Connect Journal: Vision

Winter 2008

Journal of Youth & Family Ministry

VISION: The Big Picture

The REALLY BIG Picture

Biblical Visions and Visionary Ministry Ministry Vision: Beyond the Mission Statement Calendar of Youth Ministry Events & Programs Much more...

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Publication Information Published by:

ELCA Youth Ministry Network

www.elcaymnet.org

Table of Contents Welcome!

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Biblical Visions and Visionary Ministry

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Vision for the Future

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A Fresh Vision for Congregational Youth and Family Ministry

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RENEW | EDUCATE | CONNECT

Subscription Information:

call 866-ELCANET (352-2638) or visit

www.elcaymnet.org

connect@elcaymnet.org

Contributing Writers:

Bill Bixby, Todd Buegler, Larry Clark,

Mark Jackson, Jane Prestbye,

Matthew Skinner, Debbie Sladek,

Rozella White Poston

How Far Can You See?

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A Parent’s Perspective: Vision for Ministry

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Bible Study: To See or Not to See

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From the Online Forums - Confirmation: Is It Worth Doing?

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Calendar of Events: 2008 and 2009

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The Same Road

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Design and Layout:

Impression Media Group

www.impressionmediagroup.com

Copy Editor: Debbie Sladek

Connect Editorial Board:

Rod Boriack, Todd Buegler, Andy Root

Debbie Sladek, Michael Sladek,

Beverly Wallace, Rozella White Poston

ELCA Youth Ministry Network Board Jeff May: Board Chairperson Molly Beck-Dean: Board Member Janet Cederberg, AIM: Board Member Rev. Beverly Conway: Board Member Dave Ellingson: Board Chaplain

Rev. Dr. Nathan Frambach: Board Member Charlene Rollins: Board Member Bill Bixby: ELCA Youth & Family Ministry Todd Buegler: Executive Director

The ELCA Youth Ministry Network exists to strengthen and empower adult youth ministry leaders in service to Christ as a part of God’s mission.

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Welcome!

Welcome to the first full issue of Connect, We are really excited to unleash this new resource on the church. What does it mean to be a journal of youth and family ministry? Here are some thoughts:

• It means that we want to provoke thought. We want to include pieces that make us think critically about the ministry that we do.

We want to prompt congregational, vocational, and programmatic growth.

• It means that we want to make it practical. We want to harvest the experience of the wise and the experienced . . . We want to tap into the passion of the young . . . We want to have resources that can just simply be “ripped off” and used by you.

• It means that we want to be themed. Each issue is going to dig into a topic, hopefully with depth. As we move ahead, and our themes are planned farther and farther out, we will be making requests for articles from you, the practitioners and the congregational experts.

• It means that it’s another way for us to communicate with you what’s going on in the life of the Network. As a member of the Network, you are an owner. This is your Network, and this journal will be one more way that we will connect with you.

This issue we focus on vision. What is it? How do we develop it? How do we communicate it? How do we inspire others with it? How do we discern when our vision is aligned with God’s vision? Vision has been on our mind a lot lately, as the Network has created a new vision, and is figuring out ways to implement it. You’ll be hearing much more about this in the coming months.

We do know this: This journal is an integral part of our new vision. It is one of many new ways we will work to develop the youth and family ministry movement in the ELCA. Working on it has prompted good thinking, conversation, and initiatives. Our prayer is that it does the same for you in your ministry!

Peace,

Rev. Todd Buegler Executive Director, ELCA Youth Ministry Network

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Biblical Visions and Visionary Ministry

by Matthew Skinner

The Bible contains a number of stories about people receiving special information and motivation from God and God’s messengers via dreams and visions. Sometimes these dreams and visions convey reassuring news or are positive experiences; sometimes they are negative. Usually visions are a means for people to grow in understanding, whether that be to hear a promise from God, to arrive at greater clarity about a situation, or to receive encouragement or warning. Most God-given dreams and visions in the Bible do not intend to provide all the answers or solve all the problems; nor does receiving a vision elevate a person over everyone else, as if it confers a spiritual badge of honor. For the most part, dreams and visions in the Bible build up faith or issue judgments on faithlessness. They remind their recipients in the biblical narratives that God remains at work in the world and that God can be counted on to be true to God’s commitments.

about the reality and power of the gospel in our world today. The story of Peter and Cornelius (Acts 10:1–11:18) is not a story about the kind of “vision” for ministry that we talk about in our experience, but it provides a helpful example of how a biblical story might stimulate our understanding of what it means to be oriented toward God. The ways in which these two biblical characters respond to the unique visions that they receive offer suggestions for how we might conduct ministry that is visionary.

As the book of Acts tells it, Cornelius, an officer in the Roman army, and his household are the first gentiles (that is, non-Jews) who respond positively to the preaching of Jesus’ followers. When the Holy Spirit falls upon them and they are baptized, the church begins to experience a seismic shift—not only in its membership, but also in its understanding of what God is doing through the gospel of Jesus Christ. In the span of only a few verses, people discover that God has surprising plans for the community of Jesus’ followers. The visions that Peter and Cornelius receive do not explain or predict God’s plans with specificity. But, because the visions orient the two men to consider what God may yet do in their experiences, the visions play important roles in how Peter and Cornelius discover and explain those plans. In what follows, we will observe some ways in which Peter’s and Cornelius’s visions function in Acts 10:1–11:18 and reflect on how their experiences might suggest ways for us to be imaginative about God’s presence in the present and future aspects of our ministries.

When Christians talk today about “vision” they are usually speaking about the contours of their faith and how they should live in light of that faith. To have vision is to be imaginative; it is to imagine where God might be glimpsed within the life and witness of a community. For a compelling vision to energize the church’s ministry and to excite others to consider what the gospel makes possible, it must be specific. That is, it must imagine how a particular community of faith might embody the gospel in specific ways, in specific places. As with the dreams and visions described in the Bible, this kind of vision is about being open to God. We must, of course, distinguish between the accounts of supernatural visions that we find described in the Bible and the “vision” that a community of believers articulates when it dares to imagine how God might be at work in its midst. These are very different things, and confusing them is dangerous. At the same time, there are connections between these things. Neither one is about having certain, predetermined answers that allow people to bypass the hard work of living faithfully and responding to new circumstances.

To have vision or to be visionary is to be oriented toward what God may do in the future, and toward what a community of faith might do as it seeks to be a part of that future. It is not about seeing the future clearly, as if you know exactly where you are going and how you will get there. Nor is vision about escaping from the present or despising it because only an altogether different state of affairs will do. To possess vision in life and ministry is to be imaginatively open to embracing God’s presence and to be expectant about what God is making possible through the gospel, in light of what life looks like right now.

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Reflecting on biblical narratives about supernatural visions and dreams can, therefore, help us think more creatively and faithfully

both Cornelius and Peter as people engaged in prayer. These visions do not come to people who are estranged from God but to two that

Vision is not about stating a verdict or creating a roadmap. It is about gathering evidence and beginning a journey. Vision means ongoing discernment and a commitment to respond to new information and new experiences in the conviction that God is present.

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First, note the role of prayer. The Acts narrative introduces

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are seeking to be in close communion with God. This does not imply that there is a necessary cause-and-effect relationship between prayer and vision, as if only praying people can articulate a faithful vision. But we should conclude that prayer, worship, and vision are closely related, for all involve paying attention and committing oneself to God.

ongoing discernment and a commitment to respond to new information and new experiences in the conviction that God is present.

Vision is always up for review and always able to be extended as it acquires new meaning and significance. The significance points in two directions: backward as it interprets what has been happening, and forward as it continues to orient people to consider what may be next.

Second, note the role of repetition and conversation.

Fourth, note the openness to surprise. When Peter hears in 10:15 that it is not up to him to make distinctions about what is pure and acceptable, that God makes things clean, suddenly he discovers that the labels unclean and profane no longer function as he once thought they did (10:28). Such an understanding represents a drastic shift from what he, as a Jew, probably had professed his whole life about God and what is pleasing to God. Responding to the vision and his new understanding causes Peter to agree to the odd request to visit Cornelius. Peter’s imagination is altered; therefore he is open to discovering what his new theological convictions might mean for Cornelius and his household. Likewise, the wider church’s claim that “God has given even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life” (11:18) reflects more openness to surprise.

Unless Peter and the other believers had been at least willing to consider that God might be reorienting expectations and assumptions, Peter’s initial vision alone would have changed nothing.

Peter’s vision repeats, and both he and Cornelius tell others about their experiences, leaving us to hear descriptions of the two visions recounted several times. The experiences of Cornelius and Peter are deeply interpersonal. Their visions are not private, privileged communication between themselves and God; the visions propel these men to talk with others about what they have experienced.

The visions require this, because they only open up the possibility that God has plans. The visions alone make no sense until those who receive them join with others to consider with them what they might mean.

Likewise, ministry that proceeds according to the “vision” of a single person acting in isolation is likely not a ministry to be trusted. Visionary ministry might be prompted by God, but it emerges in specificity and gains the power to shape imaginations through discernment and discussion among multiple people. Just as Peter retells the whole story, including the details of both his and Cornelius’ supernatural visions, to the concerned believes in Jerusalem, we should say that vision for ministry must be shared, retold, and deeply considered, as faithful living continues to open up possibilities for understanding the full scope of what God and the gospel make possible.

Visionary ministry proceeds with one foot in convictions about God’s reliability and with the other in expectations that God is capable of new things. Those with vision are cognizant of the truth of the gospel and grounded in the history of salvation that God has performed to this point in time. To be visionary is also to be willing to be surprised by ways in which the gospel might be expressed or grasped in new ways as believers bear witness to Christ in new circumstances.

Third, note the importance of reinterpretation and the benefits of hindsight. No one in this story makes up his mind about how it will end until God acts definitively through the arrival of the Holy Spirit in 10:44–48. Peter draws the conclusion that God’s concern encompasses all, both Jew and gentile, earlier in 10:34. But he does not know for sure what this truth will mean for Cornelius until it becomes obvious that the Holy Spirit has been given to the gentiles just as it has to the Jews. Only as Peter and Cornelius (and, later in Acts 11:1–18, the believers in Jerusalem) consider their unfolding experiences in light of their visions can they grasp where exactly God was leading them. It takes obedience, conversation, observation, and reflection before discernment’s conclusions emerge and the full significance of the visions are celebrated and confirmed.

This does not mean that their visions were deficient or that they are especially hard-headed people. It indicates that the purpose of the initial visions was to get their attention, to arouse their curiosity and imagination, to make them expect something.

Fifth, note the willingness to risk. Peter and Cornelius act in ways that are not merely strange or surprising. They take risks in order to respond to the revelations given to them. Peter, a leader of a religious movement that is beginning to attract suspicion and opposition from the authorities (see 12:1–19) must welcome a soldier and a centurion’s slaves then willingly accompany them to visit their boss. He enters the home of this high-ranking member of the Roman army, even though he knows that others will frown upon such close associations with a gentile (see 10:28; 11:2–3). Cornelius risks being shamed by bringing Peter into his home. Not all of the risks he takes are positive or praiseworthy; we sense that he is perhaps confused or in over his head when he attempts to give worship to Peter in 10:25. Nevertheless, after Peter corrects him he presses on in his attempt to be responsive to his vision and the hopes it has raised.

Vision is not about stating a verdict or creating a roadmap. It is about gathering evidence and beginning a journey. Vision means

Vision that does not entail risk is probably not really vision, or it is not a vision worth getting excited about. This is not to suggest

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that God cannot be present in the status quo. However, since vision involves openness to what God makes possible within one’s ministry and circumstances, then it must entail a willingness to try new things and embrace change. At the same time, vision is not simply identical to risk-taking. That is, a desire to take risks is not necessarily born from vision or from faithfulness. Sometimes that is mere recklessness. This takes us back to the beginning and reminds us why prayer, worship, conversation, and reinterpreting our circumstance and experiences are so important. Risk-taking emerges from a humble, responsive faithfulness.

Matthew L. Skinner is Associate Professor of New Testament at Luther Seminary in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

His publications include the book Locating Paul: Places of Custody as Narrative Settings in Acts 21-28, as well as curriculum, articles, and commentary available at the websites thethoughtfulchristian.com and workingpreacher.org.

Vision is not the labor of esoteric seers who work themselves into trances or of hyper-religious purists who separate themselves from human society to toss judgments at it from outside the walls.

Articulating a vision for life and ministry is the hopeful task of the church’s members as they seek to live faithfully. This task is a theological one, in that it focuses on God and on the arena of God’s activity: human society. When people neglect vision and the work of imagining the alternate reality that the gospel proclaims they neglect God and the world that God loves.

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Vision for the Future

by Rozella White Poston

It seems that every professional organization goes through a visioning process. This often entails time spent identifying the vision of the organization, developing a mission statement, and defining its core values. This tends to be an ongoing process and members find themselves reworking the vision and mission statements as time passes. One might wonder what the importance of this process may be and how it effectively guides the work of a particular organization. From a non-faith based perspective, this visioning process tends to focus on core objectives, outcomes, and an overall emphasis on who will benefit from the services provided by the organization. For the ELCA Youth Ministry Network, this visioning process takes on another dimension as it begins with discerning God’s will for the future of the network and the impact the network will have on the larger youth and family ministry movement.

family ministry based on the wisdom, imagination, and discernment of this team. Effective youth and family ministry is:

What does the word vision mean? What does it mean to be in a visioning process? How does this process affect not only the work and direction of the Youth Ministry Network, but also its identity? To vision is to think about or plan the future with imagination and wisdom. This definition, according to the Oxford American Dictionary, highlights two components of visioning that have characterized the process undertaken by the Youth Ministry Network Board of Directors and Visioning Team. Imagination plays a critical role in conceptualizing a new future. The Network Board has displayed an imaginative spirit by inviting a team of people into this process who were able to discern the gifts and influence of the Network. By expanding the circle of thinkers in this process, the Network Board modeled imaginative collaboration by recognizing the gifts of others in the larger Body of Christ. Wisdom, being the second component of the definition of vision, deals with having sound judgment and knowledge in a particular area. The Youth Ministry Network is not only comprised of a body of leaders who bring experience and competence to the organization but the leadership of the Network incorporates a vast array of theological, academic, and practical expertise. Wisdom can be allusive and the members and leaders of the Network are dedicated to consistently being aware of both the knowledge abounding in this organization, but more importantly, the working of the Holy Spirit in the midst of this changing time.

1. Discipleship – Effective youth and family ministry is adults and young people walking alongside each other in relationship, as both grow and mature in faith in Christ.

2. Baptismal – Effective youth and family ministry focuses on the promises of the God who calls us unconditionally into the relationship begun when we are claimed in the waters of baptism and lived out in the calling of our vocation.

3. Grounded – The Lutheran biblical understanding of God’s love and grace is one that young people and families desperately need to hear.

4. Excellence – Young people deserve nothing but the best from the church. Freed by grace, we strive for excellence as our standard.

5. Welcoming – God’s message of grace is for all. The work of

the church is to welcome all into communities of grace

without exception.

6. Generational – Faith is formed by the power of Holy Spirit in caring relationships between the generations.

7. Advocacy – Youth and family ministry speaks on behalf of

young people and families within the church, the community,

and the world, and encourages people to claim their role in the

priesthood of all believers.

8. Congregational – Effective youth and family ministry happens

at a congregational level. All churchwide and synodical

structures exist to strengthen the ministry of the

congregational community.

9. Connected – Transformational ministry with young people connects their faith with the culture in which we live, and the world around us. Youth ministry leaders walk alongside young people as they use their faith to navigate the culture and serve in the world.

10. Partnership – Effective youth and family ministry recognizes,

lifts up, and utilizes the gifts of the whole church.

Being a faith-based organization, the Youth Ministry Network must be clear about who sets the vision for the ministry and mission of the network. By spending intentional time discerning the will of God and consulting scripture, it became clear that this Network is charged with shifting the prevailing paradigm of youth and family ministry along with identifying core markers of successful, faithful, professional ministry with children, youth, and adults. The Vision Team has developed ten key characteristics of effective youth and

Each of these definitions is based in scripture and provides the framework from which the Network will operate in the future.

Defining what effective youth and family ministry is was not the only job of the Vision Team and Network Board. Beyond this, imagination was employed to create four strategic goals of the Network as it continues to respond to God’s call to gather those who serve youth and families for the purpose of renewal, education, and

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connection to further the witness of Jesus Christ. These goals serve as the work of the Network in achieving the definitions for effective youth and family ministry. Developing leadership standards and guidelines, supporting and creating networks within the Network, providing training opportunities and creating conversations for new partnerships, and developing new ideas are the four goals that this Network has identified as being foundational elements in order to become the prophetic grassroots voice of youth and family ministry leadership in the ELCA.

to supporting, encouraging, and challenging leaders in the youth and family ministry movement to recognize their call to ministry and the subsequent responsibility of leading a ministry, that at its core, is instrumental in faith formation in Jesus Christ.

Rozella White Poston is a student at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia and Eastern University’s Campolo School of Social Change, also in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is currently working on a dual Master’s degree that will combine her three great loves of theology, sociology and urban youth culture in order to help the church serve youth and families in

The 2008 Youth Ministry Network Extravaganza in Anaheim, California will continue to explore this vision for the future. Information will be presented and documents will be given to all leaders for feedback and discussion. If nothing else, the Network is dedicated

urban settings.

A Fresh Vision for Congregational Youth and Family Ministry

by Mark Jackson

Eradication of AIDS from Africa. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I have a dream” speech. Health insurance coverage for all children. These are visions that describe hopes and dreams for what is someday possible. Each provides a unique challenge, requires dedicated work, and inspires others to join the effort.

ers and supporters. People are more likely to participate, support, or provide leadership if they know why they’re doing it.

Provides a challenge. Visions shouldn’t be easy to accomplish, but provide a healthy challenge to work toward over time.

Aligns the present with the future. Instead of a ministry comprised of a haphazard sequence of programs and events, a vision can assist in aligning present activities with long-term dreams. Everything you do should have a purpose in relationship to your vision.

In the same way, your youth and family ministry should have a well-crafted vision to describe the hopes and dreams you intend to accomplish. Youth leaders in the pattern of weekly, monthly, and seasonal activities often forget the big picture and how today’s activities relate to tomorrow’s goals. Spending time dreaming and describing future possibilities can bring a sense of freshness to your ministry.

Aids decision making. A solid vision provides a rubric for making decisions. For instance, if you have resources to purchase either sound equipment for the new youth band or comfortable youth room couches (but not both), your vision describing youthled worship makes the decision clearer. (By the way, true priorities will always emerge at budget time: if financial decisions are made in contrast to your vision, there wasn’t commitment to the vision in the first place.)

What a vision is and does Describes the future. A vision, often written as a “vision statement,” describes a preferred future for your ministry. Think of it this way: Imagine you were in possession of a video recording showing your ministry three to four years from now. What would appear?

Whatever you see would be your ministry’s vision. For example, you might see an intergenerational church in which older members mentor younger ones, worship is alive, and service and outreach activities are dominant. Vision statements are not to be confused with mission statements, which describe an organization’s purpose and reason for existence. A vision becomes the description of the organization were it to actually accomplish its mission.

Answers “what” will be done, but does not answer “how, when, where, or who.” Technically, those details are the goals and strategies developed after the vision is crafted. For now the task is to simply dream and describe what is possible.

Tips for creating a quality vision Gather creative people. If you gather a team of people who otherwise lack creativity, then don’t expect much. Make sure you sprinkle the group with a mix of personalities, experiences, and gifts, including a couple of dreamers.

Motivates leadership. The ability to describe in detail your ministry’s future can only be positive when speaking to potential lead-

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Listen well. The expressed needs and desires of your constituents (youth, parents, church leaders) and the community provide excellent opportunities for ministry. Spend adequate time getting to know your context and asking good questions.

Dream big. Begin with big dreams; be realistic later. A fault of youth ministry is only thinking small and inside-the-box, assuming the best solution is doing what is practical, and not working toward what is possible.

Resources to guide you in the process of developing a vision: • Doug Fields, Purpose-Driven Youth Ministry (Zondervan, 1998).

• Aubrey Malphurs, Advanced Strategic Planning (Baker Books, 2005).

• Paul Hill, Up the Creek With a Paddle (Augsburg Fortress, 1998).

Tell the world! Vision statements are not private. As your vision is formulated, communicate it widely among your church and community. Publish it for all to see on websites, on bulletin boards, and in newsletters. Keep the vision in front of people.

• Carol Duerksen, Building Together: Developing Your Blueprint for Congregational Youth Ministry (Faith & Life Resources, 2001).

• Carl A. Blunt, The Secrets of the Simple Youth Ministry (Wine Press, 2001).

Remain flexible. A congregation’s vision will necessarily change as young people, the organization, and the community change over time. A vision isn’t a once-and-forever determination, but a dynamic process reviewed at least annually to renew or adjust the ministry’s focus.

Organizations providing helpful assistance in mission and vision planning: • Youth Ministry Architects, www.ymarchitects.com.

• The Youth & Family Institute, www.tyfi.org.

• InterServe Ministries, www.interserveministries.com.

Immerse the process in prayer. Finally, ask the Spirit to guide your conversations and decisions throughout the entire process. After all, vision-crafting is discerning what God can do in your ministry.

• Youth Leadership, www.youthleadership.org.

• Center for Youth Ministry Training, www.cymt.org.

Resources to spark ideas for a new or renewed vision for youth and family ministry:

Mark Jackson serves as professor and Department Chair for Children, Youth and Family Studies at Trinity Lutheran College near Seattle, Washington. He teaches courses in youth and family ministry, Christian education, program planning, and organization administration. After earning degrees in business management and pastoral ministry, he is continuing graduate studies

• Kenda Creasy Dean, The God-Bearing Life: The Art of Soul

Tending in Youth Ministry (Upper Room Books, 1998).

• Kenda Creasy Dean, Practicing Passion: Youth and the Quest for a Passionate Church (Zondervan, 2006).

• Mark H. Senter, III, Four Views of Youth Ministry and the Church (Zondervan, 2001).

in nonprofit management and leadership.

• Ben Freudenberg, The Family-Friendly Church (Group, 1998).

• Merton P. Strommen and Dick Hardel, Passing On the Faith: A Radical New Model for Youth & Family Ministry (St. Mary’s Press, 2000).

• Andrew Root, Revisiting Relational Youth Ministry

(IVP Books, 2007).

• Mark DeVries, Family-Based Youth Ministry (InterVarsity Press, 2004).

• The ELCA Youth Ministry Network’s draft documents concerning a vision for congregational youth ministry, www.elcaymnet.org.

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How Far Can You See?

by Jane Prestbye

How far do you see?

Don’t go to your window and look. Some of you look across plains or deserts, some view waters, while others’ views are blocked by mountains or buildings. What this question asks is how far do you see in your relationship with God?

Increasing alertness can be as simple as stopping for a moment to hear or see what calls your attention to God’s presence. More energetic exercise results in seeing more of God’s attending ways.

Spiritual practices serve to open our eyes to the activity of God.

One of my recurring ministry tasks is to pick Sunday morning hymns. I am continually surprised how many of our familiar hymns have stanzas that speak of seeing all the way into forever. In every church season the words we sing portray a relationship with God that is everlasting. The eternal life promised in the Scriptures is celebrated in worship.

How deep do you see?

This “far-out” vision sees you (and the community of faith) in God’s care for always and for all time. Maybe this vision encourages you in personal struggles concerning purpose or effectiveness. God’s presence remains with you. Perhaps this vision will sustain you when you watch a young person, or anyone, turn from the path of faith in spite of your hard work. God’s love does continue for them– and for you–without end.

To see deep is to have “far-in” vision. Such vision recognizes God who abides in Christ who abides in us (John 15). In baptism God takes up residence and offers renewing life from within.

The Psalms, our ancient hymns, often speak about the soul.

Psalmists even speak to the soul as if calling to one’s own self.

“Awake my soul” (Psalm 53, 108) invites this deep seeing. In Ephesians 3 Paul prays for deep deeds to happen when he prays that the inner being would be strengthened.

Deep vision is the only therapy for fear. Fear is a great enemy in ministry. The Scriptures report about many who needed God to say to them, “Do not be afraid.” These include Abram, Hagar, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, Elijah, Jeremiah, Zechariah, Joseph, Mary, the

photograph ©2007 by Michael Sladek

How much do you see?

When I go hymn-hunting I’m usually not looking for stanzas that point to eternal life. Instead I seek words that invite and strengthen the faithful toward abundant life. Rather than highlight the message that God’s presence will be with you, I tend to emphasize the proclamation that God’s presence is with you. God in Christ entered our human experience. God’s comfort and courage is for today. God’s healing and saving is for now. God’s wisdom and guidance is for the next step.

shepherds, the disciples, and Paul. Add your name to the list. Seeing deep understands that when God says, “Do not be afraid,” God is saying, “You need not be afraid.” Those who deeply look “in” see God, release fear, and fully embrace today’s mission.

Since 1999 Pastor Jane Prestbye has served a downtown congregation in Kent, Washington. Jane was the first chaplain for the ELCA YM Network and received the “Tommy” award in 2005 recognizing her leadership in youth ministry education.

This “near-here” vision sees God at work in the midst of your daily life. Such vision takes practice–to “be aware” is a learned skill.

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Vision for Ministry A Parent’s Perspective

by Debbie Sladek

If you ask most parents what their vision for a good youth program looks like, you’ll hear a lot about programming–a solid program that encourages kids to remain involved in church once they’re confirmed, retreats, volunteer opportunities, fellowship with other Christian kids–and the concern for personal safety of the youth. While these are all key components of youth programs, I believe that our vision of what youth ministry is can and should be much more expansive than this.

The Oxford English Dictionary defines vision as “the ability to think about or plan the future with imagination or wisdom; a mental image of what the future will or could be like.” Over the past four years that our son, David, has been involved in the youth group at our church, my husband and I have learned a lot about what having a deeper sense of vision means and the impact it has had on the youth.

You meet youth with a fresh perspective, an open mind.

Sometimes families spend so much time together that they begin to overlook what is special and unique about their individual members, and because of the shared history of families, members often cannot see beyond the past. Parents and kids both take on certain roles in families and it can be hard for individual members to take a different or unexpected path. Youth workers can be open to see our kids in ways we may overlook. The child who is everyone’s “baby” at home might be a leader in the youth group; the athlete a budding evangelist or youth band vocalist. Youth leaders can nurture a safe place for kids to try new things.

You take our kids into new territory, into places we wouldn’t necessarily choose for them. Families tend to be creatures of habit and we seem to delight in our routines. We take similar vacations each summer, dine at familiar restaurants, interact with people we know, stick to a couple of favorite sports, and worship in a familiar congregation. But youth directors are perfectly positioned to introduce our kids to people, places, and situations outside their (and their parents’) comfort zones. Whether its serving meals to homeless people in the inner city, taking a hiking or bike trip in the mountains, or working with orphans in another country, our kids learn how to interact with and serve a wide variety of people in very different situations. They have opportunities to test their own abilities, learn about being accountable to others, and stretch themselves in ways they never dreamed were possible.

photograph ©2007 by Michael Sladek

sports, etc. Often inherent in our expectations is that our children will follow in our footsteps and be good at or happy with having the same goals and lifestyle as we do. Or we expect our children to do things we never had the opportunity, ability, or discipline to do.

What we may actually do, however, is limit our children. Youth workers can be more open to all the possibilities before our children, and most importantly, can help guide kids to discover where God might be calling them to serve and what their own unique gifts are. In return, youth have responsible adults providing safe places where they can examine, discuss, and pray about their own hopes and dreams.

Having vision as a youth worker doesn’t mean having all the answers, but rather being open to seeing the young people in your care with the eyes of God. By providing youth with a variety of ways to experience their world and share their gifts and by giving them new avenues for expressing themselves and meeting new people, you can help them and their families gain new insight into who they are and what possibilities await them in their future.

Debbie Sladek is the newsletter editor for Our Savior Lutheran Church in Issaquah, Washington. She lives in Sammamish, Wash. with her husband and son, where she is pursuing her own vision and calling of becoming a full time writer and editor.

Where we may impose limitations on kids, you see opportunities for growth. Even before our children are born and we have an opportunity to get to know them, we begin forming a certain set of expectations for them. We begin planning for college, music lessons,

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To See or Not to See Bible Study

by Rev. Lawrence J. Clark II

1. Opening Song–Open the Eyes of My Heart Lord

!

While the team that plays is answering the questions, tell the other team to huddle and come up with their own answers.

The playing team gets three strikes for incorrect answers.

After the third strike the other teams has an opportunity to steal the win by guessing the number one answer.

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After the game, ask the participants to regroup. Ask the group to make a list about what they see. Ask them to make a second list of what they see in their future? Ask them to consider what the difference is between the two lists.

Begin with a round of Family Feud-style competition. Divide up into two teams. Pick one player from each team to represent their team, and have them come to the front.

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Give them the following instructions: We surveyed 100 households and asked them to name something that helps you see and the top seven answers are on the board. The person that raises their hand first answers the question. If they correctly guess the number one-ranked answer, then they get to decide if their team wants to play or pass. If they did not correctly guess the number one-ranked answer, the other team gets to make a guess. If their answer ranks higher than the other team’s, then they can decide if their team plays or passes.

2. Vision What is it? The definition of vision is a vivid mental image; sight, the ability to see; imagination, the formation of a mental image of something that is not perceived as real and is not present to the senses.

Tell the group “Close your eyes. Think about things that help you to see. Please pay attention to the other senses that also help us even while our eyes are closed.

Joel 2:28 Tell the group what will happen after the Spirit is poured out? Who dream dreams and who sees visions? Why? What do they hear and what do they see?

The nose helps us to smell, so smell the aroma in the air.

Habakkuk 2:3 The prophet tells us his vision, but when is the right time? What are we to do? When will it come? How do you know?

The ears help us to hear, so hear the sounds that surround us.

The mouth helps us to taste, so taste, but please do not put your tongue on the table, etc.

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The hands help us to touch; what do your feel? Feel the things that are around you, the chair you are sitting in, the neighbor next to you, etc.

And finally, the eyes help us to see, but even when our eyes are closed we can still see and our senses help us, too. Now open your eyes and share with your neighbor on the right what you saw, smelled, tasted, and touched while your eyes were closed.

The Bible is filled with vision passages, and I invite you to read the following scripture: Proverbs 29:18 Why do people perish?

We can all use some help seeing, whether we have eye problems or not. As we saw in the Family Feud game there are many different things that help us to see: eyeglasses, magnifying glasses, microscopes, binoculars, etc. A vision is something that is not currently visible to the eye, but something that we feel, taste, or see that is down the road (a new car, driver’s license, the latest video game, cellular phone, your own room, money, graduation, or college). You don’t currently have what’s in the vision, but it’s coming. The Bible reminds us that “Eyes haven’t seen and ears haven’t heard all good things that God is going to do in, with and under us.”

(Isaiah 64:4) And so I dare you, no I double-dog dare you, to see with the eyes of faith.

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3. Closing Now the boy Samuel ministered to the LORD before Eli. The word of the Lord was rare and precious in those days; there was no frequent or widely-spread vision. Samuel 3:1

Prayer: At your table, share any prayer concerns (high and lows) that you might have. Include prayers about the vision God has for your life. Go around the circle. Pray for the person on your left.

Then the LORD answered me and said: Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so that a runner may read it. Habakkuk 2:2

Closing Prayer: Lord God, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go, but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who is risen and lives with you and the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen (Lutheran Book of Worship)

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth has passed away, and the sea was no more.

And I saw the holy city, the New Jerusalem coming down out of the heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. Revelation 22:1-2

The Rev. Lawrence James Clark II is the Executive Director of the Lutheran Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia; one of the two centers of the ELCA affiliated with all eight ELCA seminaries, and has served in youth ministry for over twenty-five years.

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From the Forums at ELCAYMNET.org 11/09/07 10:03 AM

Is it worth doing?

Confirmation is a tradition in the church. Lately, many people have been questioning its effectiveness and its purpose. Is it time for something else? Has faith formation moved in a new direction? We’d love your thoughts.

luvpoet74

11/12/07 9:05 AM

It needs changes.

I love our Confirmation program! At our church we use Faith Ink and I think it is a very good program. The problem I have is that I don’t think that at the end of the program all youth should be confirmed. After all Confirmation is the affirmation of baptism and the time when we claim our faith. How many 8th grade youth are ready to do that after attending confirmation classes for 2 years. Is it something that parents and youth do because it is tradition? I think most kids and parents just go through the motions because that is when it is offered.

Once confirmation has been completed, we see maybe 1/3 of those youth stay active in the youth group. Something is not right about that.

We need a paradigm shift in confirmation that it is about a life long journey and that kids should be confirmed when they are ready to make the commitment and not because they have finished two years of confirmation classes at the end of 8th grade. But it isn’t the church that can make this change by itself. It needs the backing of the parents. It needs parents to be involved in making these changes.

Those are my thoughts.

God Bless, Kimberly

BradLindberg

11/12/07 9:27 AM

Change Thoughts

I agree with Kimberly, it does need some changing. We also use Faith Inkubators and from what I’ve seen Here We Stand offers a similar curriculum. I think both of them are wonderful and a vast improvement over previous curriculum’s that have been out there. However, like I believe Kimberly said, we need a paradigm shift.

Here is my proposal. If we are truly affirming our baptism then I think it needs to be a more organic process than a set curriculum. It needs to be adaptable to different people being in different places. I suspect many of us have met third graders who are ready to do this and tenth graders that are still no where close to ready. So this is what I’m thinking. Something more like how we do weddings in the church. When one feels ready they come in and take an assessment that will help guide where discussion needs to go. From there the pastor or another qualified leader would take the results and interview the young person to finish the assessment. From there the “student” would be assigned a mentor where they would talk about and work on these particular categories they need to work on. When they are ready, we confirm them.

This would mean a whole new way of thinking about confirmation. It also has the draw back of lacking community, that we have in our typical setting.

I like the organic nature of this idea, but what do you think? Could something like this work? Or do we need to rethink confirmation in a new way that can take advantage of this amazing opportunity that we have as Lutheran’s where we have our Jr. High youth here to mold on a weekly basis? Or are we just looking at “band-aid” solutions to something that needs to be addressed with families at a younger age (and if that’s the case, then what do we need to do)?

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I do very look forward to responses and other wonderful ideas. So please, PLEASE, share!

brad (byron, mn)

davew

11/12/07 10:03 AM

Rambling thoughts.

Some rambling thoughts: As mentioned by others, in confirmation we have a golden opportunity. Social norms say that kids should go to confirmation, so we get our middle school youth for a couple of years. I wonder though, are we being good stewards of this time?

Think about it, we’re trying to cram details (doctrine) about a subject (God) that they are not really all that excited about. The end result is a high school student who can’t wait to escape the boredom and indoctrination of church.

Of course, in recent years, organizations like Faith Inc have made strides in making confirmation more relational and fun. However, many pastors I know feel that Faith inc is weak on content. I just think it’s really expensive!

So what’s the solution? I don’t know. Confirmation came out of the Catholic tradition in a time when you had to be involved in church.

The role of church in people’s lives is shrinking. A bad confirmation program could cement an abandonment of church for many youth (and recent studies show that, unlike in the past, this generation is less likely to return).

So here are some suggestions I would make: - Confirmation needs to be more more simple and evangelistic. I would want my students to have a good handle on Jesus, know they are God’s child, know they are justified by faith, and know how to use the Bible. - Confirmation needs to give youth a positive impression of the church. They need to know it’s fun, caring, and a refuge. - I think youth ministers need to have more of a hand in the structuring, leading, and even teaching of confirmation. - Middle school confirmation students need to look ahead and see a vibrant, beyond just fun and games high school ministry that they can look forward too. - Confirmation students need opportunites to take all they have learned and go deep and apply it. They need to experience it. Service opportunites that involve interaction with the needy, worship experiences, contemplative practices... - Finally, look for opportunites to confirm faith outside of the confirmation day. Affirmation of Baptism is not a one time thing. Practice confirmation! We use the confirmation service at the end of our mission trips. It can be a daily thing.

That’s enough from me. For now.

BradLindberg

11/12/07 10:35 AM

Practicing Confirmation?

I’m really intrigued by this idea of “Practicing Confirmation”, what might that look like? Where else (Dave?) might you do this?

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davew

11/12/07 10:50 AM

“practicing confirmation”

The service that we use on confirmation day is affirmation of baptism. What is affirmation of baptism? It’s saying yes to work God did in your baptism, to the faith he has given you. This shouldn’t be a one time deal, but a daily deal.

I love to do it at the end of mission trips. The youth spend all week sharing their faith through service, words, and relationships. They gather nightly for intense worship and sharing. It’s only natural for them to affirm this at the end of the week. They spend the week experiencing deeply the joy of the life of faith, then exclaim “YES!” at the end.

I put a chair up front and when students are ready they go up, share why they are saying “YES!” and invite someone to pray the confirmation prayer (from the LBW) over them, usually while everyone leys hands on them. It’s been a cool tradition.

rbrandt

11/19/07 8:48 AM

It’s life long - and it’s not a program... but

Hope this one isn’t TOOOOOO long: HA! There’s nothing new in this topic. As I understand it, Martin Luther at least in part writes the Small Catechism as a response to assist families in nurturing their children in faith (way to go Luther, you knew it doesn’t just happen in a program back at church). In the late 60’s and early 70’s there was an indepth study by the three major Lutheran synods on confirmation - trying to get a handle on what it is and how to do it... whatever “it” is. Rich Melheim with Inkubators has been at the forefront of challenging current models for confirmation and struggles with the “how” of translating this to congregational life.

Here’s where I’m at with some quick thoughts... I don’t know if I even like the term”confirmation” anymore or not, but I do I want youth to know and experience the grace and love of God in Jesus, to live in the freedom of the forgiveness of sins, to be equipped to be ambassadors of reconciliation in the world, to be servants for the needs of the world, active members of the community of faith, and on and on.... aren’t these our goals with what we call confirmation?

So then how does a person realize some of these pieces? I think all of us know it is not a program that transforms people with the Gospel. Sure, it’s the work of the Holy Spirit, but what are the ways by which the Spirit usually works to impart the gift of faith into the life of a person?

Holy Buckets of Baptismal waters: , Melheim and Faith Inkubators, Christian Smith, Rollie Martinson, Paul Hill, David Anderson, Marilyn Sharp and the Youth and Family Institute are all working on this topic and they all say, without a doubt, that some of the most key characteristics which seem to impact the maturing of a faith life include: regular attendance in worship as a family, various home faith practices, healthy, long term supportive relationships with key adult mentors, and experiences of service towards others.

That is not a 2 or even 5 year program in the church. It is an encompassing communal way of being. It consistently involves the family from birth onward. It involves how Sunday worship is designed. It is a deliberate conversation and congregational effort that involves church council, the senior’s group, children’s ministry with youth ministry, and not just a package of curriculum purchased by a pastor to implement.

(Do you like my sweeping generalizations).

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Here’s what I keep thinking: Jesus had it right in discipling - we live with each other, watch and learn from mentors, discuss, worship, serve together (and it goes on for years, even then those disciples were confused constantly) . . .

Maybe Pentecost was just a little bit like an “affirmation of baptism” rite for those disciples. But it wasn’t much of a planned event in public worshipl It did, though, seem to be at God’s timing.

Here is just one of my questions I wonder about: “Does the Confirmation Rite operate for many families and kids more as an adolescent rite of passage than as an actual faith formative event?” or “Can confirmation ever effectively be boiled down to a one time rite that everyone can be fit into?”

My comfort is that the Spirit of God as often as not works in spite of us... blessings in the name of Christ. -Randy

BradLindberg

11/19/07 12:17 PM

Rite of Passage

I’ve heard from a few different people now about confirmation being an important rite of passage. Is that all the more it is? I think rites of passage are important. So I’m wondering if we were to completely rethink confirmation so that it is more of what it is intended to be (affirmation of baptismal promises), might there be a way of maintaining a similar rite of passage to what we’ve created with confirmation?

Join the conversation!

Add your thoughts to this conversation at http://www.elcaymnet.org/speak_out/bulletin_boards/messages.cfm?PAGE_ID=75&TOPIC_NO=147

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Calendar of Events: 2008 Winter ELCA Youth Ministry Network Extravaganza

Calling Congregations Grants deadline

February 7-11, 2008 Hyatt Hotel, Anaheim, CA Information: www.elcaymnet.org or 1-866-398-7282

March 15, 2008 (application deadlines are October 15 and March 15 through 2009) Grants of $5,000 to $12,000 from the Fund for Theological Education are available to help congregations cultivate a sense of Christian vocation among young people.

Information: www.thefund.org/programs/calling.phtml or calling@ thefund.org or 404-727-1450

Group: National Youth Ministry Conference February 22-25, 2008 Cincinnati, OH Information: http://conference.youthministry.com/

Spring Princeton Forums on Youth Ministry: And You Will Be My Witnesses‌ April 28-May 1, 2008 Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton, NJ Information: http://www.ptsem.edu/iym/forums/2008/index.php or 609-497-7914

Summer WIYLDE (Wholly Iowa Youth Leadership Discipling Event)

Western States Youth Gathering

July 12-18, 2008 Luther College, Decorah, IA Information: http://vocations.luther.edu/retreats_and_workshops/ wiylde/index.html or contact Connie Barclay at 563-387-1327 or barcco01@luther.edu

July 31-August 1, 2008 Hilton Hotel and Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, CA Information: www.wsyg.com

The ELCA Global Mission Event (including youth tracks) July 17-20, 2008 University of Wisconsin, La Crosse, WI Information: www.elca.org/gme/GME2008/index.html or email GMInfo@elca.org

Fall Passing on the Faith: Milestone to Milestone conference and training event (Delaware-Maryland Synod and the Youth and Family Institute) September 19-20, 2008 Our Shepherd Lutheran Church, Severna Park, MD Information: Ed Kay at ekay@demdsynod.org

ELCA Outdoor Ministry Program Leadership Training Event November 5-9, 2008 Zephyr Point Retreat Center, Lake Tahoe, NV Information: www.elca.org/camps or 1-800-638-3522, ext. 2593

ELCA/PCCCA Outdoor Ministry Conference November 9-14, 2008 Zephyr Point Retreat Center, Lake Tahoe, NV Information: www.elca.org/camps or 1-800-638-3522, ext. 2593

Youth Specialties: National Youth Workers Conventions Sacramento, CA: October 10-13, 2008 Pittsburgh, PA: October 31-November 3, 2008 Nashville, TN: November 21-24, 2008 Information: www.youthspecialties.com/events

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Calendar of Events: 2009 Winter ELCA Youth Ministry Network Extravaganza February 5-9, 2009 New Orleans, LA Information: www.elcaymnet.org or 1-866-398-7282

Spring Please send us your event information to: connect@elcaymnet.org

Summer ELCA Youth Gathering

Triennial Convention of the Lutheran Youth Organization

July 22-26, 2009 New Orleans, LA Information: www.elca.org/gathering

July 26-30, 2009 Hattiesburg, MS Information: www.elca.org/lyo

Definitely-Abled Youth Leadership Event (DAYLE) and Multicultural Youth Leadership Event (MYLE) July 19-22, 2009 New Orleans, LA DAYLE information: www.elca.org/lyo/dac MYLE information: www.elca.org/lyo/mac

Fall Please send us your event information to: connect@elcaymnet.org

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The Same Road

by Bill Bixby

“You were all called to travel on the same road and in the same direction, so stay together, both outwardly and inwardly. You have one Master, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who rules over all, works through all, and is present in all. Everything you are and think and do is permeated with Oneness.

But that doesn’t mean you should all look and speak and act the same . . . ” (Ephesians 4:4-7, The Message) It’s all there, in the robust biblical prose of Eugene Peterson.

The Youth Ministry Network and ELCA Youth Ministry are on the same road, going in the same direction–and it seems like we’re picking up speed!

And we thought that the past decade was breathtaking! In the past decade, a number of fresh theological and practical approaches to faith formation with young people have been cultivated. New and renewed centers of teaching and training have been developed. A growing cloud of smart practitioners and leading institutions (a few of them with real money!) have been deeply engaged in creative, and highly collaborative, ministries with those in the first third of life. (As my daughter would say–it’s no accident that the Network grew from infancy, and matured mightily, during this same decade.

Thanks be to God!)

The Network’s Vision for the Future is just one sign that we’re picking up speed, and moving from carefully crafted vision to bolder action. The mini-explosion of research and writing on the faith development–and non-development!–of young people is another.

The widening interest on the part of colleges, universities and seminaries to offer nimble, yet substantive, forms of preparation for ministries with youth and families is another. From Mark Yaconelli’s proposal for a contemplative youth ministry (published by a noted conservative press) to the brisk public witness of Eboo Patel and the Interfaith Youth Core, to a new five-congregation urban youth ministry coalition I learned about just this week, the signs point to ac c e l e r a t i o n , a decade of daring and innovative and exhilarating ministry ahead.

Together. Made alive, and constantly renewed, and powerfully united, in baptism.

On that road, and in those waters, with you, Bill Bixby, who has been an ELCA pastor for 22 years and a blessed-by-youth minister for even longer, lives and serves in Chicago, Illinois as Director for Youth Ministry. From 2000 to 2007, Bill served (and sometimes taught at) two ELCA seminaries in a lively project of theological and vocational discovery with teens.

Here’s my hunch, fellow travelers on that same road: we ain’t seen nothing yet!

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