ChurchHacks.com

In my previous youth ministry, I encountered an unusual phenomenon I had not experienced before. It was a paradox of nature and sociology that couldn’t be explained. There were a group of highschoolers who had grown up in the church and were highly involved in the youth ministry. They were model kids who served in the church and were considered to be leaders. They attended every event with enthusiasm and contributed to the small group discussions as we studied the Bible.

Once they entered their senior year, they advanced in maturity, at least their own perceived maturity, by about five years. Suddenly, they disassociated themselves with almost everything that was going on in the youth ministry. They chose to go out with their friends instead of coming to youth group unless their parents made them go. On those occasions where they did attend Sunday School or youth group, they would assume the classic teenage I’m-too-good-for-this pose with arms folded and eyes rolled as they stared off into the corner of the room scoffing every immature comment and gesture made by the children in the room.

Graduation came and went and we launched the graduates into the world of Big Church and out of the youth ministry as we welcomed a new crowd of pre-pubescent youngins into our group. Here’s where the unusual happened. After a few months, the recent graduates started showing up to events. They wanted to attend the high school Sunday School class instead of the one for their age group. Their age group, by the way, was now 18-65 year-olds. It was as if they were sophomores or juniors again and they had never left the youth group instead of being freshmen in college or full-time employees in our small community. I let them be involved but only to the extent that they would exercise some responsibility within the group. After all, they were adults now. It worked and it didn’t because they were still trying to hold on to their teenage years instead of embracing adulthood.

It’s difficult to run a single youth ministry comprised of such a wide age span (sixth through twelfth grade) and work to meet each of their spiritual, emotional, and relational needs. In hindsight, I realize I should have done things a little differently. I should have tried harder to take their thoughts of superiority and molded them into leadership. I could have taken advantage of their experience and years in the youth ministry and given them ownership of it through more responsibility.

So, what do you do with 18-25ish year-olds? What kind of a break is there from adolescence and adulthood?

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