Fast forward almost two decades, and I am now a youth pastor. I marvel at God's sense of humor, as I now lead a ministry to teenagers when I as a teenager thought such a thing was a waste of time. The fact that I never really spent time in a youth ministry until I did so as a leader (and eventually a youth pastor) has sometimes made me feel like an outsider when it comes to youth ministry. Some of the leaders in our youth ministry were actually a part of our church when they were teenagers, and their recollection (both positive and negative) of their time in our church's youth ministry makes me realize that there is so much I don't get about youth ministry since I never was a part of one as a teenager. However, I believe that my background as an "unchurched" teenager has helped me as a youth pastor more than it has hindered me. Here are some ways I believe my background has helped me:
I am constantly looking at our ministry through the eyes of teenagers who aren't yet Christ followers. In youth ministry, it's an easy temptation to assume that we're doing everything right because teenagers are showing up, and they don't seem to be getting into too much trouble. But when I look at our church and the broader community that we are a part of, I realize that the vast, vast majority of teenagers in our neighborhoods do not know much of the Jesus of the Bible who died for them, let alone follow him. That thought haunts me, because I was one of those teenagers when I was in high school. I try to never forget that as I plan, lead, teach and serve.
I don't believe youth ministry needs to be done the way I experienced it. I learned very early on in youth ministry that a lot of sacred cows exist in just about every youth ministry, especially for pastors and volunteers who had positive experiences in youth ministries as teenagers. Telling teenagers about Jesus and helping them grow in a relationship with him should always be our goal, but how we go about it--our strategy--will change over time. I'm not saying that my new ideas are always that great, but I am grateful for having been able to start with a clean slate when it comes to leadership in youth ministry.
I remember what it's like to be a really confused volunteer. I became a follower of Jesus my freshman year in college, and by my sophomore year, I was volunteering with my new church's high school ministry. I didn't know the first thing about youth ministry, and I remember spending the first number of weeks (and a weekend retreat) wondering what in the world I had gotten myself into. Thankfully, the youth minister at the time was a great mentor and leader, and my role as a volunteer became clearer. I try to remember that experience for our new youth ministry team members who also were never a part of a youth ministry when they were teenagers.
To be fair, on Thursday I'll share some of the downsides of my background as an unchurched teenager.
