AROUND THE WORLD

AROUND WORLD THE

ANNETTE OSBORNE | SU International Children’s Consultant

The last year has brought with it many changes. Firstly, we all know much more about viruses than we ever did before. We have learned about vaccine development and have expanded our vocabulary to include frequent use of such words as ‘bubble’ and ‘unprecedented’. At the click of a button, we learned that the whole world can be zoomed into our living rooms! It has also impacted the way in which we minister with children, young people and their families. Many of these changes will have long term effects, positive and negative. As we think about the future, I want to highlight a couple of global trends, challenges and opportunities I see as a result of my role with Scripture Union International, and how they are shaping ministry with children.

Creative opportunities

It will come as no surprise that the online and digital space has significantly influenced ministry with children and young people globally. When most countries around the world went into different degrees of lockdown, many of Scripture Union’s ministries stopped. Camps closed and schools were shut. But out of this situation, creative opportunities were discovered. Several movements created online camps, with one team even recreating an adventure style camp with young people recreating rock climbing and rafting activities. Picture a young person creating a raft out of their bathtub and pretending to ride the rapids! Another team has utilized a popular online game called MineCraft, to create Bible scenes for children to explore and, in turn, explore the biblical story.

Transformational relationships

A key question has been how to build and strengthen relationships, and create community. Scripture Union is a relational ministry and prioritises small groups and mentoring through its ministries. Faith formation is much harder in isolation! What has surprised many has been that genuine relationships and connections have been formed through online ministry. Some in leadership were sceptical that this new way of working could actually bring about transformation in the life of a young person, but have witnessed that this is possible. One young person shared with us this vision for Scripture Union: ’I want to see that God has infiltrated and permeated the internet through SU, reaching the next generation online in explosive, innovative new ways.’

A call to focus on the widening divide

Online ministry has enabled greater access for children and young people to Scripture Union. Children are able to participate in events and programmes that they may not have been able to attend face-to-face. However, the opposite is also true. The divide between those who are connected online, and those who aren’t, has widened. More and more people are asking, ‘what about those children who don’t have technology or who live remotely? How do we connect with them?’ Add to this the widening of the gap between the ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’, as the economic impacts of the pandemic wreak havoc on communities over the next few years. This should sharpen our focus, to seek out the children who are unseen, disconnected and suffering.

Developing online safety

Alongside the increase in online connectivity is a rise in the need to address issues of online safety. How do we ensure that all children, young people and leaders are safe as they participate in our programmes? Safety is a priority for Scripture Union ministries, so the challenges of the online world are vital for us to address. Even as countries move out of restrictions and as a vaccine is hopefully rolled out, the popularity of online connection will continue. Greater training and resourcing is developing in this area.

Collaboration

One trend that has been particularly encouraging has been the growing desire for global collaboration and connection. In August last year, we gathered together around 120 young leaders from 79 countries to talk about the impact of the pandemic on leadership, and to ask them about their vision for the future of Scripture Union. We have hosted webinars on a range of topics related to ministry with children and young people, with an average of 100 people attending. Many of these leaders would never have such easy access to training and resourcing within Scripture Union. The pandemic has forced us to create online training opportunities, but these have proven to be fruitful, as the global SU family shares their knowledge and experience with each other. I see an increase in recognition of resources from non-western sources and the richness of global collaboration. I think often of that statement about God bringing beauty from ashes. There is much that is ash about last year with great suffering and hardship. Yet God has brought such beauty out of this situation, opportunities and learnings to treasure and give thanks for.