I think that there is a general feeling among Christian youth workers that they spend a vast majority of their time doing things that they would rather not be doing. There are administrative tasks, planning for programs and of course…politics. You remember back to your interview and the dreams you had for a dynamic youth group. Of course the dreams have gotten lost in the nightmare of paperwork, phone calls from disapproving members of the congregation and apathetic youth. Now you can’t dream about changing the world with your young people, in fact, you may have even given up hope of changing your group.
What would happen though if you spent less time doing your job and more time investing in your passions? What you would have is a mess. A wonderful, complex, mysterious, confusing mess. Allow me to explain. I used to run some pretty unique and exciting programs. The kind of group that seemed to double in size every week. I had worked hard at getting a mobile drop-in center for youth housed in an antique double-decker bus. We were going into neighborhoods where there was little to do except get drunk behind the elementary school and break into people’s houses. We were making a difference in the lives of the kids on the streets. We had an abundance of money coming in and I had to turn away volunteers because I had too many. Then in a series of terrible events it all fell apart and I was left with nothing. I didn’t even have an office to go and sulk in.
I felt terrible because I had nothing to offer the youth anymore. I would see them around the neighborhood or at their school, but I didn’t know what to say to them. I didn’t have anything thing for them to get involved with and nothing to invite them to. I didn’t have video games systems. I didn’t have a youth group with a cool band. I didn’t have a bible study. I had nothings. I remember distinctly tagging along with some kids one day during their school lunch break. I just happened to be in the coffee shop that they stormed into and I invited myself to sit in on their conversation. They were talking about their drunken adventures from the weekend. I felt awkward and out of place. I didn’t want to preach at them and turn them off of church forever. So I started asking them questions and truly listening to their answers. “What do you think about the laws on the drinking age?” I asked. They went on to explain to me in great detail about how the drinking age should actually be raised from the local 19 to 21. They said that the adolescent brain can be permanently damaged from overuse of alcohol. Then I really felt like I had nothing to offer. Not even education of adolescent brain development. College seemed useless.
