I was generally a good lad but a little cheeky - and still am. Mum and dad weren’t Christians, but the church had a real presence on our street and some of our close neighbours were regular attenders.
If it wasn’t for our local church being intentionally part of life on our street, I don’t think I’d be where I am today: simple posters displayed in their windows, offers of homemade buns to sell when me and my friends did garden sales for charity had a huge impact.
When I was ten I signed up to a summer football school run by the church. The deal was that in the mornings we were taught football skills, at lunchtime we trekked down to the church for Bible study before eating. We then listened to an inspirational talk from a leader before heading back out onto the field. Of course, I was there just for the football. It was the last day and the leader invited anyone who wanted, to give their lives to Jesus. I looked around and immediately thought to myself, ‘What is it about these people?’ I remember thinking: ‘You’ve got something that I don’t. I want what you’ve got!’ I prayed the prayer and gave my life to Jesus.
After the football school had finished, we were encouraged to carry on going to church. A couple of us did - I loved going each week with my next door neighbour who was also my best mate. We were the only ones our age. The tea and biscuits afterwards were OK but we stayed because people were interested in us - they wanted us there and asked how we were if we missed a week.
Every Friday night there was youth club, everyone from the street came out to spend the night together. It included typical stuff like games, tuck shop, life skills, the ‘God-slot’ and fun activities kept us going back each week. Sometimes it kicked off and there was the occasional window smashed in. I often found myself asking: ‘Why would you put all this stuff on for me? Why would you give up your Friday nights for me? Why would you put up with all of this?’
My youth workers then were not paid, not young, not professionally qualified. Now, as a youth worker myself I want to honour those who invested in me, put up with me and saw something in me. They taught me so much - stuff we can all learn from.
Be present - We need to be alert with our eyes wide open to who God has put around us. If we have no presence it’s difficult for people to know how to be present. Are we utilising the tools made available to us as youth workers to make our presence known in the community? What are our relationships like with our neighbours, schools, local organisations, local businesses, authorities and community groups? Who can we get alongside us, to help us get alongside others? A simple poster in a front window got me in. The church had access to a field and decided to use it to run a football school - many have come to know Jesus over the years through this one event: we’ve got to get in the faces of people where we live.
Be intentional - Are we content enough to live with the consequences of not being deliberate in our ministry? I believe this is a crucial issue not just for us as youth workers but for the UK Church today. We need to find our confidence in being bold and courageous. Are we telling young people the gospel message on a regular basis? How much space do we allow in the things we do: for the gospel to saturate and change young people’s lives? Or do we just wait and hope that one day ‘it will happen’ without doing anything about it? I’m not content to just run a youth session playing a few games of ping pong without talking about Jesus. This means living out the gospel through what we say and by how we live and then offering young people opportunities to invite Jesus into their lives. Young people will respond and invite Jesus into their lives if we create the opportunities.
We need to find our confidence in being bold and courageous. Are we telling young people the gospel message on a regular basis?
Be family - Young people today are living in a disconnected world but all they want is to be connected. Relationships are breaking down at an ever increasing rate and single parent families are on the rise. Young people are starving for family. As youth workers we can model what it means to be family. It starts with our team - we are a team of best friends. Our young people meet in small groups called house huddles in people’s homes, eat meals together, share and do life together. It’s about being relational. Are we too busy to be meeting with our young people one to one? I stuck with my faith because someone invested in me - someone sat down with me weekly and taught me the Bible. They took time out to disciple me. When we create family in our youth work, young people will want to be part of it.
As a ten year old boy I asked myself, ‘Why would you give up your Friday nights for me?’ I’m so thankful my youth workers did. Now, as a youth worker myself, I know why they did.
