We have been guiding our diocesan youth ministry over the past 4 years by the simple statement “working together, raising up a Biblically literate generation that is leading the church and changing the world”. We have seen some great progress in putting the Bible at the center of our ministries, developing leaders more intentionally, and getting more globally connected. However, I am seeing the need for a slight expansion of one part of the vision. It comes out of conversations that have revealed two important realities (at least). One is that some misunderstand what we mean about literacy and the other is that we see God moving in ways that broaden our understanding of the call for this generation.
Here is the change… I am using the phrase ‘Biblically faithful’ rather than ‘Biblically literate’. Here is why. First, some read the word literate and think of Bible knowledge apart from transformed lives. Yes, it is possible for one’s head to be filled with facts that do not lead to change. I would argue that good Bible teaching and study always includes application. Further, it is always the responsibility of the hearer to follow the prompting of the spirit and do something with what they learn. I also find that literacy conjures up images of classrooms and boring education styles for teaching (think lecture) rather than images of interactive learning, dynamic exposition, or experiential learning. So, while we all want our students to get into the scriptures, many of us are cautious about creating boring programs. Let’s not do that!
Second, I want us to be focused not only on putting the Bible at the center of what we do (in our groups and events) but also to be working out the challenge of doing youth ministry according to what we read in the Bible. Hence the word faithful is more accurate as to what we are seeking to accomplish. We want to be faithful to scripture as we do evangelism, discipleship, pastoral care, missions, etc. God’s word not contemporary culture should inform how we do youth ministry! We will continue to explore that in coming months.
As I talk with those whose churches have embraced multigenerational faithfulness (Visionary Parenting, Family Driven Faith, etc), it occurs to me that this is simply a matter of being Biblically faithful. It is the way God instructs us to disciple the next generations. When I talk with folks about being missional more than attractional, again it is a matter of Biblical faithfulness.
Now, if I can just figure out a way to include something about the importance of messy games in our vision statement…
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