So the expectation for parents is that you will be involved – not all day or everyday. But the goal is to be involved in at least one activity per year. One of the main jobs of the youth minister will be to provide training and opportunities for involvement in students’ lives.

This is what we do at FBC: Adults, interacting with students as the church, caring about them, caring with them, and showing them Jesus is real to you. Ministry is with students, not at them.

Begin now to look for ways for you to be involved, parent or adult. Ask this: how am I contributing the students’ community of faith?

FBC is a healthy church. We are already doing many of the things that are necessary to have a healthy youth ministry. But we need to keep it that way. Communicating what we do in our ministry helps us relate to non-core parents. And it helps us to focus on being the community God wants us to be. It keeps us from assuming that effective ministry will just happen and it keeps us accountable to do our part.

Many thanks to Soul Searching by Christian Smith, ReThink by Steve Wright, Student Ministry and The Supremacy of Christ by Richard Ross, and Hurt by Chap Clark for providing the inspiration and passion to effectively minister to students so they will have lasting Kingdom impact.