Youth Ministry 3.0

I am reading a book right now by a guy named Mark Oestreicher who is the President of Youth Specialties. The book is a brief history of Youth Ministry, and then a brief look at where he thinks Youth Ministry is headed/Where it needs to go. Oestreicher does a great job of retelling the progress we have made in Student Ministry in the past 50 years. He also is very transparent about the mistakes he feels like he has made during his tenure in Student Ministry.

One of the sections in the book that stood out to me the most was a chapter entitled, "So... How Do We Get There?" In this chapter Mark offers up his thoughts on how Ministries need to adapt and grow how they minister to students. The part that really impressed me was when he talked about being communional (which is way to hard to say). He isn't talking about communion, he is talking about the process of really and truly doing life together. The reason he didn't simply say community, was because he didn't feel like that word summed up all that he was trying to say. Being Communional is not something that happens easily. Here is what he had to say.

Communion is Small
It bears repeating that communion rarely, if ever, occurs in a large setting.

Communion is Slow
It is not rushed. It doesn't happen over night- in fact it's annoyingly patient. Communion doesn't happen on our timetables at all, and it will internally resist all forms of quantification.

Communion is Simple
Not simple to create, but simple in its DNA. It's not flashy. It doesn't flourish with booster shots of technology.

Communion is Fluid
It won't be boxed or sold as a resource or presented as a 40 day plan. It shies away from being defined. It beautifully morphs into variant vibes, seasons, and shapes.

Communion is Present
It demands face time. It hungers for listening. It salivates for shared experience. It lives in the here and now.

(Excerpt from pg 106 of YOUTH MINISTRY 3.0 by Mark Oestreicher)

One of our big adjustments to Rel Community this year goes along the same lines. Last year we tried to put 3 adult leaders with every 12 students. They would meet together and we would tell the leaders to shepherd and mentor those 12 students. This year we still tried to do the 3 leaders for 12 students, but instead of just saying, "Be sure to saty in touch with this 12 students.", We went a step further. This year in each of our groups we are matching 1 leader up with 4 of those 12 students. It is a whole lot easier for a group leader to mentor and develop Rel Community with 4 students instead of 12. They still have group time with all 12 students, but during the week each leader just has around 4 students that they need to be sure to check in with, pray for, and encourage.

I am sure that this change will take some time to start working. I have already heard about some cool things coming out of it. What Mark Oestreicher said about communion being a tough thing to develop is true though. In student ministry our group leaders plant and water a lot of seeds with the hope and prayer, that it will lead to making a difference in a students life. They work really hard, wuth no guarantees that their work will pay off. That's why I appreciate our group leaders so much. They have faith that God will cause lifechange in students lives, if they keep pouring into those students.