Ten Even Better Moments in Youth Pastoring

Yesterday I shared ten funny moments from my time as the Youth Director at First Presbyterian Church. While they were funny, they also pointed away from what a holy calling loving youth and training them in the way of Jesus Christ is. These are some of my favorite of those moments.

1.      Watching kids grow up

Being part of the same faith community for over a decade means you get to see kids grow up. The kids that were in diapers are now in middle school. The kids that were in high school are married and have kids. Kids that were in elementary school are sharing pictures of their college retreats on Facebook. God is faithful. It’s an amazing thing to see that first hand.

2.      Visiting kids in jail, praying with those facing death, counseling the hopeless …

These moments aren’t “great” in any classic sense. Who wants to catch someone stealing? Who wants to call a probation officer? But it was a tangible way to comfort those in need of comfort. It was my way of saying to those drifting into chaos to know they wouldn’t be let go, that they were loved, and that their lives mattered to me and mostly to God.

3.      Watching movies

For a couple of months I watched a wide array of films with high school students. After every movie we opened the Bible and discussed the movie from a Biblical perspective. We analyzed assumptions and values within the movie. We criticized them from a Biblical perspective. We looked at what we could learn from these moments. It was one of those fine times where I could sense scales falling off of our eyes and the life of faith started making sense for our actual lives.

4.      Helping Sergio make it to the top of the mountain

Sergio was a big middle school boy who was out of shape. One day the youth group took a hike to the top of Fragrance Lake. For two hours I pushed and encouraged Sergio as he made his way up the mountain. And he made it. It was an important moment for him. Sergio went on to graduate high school, something unique for his extended family. He was also accepted to Western. As far as I know he was the first person from his family to do that. Youth group was another place where he learned what he was capable of doing and what type of person he was capable of being.

5.      Watching Middle Schoolers sprint to Sunday School

I love God’s Word. I love it even more when others are excited about it too.

6.      The vulnerability of hearing someone admit their most meaningful song was “Second Best”

We need safe places. We need places of honesty and transparency. We need places where we can admit that we feel like second best in every thing we do. It’s in those moments of vulnerability that God’s healing and strength break through.

7.      Being a dad to those without a dad

OK, maybe I wasn’t a second dad. Maybe more like a cool uncle. There were too many kids that passed through the doors that had no consistent male presence in their lives. For an hour or so ever week I got to be that person. It’d like to believe that the weeks added up and it made some sort of difference; that they knew they were loved; that they got to see with faithfulness and commitment looked like. For me it was a holy calling.

8.      Serving side by side

If you pay much attention to the activities of the Middle School and High School youth ministries of FPC, you’ll notice they serve a lot. From Mexico to the Lighthouse Mission to many places in between, they serve. Honestly, I don’t miss youth ministry that much. God is calling me in different directions. But it’s those times of service that I miss.

I miss the comedy of a Gospel Mission thinking a middle school boy was a girl or taking the opportunity of tarring a roof in Mexico to make a mustache made of tar. I miss the stories they hear while serving hot dogs at Street Church. I miss seeing their realization that they can organize and run a Vacation Bible School. I miss witnessing first hand that service isn’t something you do when you’re an adult. It starts now.

9.      Spending time with leaders who loved kids

Youth ministry cannot be done in isolation. Youth ministry is done by a vast network of men and women, young and old. This ministry is both formal and informal. It ranges all the way from organized youth teams and leaders to the person simply helping a child get her animal crackers downstairs after the worship service.

Throughout my time as a youth pastor, I had dozens of leaders who served as mentors and guides to the youths who walked through the doors of FPC. They prayed with them. They called them. They drove them here and there. These were great people doing a great thing. Many of them are still my best friends. I am thankful for each and every one.

10.  Two years after any direct involvement. I watched youth of whom I ministered only a short time share their statements of faith before the congregation after completion of confirmation class

This moment confirmed a deep belief of mine. Youth ministry is more than a strong youth pastor, though that helps. Youth ministry is more than a strong youth department, though that is important. Youth ministry happens when a whole congregation loves children of all ages. Youth ministry happens through a network of men and women of all ages who love youth from birth through adulthood. They look him in the eye. They listen to her. They help him. They receive help. They do it with gladness. They teach the child about Jesus. They give the child opportunities to serve, knowing that they have gifts to share with the congregation and the community. It’s moments like confirmation that allows the mutual joy of the child sharing his faith and the congregation hearing and receiving that word.