GETTING YOUTH ANGRY

There are messy games, group games, up-front games, circle games, relay games, etc…. When you’re involved with youth ministries, there is no limit to what kind of game you can play. Just Google “youth group games” and you can find millions of games to play in your program. It’s pretty sweet to be able to have a budget with the church you work at that allows you to purchase whatever materials you need to make a night of chaos (a gang of teenagers in one big room) into a night to remember because of crazy, awesome, fun games.

I put my neck out there the other day at youth group when I gave the kids a disclaimer. Before the night got started, I gathered all the youth, old faces as well as a handful of new, and I told them how awesome the other youth programs in our community are. In these other programs, they can get an insightful bible teaching AFTER they had a tremendous amount of fun. I told them that if it’s fun games they want, I could point them to the church program they should go to. Just talk to me after. I then informed them that the reason I promoted other programs so tenaciously was because I don’t know if we will be playing games for the next 6 or 7 weeks. The reason is because we are going through a series of teachings that are focused on different injustices in the world and I want to make the night as serious as possible. It’s hard to discuss child trafficking, and get the full scope of the teaching if we start or end the night playing Sardines (a sweet game that involves the leaders doing nothing or buying anything). I told them my heart on this series and how I desire to get these kids angry about what is happening in this world and how I dream of seeing a generation rise up and make Christianity about serving “the least of these”. After my tremendously awesome and powerful speech, I knew exactly what William Wallace (or at least Mel Gibson) felt like riling up his freedom fighters before they went into battle. I saw the passion and determination in the eyes of the youth. I new I just helped create a band of radicals that were determined to buck the system of a stagnant Christianity because they’ve finally got it: faith without works is truly dead.


After a great night of dialogue, one particular youth approached me. He told me his heart on some of these issues. He looked hungry for Righteousness and Justice. After talking to him for about 5 minutes, he closes his conversation with me by saying, “Oh yeah, Jo-Jo? From what it sounds like to me, you just lost half of your kids because they want to have fun and you’re not gonna provide that for them.” In an instant, I went from William Wallace to Seymour Krelborn (Rick Moranis on Little Shop of Horrors).

Ultimately, we will see who decides to come or not come. I’ve learned to be excited about seeing ANY youth being willing to take on injustices that surround us daily. I’m praying we have the whole band of (potential) radicals come back in the weeks that follow. Time will tell.

The point is this; what will it take to get kids angry instead of complacent on issues that clearly break the heart of God? If I’m to teach the kids the heart of God, or at least guide them into His direction to have them experience His Love and Compassion, what will it take on my behalf to get them to rebel against the systems we’ve all taken part in without even knowing there had always been a steep cost of injustice? How can we raise up a generation that is willing to set aside fun for the sake of righteousness?