Youth Ministry on the Front Foot

Contents Introduction

9

Foreword

13

Contributors

15

Youth Ministry 1. It’s about Jesus

Ron Irving

19

2. Connecting word to world

Graham Stanton

27

3. Putting the horse before the cart

Graham Stanton

35

4. Being Berean

Murray Norman

43

5. Keep watch over the flock

Cameron Hyslop

51

6. Pay heed to sexual protocols

Kylie Williams

57

The Youth leader 7. The importance of prayer

Murray Norman

67

8. Keep watch over yourself

Cameron Hyslop

75

9. Integrity in ministry

Murray Norman

83

principles for youth ministry 10. Great expectations

Mike Everett

89

11. Maintain a healthy relationship with the senior minister

Cameron Hyslop

97

12. Youth Bible talks

Scott Petty

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13. How to make your youth group fun and fulfilling

Jodie McNeill

115

14. Teach, women, teach!

Sarah Macken

125

15. Youth ministry is not the local church

Dave Miers

135

16. The youth are youth ministers

Cameron Hyslop

145

17. Think ‘dual-action’

Jodie McNeill

153

18. Identity crisis

Sarah Macken

159

19. Building up through relationships

Murray Norman

167

20. Small groups—doing it for the kids!

Scott Petty

173

21. Turning ministry vision into ministry outcome

Murray Norman

181

22. Developing a ministry vision

Mike Everett

189

23. Ministry by social media

Eugene Hor

197

24. Uth r gr8, k, cya

Ron Irving

205

25. Discipling

Mike Everett

211

26. Talking frankly about sex

Zac Veron

219

27. Youth camps

Mike Everett

229

28. Be involved in resource-raising

Zac Veron

241

29. Meet the parents

Graham Stanton

249

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developing youth leaders 30. Identifying emerging youth leaders

Eugene Hor

257

31. Intentionally equipping leaders

Eugene Hor

263

32. Focus on the leadership team

Ron Irving

269

33. Get out of the way!

Ron Irving

275

34. Discipline sin

Eugene Hor

283

35. Leader accountability

Eugene Hor

293

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Introduction

‘T

he future of Christianity is in our youth!’ No, that is not right. The future of Christianity lies safely in the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. In fact the future of our youth lies in the gospel.

The greatest need today for anyone is to be saved and the good news is that we have a Saviour in Jesus. It is this Jesus who has lived with us, died for us, risen ahead of us, and who brings us to God and into eternity. It is this Jesus whom the youth of every generation needs to meet, trust and follow. And the way that happens, quite simply, is as teenagers do business with Jesus through God’s word prayerfully.

This book is about the ministry of the gospel of Jesus with particular reference to teenagers—the group our youth ministries should be aiming to reach.

Our hope is that the principles and application guides in this book will help many ministers and youth leaders to connect teenagers to Jesus through his word. There are 35 principles developed in the coming pages with corresponding errors which could result if these are not adopted. The principles have been written by experienced youth ministers who all have a passion for seeing teenagers come to Christ. Their experience, biblical understanding and practical suggestions may help many to be even more effective in youth ministry and conversely may also help many to avoid some of the major mistakes which can occur in youth ministry.

Before we proceed, some brief explanatory remarks.

1. This book is aimed at the youth leader with a bias towards the key or senior leader/s. As each youth leader applies the principles presented in this book, they will hopefully develop in many ways. The wisdom in these pages will help

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leaders to be even more effective in ministry than they might be already. There are ideas which may broaden the scope of the way youth leaders teach and lead. This book may help those who are not yet senior leaders to develop into those roles in time, so principles which appear to speak only to senior leaders should not be disregarded.

A word of caution. Leaders who learn principles here that their key or senior leaders (or ministers) don’t hold to or seem unwilling to apply, should exercise wisdom as they work alongside those faithful elders.

2. This book takes particular aim at ‘youth’ ministry. Given its title, Youth Ministry on the Front Foot, this seems an obvious thing to say. It is helpful to know that many of the principles could be applied across a larger spectrum of ministry (for example children’s ministry), but the focus of this book has been to consider ‘youth’—that is, those who would be in junior or senior high school.

3. The principles and application guides are intentionally grouped. There are four sections.

Youth ministry: to establish some foundational principles which should underpin any youth ministry.

The youth leader: to help the leader carry out ministry in a godly way.

Principles for youth ministry: to consider the what, why and how of effective youth ministry.

Developing youth leaders: to ensure youth ministry and leadership are intentionally developed for ongoing and long-term effectiveness.

4. This book is a training tool. Each principle and corresponding error may be helpful in prompting reflection and discussion among your youth ministry leadership team members. The application guide is designed to ask the questions a leadership team should consider in order to apply each principle.

Hopefully many of the application points will both affirm practices you have in place and prompt you to consider other ways to do the ministry in which you are involved.

You may find that working through the principles and application guides one at a time in leaders meetings, or set training times, helpful in developing leaders and assessing and improving your youth ministry on an ongoing basis.

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5. This book may function more like a reference text. It will be beneficial to work through the principles and application guides in the order in which they are presented. That said, each principle stands alone and so you can open at any chapter which seems immediately relevant and apply it to your situation.

The application guides are written with each principle in mind as a standalone subject, so be aware that questions from one principle may overlap with questions from another.

We can be very thankful for the work of each of the contributors in this book. They are theologically principled and effective practitioners of youth ministry. Under God, we can be thankful for their ongoing work in ministry to teenagers. As you consider each principle, please pray for the author and their work for the gospel.

The Apostle Paul’s exhortation to Timothy serves as a great encouragement to us especially as we prepare to dive into a book on ministry of the gospel to youth.

This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. That is why we labour and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Saviour of all people, and especially of those who believe. Command and teach these things. Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophecy when the body of elders laid their hands on you. Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely.

Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers. (1 Timothy 4:9–16) NIV 2011 Let our labours be motivated by the hope we have in Jesus through the gospel.

Let the manner in which we serve be an example for many. Let our devotion to the reading and preaching and teaching of Scripture lead to many teenagers being saved into eternity. Enjoy!

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Foreword

M

y youth fellowship years are very special to me. God used them to shape me as a Christian and as a leader. I also made many longlasting friendships during those years. The word ‘fellowship’ has long since disappeared from the name of youth groups but its importance in the lives of young hearts is just as real. Yet church youth groups of any notable size are a rarity in the early part of the 21st century. It’s time to be far more effective in Christian ministry to youth!

Following the success of the widely acclaimed award-winning (Australian Christian Book of the Year Awards, Second Prize) resource Leadership on the Front Foot in 2009, I was encouraged to work on a Front Foot series. This volume is the first of a handful of planned books to sit alongside Leadership on the Front Foot in equipping Christians to lead more effectively in their ministries with biblically-principled approaches that work in the real world.

In Youth Ministry on the Front Foot practical guidance is offered through the wisdom and experience of 13 ministry practitioners, together with application guides for further reflection, planning and decision making. It is my hope and prayer that the principles outlined in this book, together with corresponding errors to avoid, will equip thousands of churches to develop more effective and engaging youth groups, so that many more young people will come to know and serve the Lord.

I am thankful to the youth ministry experts who have worked with me to write this book. I am doubly thankful to Ken Noakes who once again has woven his mastery throughout this volume. Thank you also to my dear wife, Sheree, and

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my PA, Fiona Volke, the two eagle-eyed women in my life who proficiently assisted me in the editorial process. Thanks also to Natasha Percy for her patience and for getting this book to the press, to Belinda Pollard for her thorough edit of the theological elements of this text and to Glenn Davies for his thoughtful feedback. I also wish to thank all my former youth group leaders and friends who were and remain so much a part of my life and ministry.

Zachary Veron

A note of thanks and recognition from Ken D Noakes.

My thanks to God for my gorgeous and wise wife Naomi—she is a great gift of God. To the people from whom I have learned most about youth ministry, the youth whom I have had the privilege of discipling and who have (by the grace of God) become lifelong and eternal mates—Graham Lea, Simon Fifer, Graham Schultz, Jonathon Organ, Sean Sampson, Michael Bradley, Andrew Tripet, Josh Davis, David Promnitz, Ben Gray, Cameron Isaacs, Nate Gale, Josh Russell, Cameron Lyon, Jessica Lee, Ana McGrath, Lauren Carmichael, Andy Russell, Sam Cameron, Nick Lindeback and Dylan Chalwell. To those many youth and Bible Study leaders whom I have served alongside as we have proclaimed the gospel of Jesus Christ in and out of season. To the ministry teams of St Andrew’s Cathedral, Sydney and Holy Trinity, Adelaide who have allowed me time to edit and write on this project. To Zac Veron, who has so patiently waited and encouraged me along the way.

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Contributors Mike Everett God has graciously given Mike the opportunity to know him, and be involved in youth ministry for around 20 years (so far).Having been given understanding of the gospel, Mike has tried to spend his life equipping youth to be faithful disciples of Jesus. Mike is Katrina’s husband, and they have three boys in their own ‘youth group’. Mike is the youth minister at St Paul’s Carlingford, Sydney, and is a part-time lecturer at Anglican Youthworks College.

Eugene Hor Eugene has been ministering to university students, young workers and families since church planting GracePoint Presbyterian Church (www.gracepoint.org. au) in 1999. He’s completing a Doctorate in Ministry through Fuller Theological Seminary, California and currently serves in preaching and teaching as lead pastor of the English ministry team at GracePoint, now a multi-site church in Sydney. Together with his wife Pauline and their two kids, their passion is to see God’s people grow to love Jesus supremely, love each other in community around Jesus, and love their city and world holding out the word of life.

Cameron Hyslop Cameron first started in youth ministry as a student leader of the Christian lunchtime group at his school in 1980. Since then he has led youth groups in a few different churches before his current role as youth minister at Jannali Anglican Church, in Sydney. Cameron has directed more youth camps than he cares to count and hopes that the day will come when those who stay in youth ministry for 15 years or more are labelled ‘youngsters’ rather than ‘veterans’.

Cameron is married to Fran and they are kept busy raising two fine young men to love and serve the Lord.

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Ron Irving In the late ’80s, Ron Irving entered into a life of youth ministry in the western suburbs of Sydney. After completing his training, Ron’s practice and thinking were shaped within the Anglican communities of St Johns Park (south west Sydney), Ulladulla (NSW south coast) and at present in Figtree, Wollongong.

With the encouragement of his wife, Julie, and two teenage children, Ron continues to learn about youth ministry as he seeks to equip and empower leaders and youth to live out Jesus’ great commandment in every aspect of life.

Sarah Macken For the first 22 years of her life Sarah was a ‘PK’ (Preacher’s Kid) at Northmead Anglican Church (NAC). Sarah has spent the last three years studying an Advanced Diploma of Theology at Youthworks College and working at NAC. Under the leadership of Ed Springer, Sarah has been well trained in a variety of ministries to children, youth and young adults. At the beginning of 2011 Sarah moved to the St George area and is currently serving at Christ Church Bexley (in partnership with St George North Anglican Church) as the full-time children’s and families minister. She is keen to help parents teach their kids about Jesus and see families following Jesus together. She is passionate about helping young people meet and follow the Lord Jesus Christ in every area of their lives.

Jodie McNeill Jodie has been ministering to youth since Kylie was in Neighbours. He’s completing a Masters degree in Theology while he heads up the camping and conference ministries at Youthworks Outdoors as the executive director. He’s served as a youth minister, is an ordained Anglican minister, has lectured and trained in youth ministry to churches throughout Australia, and now runs the most important youth group of all as he works with his wife Mandy to bring up his four kids in the knowledge and love of God.

Dave Miers Dave is married to Rowena and they have two young sons. They enjoy the beach, coffee, soccer and sushi. He has been involved in youth ministry for 13 years and is currently the youth pastor at St Faith’s Anglican Church, Narrabeen (Sydney’s northern beaches). Dave is passionate about preaching the cross of Jesus and seeing God save and change young punks. He has an online ministry at www.davemiers.com.

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Ken Noakes Ken Noakes has been involved in youth ministry at several churches as a leader or minister since becoming a Christian at age 20, which was 20 years ago.

His professional background was in business and training before serving in ministry in Sydney at Naremburn-Cammeray Anglican Church and St Andrew’s Cathedral (Ministry Training & Development) and now in Adelaide as associate minister at Holy Trinity. He is completing a Masters degree in Theology and often travels to India to teach pastors and key leaders in Bible subjects. He loves to see people take the Bible seriously and help them apply it in godly and real ways. He is husband to Naomi and they have three young children.

Murray Norman Murray grew up on a farm near Wagga Wagga NSW. He worked for an account­ ancy firm in Sydney before taking up the position of general manager of Presbyterian Youth (PY). In this role, he ministers to young people and youth leaders in the Presbyterian Church and beyond, through camps and training events. He has worked to develop an online distance Diploma of Theology and grow and strengthen SRE within NSW schools in cooperation with Youthworks, and he has also run camps for youth from across the state. As well as running PY, Murray keeps busy as a father to four kids and husband to Rachel, and is currently studying for an MBA part time.

Scott Petty Scott is youth minister at Christ Church, St Ives. He is married to the lovely Carolyn, has three little warrior-sons and is driven by seeing young people grow into wholehearted disciples of Jesus. He enjoys cycling and eating good food, going to the beach and drinking coffee, reading and writing, and watching documentaries on TV. He listens to rock’n’ roll and works on Apple computers.

If he wasn’t a youth minister, Scott would like to be either a commentator at grand slam tennis tournaments or a best-selling crime novel writer.

Graham Stanton Graham exercises his enthusiasm for practical thinking and thoughtful practice in his roles as the executive director of Youthworks Training Division and the principal of Youthworks College. He loves seeing young people make big decisions for Jesus, and seeing adults celebrating what God is doing among young people.

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Contributors

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Zac Veron Zac Veron has been involved in youth ministry, as a youth group member or leader, in several churches for over 35 years. He currently heads up Anglican Youthworks in Sydney, which assists thousands of churches to minister to children, youth and families in Australia and increasingly around the world.

Together with his wife Sheree and three daughters, the Veron family continue to serve and enjoy the Christian community at St George North Anglican Church in Sydney. Following the publication of his award-winning book Leadership on the Front Foot, Zac began work on a Front Foot series. This volume is the second in a planned series of several books.

Kylie Williams Kylie has had a focus in the area of safe ministry for over a decade. As the head writer/editor of Youthworks’ safe ministry training courses, she continues to keep abreast of current information regarding safe ministry and child protection. She is an experienced early childhood educator, holds a Diploma of Theology and is on the Sydney Diocese Safe Ministry Board. She is currently reviewing the Sydney Diocesan safe ministry module and writing a one-year Christian education program for early childhood settings. She is married with two young children and is passionate about kids having a relationship with Jesus, and churches taking safe ministry seriously.

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Chapter 1

IT’S ABOUT JESUS Ron Irving

Principle: Remember it’s about Jesus and his kingdom.

Error: Letting ‘Christian things’ dominate Jesus.

I

like cool. When Avatar 3D hit the cinemas, it was cool. As youth camps have grown over the years, there have been some cool new additions. Cool lights that move and change colour. Cool campsites with air-conditioned rooms (uncool pun). Cool videos that introduce cool games. I like cool. But sometimes cool dominates Jesus.

The thing with cool is that, in one way or another, attempts to be cool or relevant or cultural have gone too far and have dominated Jesus’ mission. I’m aware of it.

Others are aware of it. We work hard at getting the balance right. The trend that’s even scarier for me is when ‘Christian things’ dominate and end up distracting young people from the kingdom life to which Jesus calls them. This is scarier because unlike ‘cool’ or ‘relevant’ or ‘cultural’, we don’t always see these dangers.

And, because ‘Christian things’ are so close to being helpful to Jesus’ mission, we often fail to see when they cause us to neglect his mission.

To be sure, ‘Christian things’ are important. Programs, procedures and practices designed with a desire to connect with people so that they may be drawn to Jesus, grow in Jesus and reach the world for Jesus are very important.

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Youth groups over time can lose focus on their purpose and what makes them unique. We often get that Jesus is the way into the kingdom but forget that he is the way of the kingdom. Our youth groups can become comfortable clubs rather than revolutionary communities. The ‘Christian thing’ has dominated the mission of Jesus.

I’ve seen this principle show itself through our attitudes to programs, to information and to appearances.

Firstly, the ‘Christian thing’ dominates the mission when attendance at programs or events comes at the expense of people being salt and light in the world. Within the youth ministry at my church, there are three events that we encourage people to be a part of on a weekly basis: 1. Friday night youth 2. A small (Bible) group 3. Church service.

Most of our youth small groups are on Sunday afternoon so these three key things happen over just two periods of time—Friday night and Sunday evening (4pm–8pm). On top of this, we encourage our Christian youth to do two other things: 1. Be salt and light in the world 2. Serve somewhere in ministry.

These two things are vital to Christian youth as they live out the mission of Jesus in their lives. If we either over-program, or over-emphasise the program (1, 2 and 3 above plus other things) in relation to the rest of life, we fall into the danger of allowing the ‘Christian thing’ to dominate the mission of Jesus.

Our programs in themselves aren’t the way that youth live out Jesus’ mission.

Rather, they are designed to encourage and equip them to be on mission 24 hours a day—at home, at school, on the sports field or in the workplace.

The second ‘Christian thing’ I’ve seen dominate Jesus is the huge emphasis within Christian youth ministries on information. We are compelled and driven to know what is right—to have as much information as we can about everything we can know about God. The thirst for knowledge in its right place is a healthy thing. We need to know the truth, because the truth sets us free (John 8:32). Yet at the same time, Scripture reminds us that knowledge puffs

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up (1 Corinthians 8:1–3). As I observe Jesus’ ministry in the gospels and even the ministry of the apostles in the letters in the New Testament, I see a desire greater than informing. Jesus was on about transforming. This was nothing new. The Old Testament is full of calls for people to be transformed. They weren’t just to know about God, but also to know God. Jesus comes across some of the most knowledgeable of all Jews in his time and he rips into them when they show that they are well informed, but have yet to be transformed.

When our desire to get the right thing into the heads of young people outweighs our desire to see Jesus transforming their lives, we have let ‘Christian things’ dominate the mission of Jesus. The communication of information must go hand in hand with the godly application of that information.

A third example of this principle at work is when we become content more with appearances than reality. The ‘Christian thing’ at work here is the appearance of godliness. Godliness is a great thing; but a form of it is incredibly dangerous to youth ministry. Jesus allows weak and imperfect people to follow him. Not only does he allow it, he seeks it. He calls people in their weakness to follow without making them perfect. That’s why he allows them to serve even when they have ‘little faith’ (Matthew 17:14–20). That’s why he didn’t sack the lot of them when they fell asleep in the garden (Matthew 26:36–46). That’s why Peter could botch it up around the fireplace when Jesus was on trial (Matthew 26:69– 74), but still lead the church (Acts 2:14). That is why Paul and others could have massive fights over ministry strategy and then get on with it without assuming the other one was no longer a follower of Jesus (Acts 15:36–41). Perfection will come, but not in this world.

When Paul writes to the Corinthians, he writes to a church that is messed up.

And he takes time to remind them that God uses weak things to display his glory (1 Corinthians 1:18 – 2:5; 2 Corinthians 4). How is weakness able to be expressed within the youth ministry of your local church? How is imperfection accepted in the life of the youth community? How are young people allowed to be real about their walk with Jesus rather than putting on an appearance so that everyone feels good?

To be sure, this is not a cop out on the call to holy living. It’s not an excuse to indulge in sinful living. It’s a call to real holiness over perceived holiness—a call to transformation over misrepresentation. The journey towards holiness is often messier than we allow it to be. Yet, when weakness is able to be displayed, we get to see God’s glory as he uses it or transforms it for his purpose.

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A variety of pressures lead us to allow ‘Christian things’ to dominate Jesus.

There is pressure from parents, pressure from youth, pressure from church leaders, or simply pressure from our own needs to be accepted or successful.

And then there’s the human condition that means we easily swing away from something as radical as Jesus’ mission to something more comfortable— something like a comfortable Christian club.

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Application Guide

IT’S ABOUT JESUS Principle: Remember it’s about Jesus and his kingdom.

Error: Letting ‘Christian things’ dominate Jesus.

This principle is about keeping the main thing the main thing! The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke each record Jesus’ rebuke of the disciples: Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these (Mark 10:14; cf. Matthew 19:13–15; Luke 18:15–17). As people brought the babies and children to Jesus, for some reason the disciples took issue (presumably because they thought Jesus had more important work to do!). But Jesus set the record straight quickly—don’t hinder those who come to Jesus.

As youth leaders, this is a good principle to bear in mind. Work hard at all that you can do to bring people to Jesus, but be less precious about the process than you are about the intention. In doing so, allow yourself to be more open to the many ways which God may choose to bring a teenager to faith and ongoing discipleship (which may include ways other than the things you have organised!).

Following are questions designed to help you to self-check your attitude.

Programs 1. Consider your youth ministry structure (i.e. the regular events or occasions which bring your youth members together, such as youth group, small group, church)

• Where in the structure is the gospel of Jesus regularly presented to youth members?

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• Where in the structure are the youth members given the room to question the gospel of Jesus?

• Where in the structure are the youth members given space and encourage­ ment to respond to the gospel of Jesus?

2. How consumed are the leadership team with running the mechanics of youth ministry, compared with the actual time with youth members in talking about Jesus? Are there ways priority and space can be given to ensure the latter happens?

3. What is being prayed about?

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The priority of the leadership team can often be measured by what takes priority in prayer. If the prayers are primarily for the youth program or the youth event (which are good things to pray for) but less so the spiritual growth of the youth members, then it may indicate that the program is given more importance than the people.

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4. How are you encouraging the youth members to get involved in serving Jesus?

• Informally—as salt and light in the world?

• Formally—by serving in ministry in some capacity?

Information 5. Do you aim to teach the passage or the person?

6. How do you ensure that what is taught is:

a. right (theologically correct—true to the word)?

b. heard (intellectually understood—received by those you teach)?

c. real (emotionally tangible—helping the person respond)?

7. How and when do you review what you have taught?

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Appearances 8. How are godliness struggles expressed within your youth ministry?

9. How is imperfection accepted in the life of your youth community?

10. How are your youth members encouraged to be real about their walk with Jesus as opposed to putting on an appearance so that everyone feels good?

11. Are repentance, gospel forgiveness and grace emphasised publicly in your youth ministry?

And [Jesus] took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them. (Mark 10:16).

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