah 1:7).  What was most important to God was his willingness to obey the word of the Lord.  His third excuse was that he was afraid to go because of the rejection that he would sense even by the expression on the people’s face.  The Lord commanded Jeremiah “do not be afraid of their faces, for I am with you to deliver you”.  God will give abundant grace for us to meet every fearful situation we may face.  God assures that if he calls us he will ensure we are established.

 

What hesitations do you have about your calling?  Let’s talk it out.

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Mo Money, Mo Money, Mo Money

 

 

Did you get caught up in the spending hype of Black Friday or Cyber Monday?  Or today’s fairly new Giving Tuesday? Wouldn’t it be great if we could get that excited about worshiping God.  Today we live in a very materialistic society.  The desire for money and what it can buy has a strangle hold on people.  Even Christians spend a great deal of time trying to create or pretend to have heaven on earth.  In search of mo money, mo money, mo money.  In fact, we see Christmas has become a time of the flaunting of affluence, assuming exaggerated expenses, a pursuit of vanity for vanity’s sake — in a word, financial decadence.

 

The last few weeks we witnessed in Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana a focus on money almost like never before.  People stood in line for hours to get a Powerball lottery ticket.  No one won, so this week we are seeing a repeat.  The lottery was going to solve their problems.  Everyone speaks of what they would do if they won and the good they were going to do.   The jackpot now stands at $425 million.  The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot: 1 in 175 million.  See we trust what is impossible, yet doubt salvation that which is sure, guaranteed and eternal.  Money can distract anyone

 

Matthew 6:24 tells us that “ No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”  The Bible tells us that mammon can be translated or substituted with the words treasure, money, wealth or materialism.

 

God knows this materialism is so tuff that he made one of the most shocking statements – it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.

 

The world’s riches make it difficult to keep God at the center of our lives.  Scripture has shown time and time again monies influence on behavior and attitudes.

 

The tragedy of Lot’s wife was her placing all her affection on an earthly city rather than a heavenly one.  Joshua’s army was crushed when Achan disobeyed God and took the gold, silver and exotic garments;  Achan thought his sin mattered little in the grand scheme of the invasion.  Both lost perspective and fell prey to materialism.

 

We see it in the church today. Pastors, the music ministry — lose their way; get caught up in chasing the o’mighty dollar.  They have become dependant on money to define their ministry, their life or their success.   It has led to excessive behaviors – infidelity, homosexuality, sexual abuse of minors, opulence in homes, cars and in the clothes.  Look at the destruction it has cost their sheep.   Congregations split, people avoiding church due to their view of the members.   Ministers, we have accountability and a responsibility.  Hebrews tells us that all to often the love of abundance and luxury opens people to sexual sin.

 

If we go further into scripture, and look over in 1 Timothy 6:10 it tells us – The love of money is the root of all-evil.  But if we go back up into chapter 5 to see how we got to that statement, we see that people who want to get rich, fall into temptation and a trap and into mans foolish & harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction.

 

As ministers of the gospel, we must be free from the love of money.  As overseers, the Bible says we are to be above reproach, not a lover of money, not greedy but eager to serve.  See where your treasure is, there your heart will be.  It will drive your values and decisions.  We can’t be compromised.

 

So what am I trying to say – as we move into this Christmas season, don’t get caught up in the presents hype and forget the real reason for the season.  Your young people will be watching you to see how you plan act and respond to the season.  They will look to you to see the expectation you set.  How do we focus less on giving and receiving presents and focus more on understanding the celebration is the birthday of the King.  Young people have become way too caught up in “what are you getting me?” and being mad if they don’t get what they want.  There are those who also flaunt and tease those less fortunate who don’t receive the presents they wanted.  The excess surrounding receiving Christmas presents is contrary to the lessons we should be teaching our students.

 

Now I am not saying having money is bad, you have to take care of your family.   We support the church thorough our tithes.  We help the poor through being good stewards of the resources God provides us.  What I am saying is the danger of a focus on accumulation of wealth, is that it usually dominates one’s mind and life so that God’s kingdom and glory are no longer first.

 

You say –  “having more money would really help . . . I don’t have much and could use so much more.  It would reduce so much stress in my life.”

 

But didn’t God tell us to be content?

He said he would supply all your needs

He said he would never leave you or forsake you.

Have faith and confidence in His Word

Don’t fall into the materialism trap

 

What assignment are you not doing to chase the dollar?  Be still and know that He is God.  Stay grounded.  The truly rich are those who have gained freedom from the things of the world through confidence that God is their father and he will not forsake them.

 

Money fails.  But we know that God can never fail.  Take inventory of your heart and life.  Is there any area in your life that needs forgiveness?  God promises to take care of the righteous.  First, repent of your sins and live a godly life.  Then God will supply all your needs.

 

 

Give me your thoughts; hit me back with your comments

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Thanksgiving in the Hood

This week we pause to celebrate my most favorite holiday.  I love Thanksgiving because it is a holiday focused on thinking about how thankful we are, or should be, for all that we have.  It is less commercialized than any other of the holidays we celebrate.  Personally I am thankful first for my relationship with Jesus Christ.  When I think of the goodness of Jesus and all He’s done for me, my soul cries out Hallelujah! I praise God for saving me.  Second, I am thankful God provided me my best friend and wife.  The Bible says when a man finds an wife, he finds a good thing and obtains favor.  She more than competes me, she brings out the rest of me.  I could go on and on but today is not  focused on me but on Thanksgiving in Urban neighborhoods.  I will be brief today so you have time to read everyones holiday post that will come tomorrow and Thursday.  Prepare for your thanksgiving sermons and  spend time with your loved ones.

 

In the hood, families gather at big mama’s house for Thanksgiving dinner.  Food, fellowship, family, friends and football.  Family members come from all over the city.  Some who have moved away, come home to join the celebration.  Students that have gone off to college come home, trying to show how much they have matured.  In some families, brothers and sisters have grown up and have families of their own.  Big mama may not be present anymore, and the kids rotate hosting the family dinner.   The one common thing in most urban families are that anyone is welcome to stop by to “visit”.  It’s amazing how open we become to sharing a meal with others during the holiday season.

 

But there are young people (and our volunteers) who don’t have the opportunity to experience these family get togethers.  for various reasons, the family dynamics don’t exist or have been broken.  Are you checking on your young people and co-labors to see what their plans are for the holiday?  How about inviting them into your homes.  Give them a peek into your world.  It’s easy to have them come to youth group and meet you on neutral turf.  But this year, let’s step out and take relationship building to a new level.  Extend yourself to help someone else feel wanted, cared for, loved and included.

 

And to those who go into the hood to serve food or deliver care packages. . .

While this is a good thing, I challenge you to invite a young person from the neighborhood to share Thanksgiving dinner with your family in your home.  Pick them up and take them back to your home.  While you love to “go and do to people”, how about this year “doing with people”.   A real test of our faith is are we humble enough to really be in relationship with those outside our homogeneous circles.

 

There’s great focus on Urban ministry these days.  Friends, now you have a perfect opportunity to really do urban ministry.  It’s not a program, it’s not a mission trip to serve dinners, it’s doing as God instructed us in Luke & Deuteronomy – to love the Lord . . . and your neighbor.  And who is our neighbor is our neighbor?  Anyone in need.

 

Great things happen when God’s people share a meal together.  In Acts 2, we see the church in its infancy. Here we find the early disciples of Jesus being both physically and spiritually nourished.  While they spent plenty of time eating the bread of life, they made sure to be caring and hospitable to one another, by opening their homes for a shared meal.  To describe the real intimacy that comes from eating with your brothers and sisters in Christ, let us take note of what happens when one is found to be unfaithful to the will of God. The Bible teaches that those who are true and loyal followers of the Lord are not to have fellowship with those who violate the commands of God and will not repent (I Cor. 5; II Thess. 3:6-15).  The common meal was a mark of fellowship.  As Christians shared in the one faith and had the common hope of heaven, they would also, as the family of God, gather together for the purpose of sharing a meal.

 

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours

 

I’d love to hear your stories of how you will be spending your holiday and involving your neighbor.  Hit me back

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What is so urban about a city that makes it different from the Suburbs? – At their root are the same sin issue man has dealt with since the fall.

 

GUEST WRITER: Rob Townsend

 

I promised you I would be bringing perspectives from all across the country.  I am honored to provide you the prospective of a Youth Pastor, friend and co-labor in the vineyard.  Rob is the Pastor of Student and Family Ministries at Calvary Bible Church (CBC) in Rutland, Vermont.  Today Rob provides us a view from the suburbs looking in.

 

 

 

As a small city minister from central Vermont I am often asked why I spend so much time studying urban issues. I can totally understand this question because I must admit that I do spend an inordinate amount of time reading urban ministry books, blogs, and studies. This is a practice that started for me while at Moody Graduate School in Chicago and it is a direct result of my time studying theology, practice, and principles of urban ministry with my friend and mentor Dr. John Fuder.

 

Doc helped me to rethink my views on ministry. He challenged me through books by great men such as Dr. John Perkins and Dr. Roger Greenway, along with others to seriously consider the implications of applying urban ministry practices in smaller cities, and even rural areas.  In essence, Doc changed my worldview significantly which has enabled our student ministry to remain effective in our ever more “urbanized” small rural city.

 

What is so urban about a city with a population of 17,000 in a state of 600,000? That is a fair question and I one that had to ask myself when this journey began 8 years ago. The answer is simple: we have a sin problem out here too. Yes I think that the issue that binds the big city, small city, rural towns, and suburbia together is, at its root the same sin issue man has dealt with since the fall.

 

To be certain, the manifestations of this issue have some distinctions from place to place, but we must realize that at the core, they are all identical. Recognizing this reality, I became determined to help our students see the reality of this fact. This desire was the catalyst for building a cross-cultural student training program in our student ministry that has led to strong partnerships with ministries in the south side of Chicago as well as other urban centers. The goal is simply to help our students see that the city has many of the same issues they have and to help those in city see they are not struggling alone. Along the way I have been blessed to see that the other commonality between these groups is the ability to overcome obstacles to experience the victory available in Christ!

 

As I began to study the trends in Rutland, Vermont along with my studies of the urban culture in Chicago, I noted three key areas of struggle that exist across socio-economic, racial, and geographic lines.

 

  1. In every setting students desire to be accepted. Across the board from city kids to farm kids, this need to fit in pervades the human condition. We are wired for fellowship, and when this need isn’t met through Christ and Christ centered relationships it leads to destructive attempts to fill those holes. The result of these empty attempts to find fellowship is the formation of gangs, the troubling increase in bullying, and substance abuse issues. In my little city alone we are seeing gangs forming (Gangster Disciples, and Los Solidos to name two), the poor being taken advantage of by slumlords, and as our ethnic diversity changes we are seeing a marked increase in violence and drug related crime. I once asked a young man in south Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood why he joined a gang and his answer was immediate and succinct: “How else am I going to be accepted around here? And man, being accepted means being alive.”  We have to rethink our approach to reach all the young people in every location who see being accepted at all costs as the only means of survival.

 

  1. In every setting students need to find their identity. One of the greatest tragedies of the Fall is our loss of true identity. Our students struggle to see themselves as valuable creations of the King. Whether this is a product of fatherless homes, unbearable economic circumstances, or some other sin issue the end result is the same. We have seen an increase in teen suicides, more teen on teen violence, an epidemic of sexual dysfunction manifest in pre-marital sexual escapades, sexual identity issues, and a porn addiction of epidemic proportions. I was recently counseling with a student who was compromising in the area of relationships who stated, “If he makes me feel complete how can what we are doing possibly be wrong.” Young people need to be re-focused on the beauty of their identity in Christ by being introduced to his truth and then challenged to live without compromise.

 

  1. In every setting students are barraged by media. No one will argue that our culture is more media driven or influenced than ever before. In fact I would argue that many urban influences are finding greater traction in rural areas because of the increased exposure of all students to media.  Students are being hand fed their morals from stars like Jay-z, Ric Ross, Snooki, and other less than admirable figures. As they bury themselves in social media and online gaming, they are creating alternate realities where anything goes. Even though they are “more connected” then ever before they are becoming completely disconnected from any sense of right and wrong. They are watching depravity play out in their music, TV, and other venues of entertainment. We need to attempt to counterbalance this moral slide by making positive investments in students while offering positive alternatives to the moral filth available. Students need alternatives but most importantly they need to have their own moral compass tweaked to line up with the Creator of the universe. In short, we need to model and proclaim Christ within our context to show them the reality of His love, justice, and grace!

 

Each of these issues brings to light the hopelessness of our world when Christ isn’t in the center. We must begin to rethink our approaches to these issues so that He can transform lives.

 

To my Urban friends, I start by saying that on behalf of white rural America, I am deeply sorry that we have judged you, tried to “fix you”, and shoved our brand of churchy Christianity down your throats. I pray that you can forgive us as we seek true partnership centered on the Lord we all serve!

 

To my fellow suburban/rural counterparts, we must seek to learn from our brothers and sisters in the city. They are innovators, “over comers”, and people who have learned to shine Christ in some difficult situations. What they have done we need to do! Sin is universal and the urban issues are also rural/Suburban issues.

 

The Church needs to stop being the church in the city and a separate church in the country. We must take Paul’s words in Ephesians 4:2-4 to heart:  “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called—” When we focus on Christ as the great equalizer, we see young people from the city, suburbs, and countryside overcoming the sin that so easily pulls them down. When we the church invests in students they begin to have hope. In my years investing in Chicago and Rutland I have seen many break free of their circumstances and start to shine.  We must recognize that there are many success stories, whether it be the young lady in Rutland who became a leader in a church after her father was sent to jail, or the young man in Englewood who in his junior year of High school serves as a role model for the young children or “shorties” in his neighborhood by excelling in school while making positive lifestyle choices or countless others.

 

The longer I remain in ministry the more I believe that every student can be a success story if we simply invest in him or her with the heart of Christ. It is my absolute contention that regardless of where a student lives we must focus on four simple philosophies of ministry. As long as their implementation is properly contextualized, these are practices that I have seen work wherever they are tried from the south side of Chicago to the small towns in Vermont.

 

  1. We need to introduce them to Christ. We must use scripture as the basis of our efforts to reach the lost and to help grow the redeemed!
  2. We need to give them a cause to serve. When young people are serving in a church or for the betterment of their community it becomes increasingly possible to help them see their worth and avoid some of the pitfalls mentioned above. In the Christian context that we so passionately hope they will seek to live within we need them to be active in their churches.
  3. As they grow beyond their circumstances, hopefully as a result of Christ at work with them, we need to encourage them to share their victory stories with their peers. One thing I know to be true is that students will listen to students.
  4. We need to encourage them to expect more of themselves! Let’s stop allowing them to expect so little from themselves (Romans 12:1-2). Challenge them to defy the odds. Challenge them to set lofty goals as they set high expectations for themselves and their peers. Allow them the freedom to fail while attempting the seemingly impossible plans they dream up for His glory. Encourage them to stop settling for compromise in their academic lives, their home lives, and their spiritual lives. Hold them accountable to His standards of excellence and watch them grow deeper and more committed to Christ than those around them.

 

I envision a day when student ministers across our nation link arms and commit to serving each other. Our students and our ministry have built lasting partnerships and friendships in the city because we have come to the table seeking true partnership. We have come alongside our brothers and sisters without an agenda.  Our only goal is to serve alongside them as ministry equals. This investment has allowed us to learn the valuable lesson that the city and the country are at war with the same “demons’ and sin nature. I want to ask each of you to join us in battle for the souls of our young people wherever they live. Let’s learn together by admitting that we both have something to teach and that we are united in battle for one cause!

 

I invitation you to check out my blog or the Christian Endeavor open source page.  My Blog is http://itbelongstothem.wordpress.com/ and the Christian Endeavor page is http://endeavormovement.com/.

 

 

How are you working with ministries different from yours to bring the Gospel to young people?  If you aren’t, what are your challenges with connecting?  Join the conversation and let’s discuss in hopes of reaching unity in the Spirit.  We look forward to your comments.