Youth Ministry Events as Faith Formation – Part Three Processing Events and Connecting to Daily Life

Youth believe in God! Yay! So…now what? Let’s deconstruct MTD in the lives of youth and challenge youth to experience Jesus Christ through authentic relationships and experiences that are rooted in sound theology and practices. In Session One, we talked about the: Purpose of Events In Session Two, we talked about how you: Prepare your Group for an event Did you miss a trainings? Watch past sessions online at

We will talk about how we help groups experience the work of the Holy Spirit in the midst of an event, and how to connect that event to their daily lives…and maybe even share it with others!

Events are opportunities for young people to disengage from the world around them so they can fix their eyes on Jesus Christ. Out of our comfort zone, we can see the world and ourselves from Christ’s point of view rather than our own.

Spiritual direction often is considered one of the practices of communion, since the ultimate objective is not to offer moral instruction or pastoral care. The goal of spiritual direction is reaching toward oneness with God by discerning God’s direction for our daily lives.” -Godbearing Life, pp Hand-holding is ministry of presence… Finger-pointing is ministry of direction. Photo by Sam Mugraby, Photos8.org

Participation is ACTIVE Experience the event fully Observe what’s going on with the youth Translate your experience into a story to share

Participation is GENUINE Expect to be transformed yourself Be who you are

Participation is COMPLICATED This isn’t just a vacation, you know! Full participation is hard work!

Listening is ACTIVE Listen with your ears Listen with your eyes Listen with your body Respond with clarifying questions

Listening is GENUINE Listen because you care Be open to the questions youth ask

Listening is a DISCIPLINE Part of listening well is hearing what is said Part of listening well is “hearing” what is NOT said! Listening is focusing on the speaker Listening is hard work!

Ask good questions Make observations Point to Jesus Photo by Sam Mugraby, Photos8.org

W = Where H = Hobbies E = Event A = Acquaintances T = Travel

The first person ASKS questions and LISTENS The second person RESPONDS The third person OBSERVES Allow each person to rotate through the various roles. Give the group members 5 minutes for each role.

“The entire congregation makes a difference in youth ministry.” (p. 83, EYM) “Of parents who report that their faith is extremely important in their daily lives; only 8% of those parents’ teens report that faith is not very or not important in their lives.” (p. 171, EYM)

Set goals for how your events can be transforming. What kind of goals would you have for a weekly Bible study? What kind of goals would you have for a summer trip?

How will you communicate with parents about what was experienced? You can never communicate in enough ways! Involve the parents in your event somehow Create activities for families to do together that support or extend the goal of your event

How will you share your events with the congregation? Worship Written communication Visual images around the church Involve congregational members in events Congregational mentors/prayer partners

How will you intentionally share your event experiences with youth who could not attend? Storytelling with purpose Group building Communicate while gone Involve other youth, parents and congregation in planning

Some of these tips will apply to trips only, some will apply to local events as well. “When did we ever get the crazy idea that to make children do better, first you have to make them feel worse?” -Jane Nelsen

Cell Phones Will you allow them? How will you monitor their use? What is the church’s liability?

Transportation How big is the group and how will this affect the type of transportation you choose? How will you separate groups into vehicles? Will you/can you use transportation time as group building time? How will you get back to vehicles? Who will drive? What are your safety concerns? How much baggage can youth bring?

Lodging Where will you (and other adults) sleep? What are the overall sleeping arrangements? Safe haven/risk management policies

Food How many meals? Where do you plan to eat? Will you give food money allowances or pay as a group?

Group Management Small Groups with designated leaders Covenant issues How many sponsors do you take? Come prepared with “back-up” Make a ministry opportunity Keeping track of your group