Empowering Youth
Empowering Youth
Youth
        Focusing on Salvation and Service
                 Discipleship
Leadership
Missions
Evangelism
This material may be translated, printed, or photocopied by any Seventh-day Adventist entity without
securing further permission. Republished documents must include the credit line: “Youth Department,
General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, used by permission.
© 2001
General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
12501 Old Columbia Pike
Silver Spring, MD 20904, USA
                                         Contents
                      Introduction
                      Introduction...................................5
Chapter   2         OUTCOMES
                    OUTCOMES.....................................13
We have never fully realized the potential of this army of youth. At various times
in our history, at different places in the Adventist world, we’ve come close. We’ve
tapped into that potential army with tremendous results. But in too many places,
too much of the time, the “army of youth” remains an unrealized dream.
As youth leaders, we spend effort and energy trying to entertain our youth so they
won’t slip away from the church. We argue among ourselves about how to solve
the “problem” of our youth. We worry about their dress, their music, their
deportment, their games and movies and dates. It’s time we actually put our effort
towards mobilizing God’s army!
Our twofold focus as Adventist youth leaders must always be: Salvation and
Service. We work to introduce our young people to Jesus Christ so that they will
choose a saving relationship with Him for themselves. The second part of this
work, equally important, is to then train them to bring His message of love and
hope to others.
This handbook will focus on four keys to achieving the twin goals of Salvation
and Service:
!        Discipleship
!        Leadership
!        Missions
!        Evangelism
Ultimately, the leader we want our youth to follow is, of course, Jesus. As leaders,
we ourselves need to be Christ’s disciples. Then we need to encourage young
people to become our disciples, in order to teach them to follow Jesus. Paul said:
“Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1, NIV).
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This is akin to the concept of mentoring that is so popular in the business world,
but it goes much farther. Jesus’ commission was to “go and make disciples of all
nations.” The process of making a disciple involves sharing the values, lifestyle,
and priorities that we ourselves have learned from Jesus. Through this process, we
lead young people into their own saving relationship with Jesus, and we model a
life of service which they can take to the world.
It’s also what we need to develop in our young people. Our task is to become
effective leaders ourselves, and to train our youth to become leaders--leaders in
their peer group and their community, so that they can lead others to Jesus.
Missions Following Jesus’ example means doing the kind of loving service
           for others that He did.
We can give our young people countless opportunities to serve others both in their
own communities and around the world. Whether it’s mowing the grass for a
senior citizen, serving lunch at a soup kitchen, or building an orphanage in
another country, mission and service projects will draw our young people closer to
Jesus than any other activity we can plan for them.
Evangelism Reaching the world with His message is the ultimate goal of
              our Adventist youth ministry.
With our focus clearly on Salvation and Service, we need to provide evangelistic
opportunities for our own young people to make a decision for Jesus, and then
involve them in evangelism--both traditional and non-traditional--that will give
them the opportunity to share His message with others.
6
There should be an earnest desire in the heart of
every youth who has purposed to be a disciple of
Jesus Christ to reach the highest Christian
standard,to be a worker with Christ. (Ellen G.
White, God’s Amazing Grace, p. 284)
In a moment we’ll look at practical ways to achieve these four goals of leadership,
discipleship, mission/service, and evangelism. First, though, let’s see what effect
a focus on Salvation and Service for youth will have on the local church, on you
as the youth leader, and on the youth themselves.
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                                                              Chapter 1
          Adventurer-aged children are the very youngest of our “youth,” but they
are not too young for Salvation and Service. Your Adventurer ministry should take
advantage of the natural energy, enthusiasm and curiosity of children in this age
group. Parents, church school teachers, and Sabbath School teachers all have an
important role to play in introducing children of this age to Jesus and to the joy of
serving Him. Children in this age group are old enough to understand the concepts
of sin and salvation if they are explained simply and clearly, and are old enough to
make a commitment to Jesus for themselves.
          This is an ideal age to begin a lifetime of service activities. Children in
this age group are usually eager to help others and will find service projects fun
and interesting.
         Young people enter the Pathfinder years with the wide-eyed eagerness
and enthusiasm of elementary-school children; they leave those years as
sophisticated high-school aged teenagers. During the Pathfinder years, children
go through the tremendous physical and social changes of early adolescence. They
begin to separate their own identity from that of their families, and begin to
identify more with their peers than with their parents.
         Early adolescents often become bored with church activities and may
sometimes rebel against family and church standards. An active Pathfinder Club,
supported by a good junior and earliteen Sabbath School program, can help to keep
youth of this age involved and interested in the church.
         During these years, most children raised in Adventist homes will face the
decision of whether or not to be baptized. Baptism often occurs during the years
between 10 and 15; in fact, the average of age of baptism in the Adventist church
is about 10.8 years (The ABZs of Adventist Youth Ministry). Encourage young
people to wait until they fully understand the significance of a commitment to Jesus
and the responsibilities of church membership.
         As you lead youth in this age group to make a commitment to Jesus
through baptism, give them many opportunities to become involved in service.
Effective service projects can pierce through adolescent apathy and help young
people see that their faith is meaningful and relevant.
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High School (ages 14-18)
          The high school age group overlaps with the Pathfinder age group by a
few years, as some 14 and 15 year olds may begin to feel they are “too old” for
Pathfinders and may identify themselves more as secondary school students.
Teens in this age group are challenging to work with but also very rewarding.
          Social development becomes a central concern during these years.
Teenagers are eager to be identified with their peer group and many will do almost
anything to be “involved.” Your youth ministry at this age must have a strong
social component to provide positive peer associations. This can be a special
challenge in small churches where many young people leave home to attend a
Seventh-day Adventist academy.
          Young people in this age group may have made a decision to follow Jesus,
but they face new challenges in living up to that commitment as they are presented
with the powerful temptations of youth culture. Peer pressure to engage in
substance abuse, premarital sex, and illegal activity can be very strong. It’s
important for youth to experience a positive, Christian peer influence, and to learn
spiritual disciplines which can keep their relationship with Jesus alive.
          As with younger adolescents, high-school aged teens may find special
relevance in service opportunities, which give them the opportunity to see how
faith can make a difference in the real world.
           This can be a challenging age group, especially for those who don’t
attend an Adventist college. Young adults generally consider themselves too old
for “youth group” activities, yet they may not yet be comfortable taking an “adult”
role in the church. Those at the beginning of this age bracket, particularly, may
feel that there is no place for them in the church, unless the church actively works
at making them part of its ministry.
           Young-adult ministry must be young-adult led and driven. An older
adult may play a role as a supporter and advisor, but young adults will feel most
comfortable in a program where they have ownership.
           Remember that this broad age group includes a very diverse group of
people with differing needs. It will include students at public colleges and
universities, students on Adventist campuses, young people beginning their
working careers, single people, young married couples, couples with children, and
single parents.
           No “one-size-fits-all” ministry can possibly meet the needs of all the
young adults in your church, but as you get to know them and build relationships
with them, you can help the young adults and the church as a whole develop
programs and ministries that will use their talents and meet their needs. During
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these crucial years, young adults are making their major life decisions--which career
to prepare for, whom to marry, where to live and work. Among those life decisions,
the choice to accept salvation in Jesus should be the most important. If this choice
was made earlier in the teen years, a young adult may now need to reaffirm that
commitment with the added maturity and understanding he or she now has.
          Help your young adults learn to use their unique gifts to reach out to
others in service--especially to others of their own age. At this age “service”
should become more than just an occasional outreach activity--it should be the
basis for a lifestyle of servanthood. Young adults can be encouraged to find their
own ministry, in the church or in the community, where they can make service to
God as much a part of their lives as family and career.
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                                                             Chapter 2
OUTCOMES
If we keep the goals of Salvation and Service clearly in mind as we work with our
youth, and organize our ministry around the four key elements of discipleship,
leadership, service and evangelism, we can expect to see results. Here are some
of the outcomes you will want your youth work to achieve.
With a Salvation and Service oriented youth ministry, the local church becomes
a training ground. Youth ministry will be most effective when everyone in the
congregation--pastor, parents, church school teachers, and even those members
who have little direct contact with youth--shares the goal of saving our young
people, and leading them into service for Christ. The outcomes of such an
emphasis will affect all four areas: leadership, discipleship, missions, and
evangelism.
Discipleship Outcomes
A church whose emphasis is clearly on Salvation and Service for youth will
disciple young people into a growing relationship with Jesus. In this church:
!         The pastor will preach sermons that appeal to young people, and will
spend time getting to know youth in the congregation.
!         The church school teachers will be involved in the life of the church so
that they interact with the young people not just at school, but in spiritual and
social activities too.
!         The parents will be faithful in bringing their children and young people
to Sabbath School, church and related activities, and will have input into the
activities that are planned for their young people.
!         The church members will interact with youth in a positive, friendly way,
greeting them enthusiastically, praying for them, giving positive reinforcement
when youth are involved in a program or church activity, and restraining the urge to
judge and criticize
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   Leadership        Outcomes
   A church whose emphasis is clearly on Salvation and Service for youth will lead
   youth and train them for leadership. In this church:
   !         The nominating committee will choose youth and young adults to fill
   real and significant roles in church life--not just “token” positions.
   !         The elders and platform co-ordinators will invite children and youth to be
   up front participating in the service each Sabbath.
   !         The church board will encourage youth activities and include youth
   representation.
   !         The finance committee will make spending on youth activities and
   projects a priority
   !         The youth leaders, Pathfinder/Adventurer leaders, and Sabbath
   School teachers will know that their work is valued and appreciated by the whole
   congregation.
   !         The church board and finance committee will support youth service
   projects, such as short-term mission trips, and youth evangelism initiatives.
   !         The parents, church members, and pastor will work alongside youth
   and their leaders in service projects.
   !         The community services department, personal ministries department,
   and other relevant ministries in the church will make use of the talents of young
   people in their outreach to the community.
   !         The pastor and church members will be warm and welcoming to all
   non-Adventist friends and visiting youth who attend church or church activities,
   regardless of their background, beliefs, style of dress or deportment.
A greater work than has ever been done must be done for the young. They must be
won with sympathy and love; all barriers must be broken down between them and
those who would help them. The most good is not accomplished by long speeches
and many words of exhortation or reproof. The greatest tact must be
manifested....Jesus is drawing the youth, and we must all work with him, putting
no forbidding aspects upon our holy religion....We must seek to press the young,
with all their fresh vigor and ability, into the ranks of Christ, enlisting them as valiant
soldiers in the great fight for truth. We have sadly neglected our duty toward the
young, for we have not gathered them in, and induced them to put out their talents
to the exchanges. A different mold should be placed upon the work. There should
be less sermonizing and more personal labor....A great work can be done by
dropping a word privately to your young friends, to those you meet in your daily
walks.
(Ellen G. White, Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, September 17, 1914            1914)
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Outcomes For the Youth Leaders
In the “Salvation and Service” model of youth ministry, the role of the youth leader
is primarily that of a trainer. His or her goal is not primarily to provide a “program”
for the youth, though program planning is essential. The youth leader’s main goal
is to train the young people to take leadership and ownership of the youth ministry
for themselves. This goal touches on all aspects of youth ministry: leadership,
discipleship, service/missions, and evangelism.
Discipleship Outcomes
A youth leader whose emphasis is clearly on Salvation and Service for young
people will be a disciple of Jesus who understands his or her role in making new
disciples. This youth leader will:
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!        Form positive, mentoring relationships with the young people under his
or her care. This will involve getting to know the youth, spending time with them
outside of planned church activities, counseling them when necessary, and making
sure the youth program has enough adult leadership so that each young person
can have a close relationship with at least one adult.
Leadership Outcomes
A youth leader whose emphasis is clearly on Salvation and Service for young
people will lead and train young people to be leaders as well. This youth leader
will:
!        Develop his or her leadership skills through the use of any and all
resources possible--books, manual, handbooks, magazine articles, seminars,
workshops, contact with other youth leaders. Have a clear sense of the Salvation
and Service mission of this youth ministry, and a vision for what the youth under
his or her care can become.
!        Plan ahead for youth activities. When the focus is clearly on Salvation
and Service, programs will not be planned simply for the sake of filling time or
keeping youth entertained. Rather, all programs should be well-prepared and
evaluated to make sure that they fit into the overall goals of the ministry.
!         Empower his or her young people for leadership. Learn what spiritual
gifts and natural abilities each of the young people has, then train them to employ
those gifts in leadership. Provide young people with the necessary resources,
skills, and support to do the job well, then step back and allow them to do it.
A youth leader whose emphasis is clearly on Salvation and Service for young
people will prepare them to serve others and to spread Jesus’ message throughout
their world. This youth leader will:
!       Mobilize young people for service within the church, the community,
and the world. Discover what needs exist and how the youth can help fill them,
and, again, learn what gifts, interests, and skills the youth have that can be
employed in service.
(Adapted from Seven Principles for Youth Ministry Excellence: Practical Strategies to Turn Yourself and Your Youth
into Leaders. Jim Feldbush and William Hurtado, North American Division Youth Ministries, 1999.)
When we focus clearly on Salvation and Service, our young people will have a
different, and more positive, experience with the church. If we put our emphasis
primarily on keeping the youth entertained, keeping them out of trouble, or
keeping them in the church, their experience may be mainly a negative one. They
may focus on everything they “can’t” do as Seventh-day Adventist young people.
When our emphasis is on leading them to a saving relationship with Jesus and
training them to serve others, they will begin to focus on all that they can do.
Discipleship Outcomes
Youth who have been trained with a Salvation and Service outlook will have a
growing relationship with Jesus--they will become disciples. These young people
will:
!        Develop their own relationship with Jesus. This is always first and
foremost. Each young person must be clearly taught what it means to accept Jesus
as Savior, and have the opportunity to do so. Then, the role of the youth leader and
other significant adults within the church is to mentor them into a growing
relationship with the Lord that includes an active devotional life.
Leadership Outcomes
Youth who have been trained with a Salvation and Service outlook will become
leaders for Christ. These young people will:
!        Develop a positive view of the church and their role in it. Our youth must
come to see “the church”--both the local congregation and the worldwide Seventh-
day Adventist movement--as an organization that is relevant to them and to their
world, an organization in which they have a valued and important place and a role
to fill.
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!        Discover their own spiritual gifts. Each person has gifts given to them by
the Holy Spirit. These gifts, along with each person’s own natural talents, abilities,
and interests, will allow each young person to have his or her own unique ministry
for Jesus within the church and the world.
Missions Outcomes
Youth who have been trained with a Salvation and Service outlook will be able
to move beyond the natural self-centeredness of youth and recognize the needs of
others. These young people will:
Evangelism Outcomes
Youth who have been trained with a Salvation and Service outlook will have a
genuine experience with Jesus that they will want to share. These young people
will:
!        Share Jesus’ love with others. Youth who are “on fire” for God will
want to spread that love to their friends and their communities. A good church
youth program will give them the training and opportunities they need to begin
sharing. If their youth program creates a pleasant, welcoming atmosphere, young
people will feel encouraged to bring their friends to church activities and so begin
sharing the gospel with them.
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                                                         Chapter                  3
                               Discipleship                    Strategies
We have established that we should focus on Salvation and Service, employing
the four key elements of discipleship, leadership, missions and evangelism to reach
our goals. But what does this mean in practical terms? When we as youth leaders
look at our monthly or yearly calendars and plan activities for our young people,
how do we fit those activities into a Salvation and Service strategy? What
programming ideas do we use to achieve our outcomes?
Discipleship
         Our first and most important goal is always the salvation of our youth--
leading each one to personally accept Jesus as Savior and grow in a relationship
with Him. The programs and activities we do as part of our youth work should
never be done just for their own sake, but always with the clear goal of discipleship
in mind. We should use every event, every youth activity, to make disciples for
Jesus.
Commitment
Prayer
Personal Devotions
          When most people think of “the church” they think immediately of the
Sabbath worship service. This is our common denominator, the thing we all share-
-yet it is often not as meaningful as it could be for our youth. And because of
disagreement over appropriate worship styles, the worship service often becomes
a source of conflict between older and younger church members.
          What you consider appropriate for worship depends on many factors,
including cultural considerations--a worship service that is appropriate in one
place or within one cultural group, might make a visitor feel very uncomfortable
because the style of music, preaching, or congregational response is not what the
visitor is familiar with.
          It’s impossible to dictate a single “right” way to worship. As we strive to
remain true to Biblical ideals and to make our worship meaningful to as many
people as possible, we can agree on a few generalizations:
         Balancing the needs of your young people with those of the rest of the
church family may not be easy, but it is important. Encourage your church to
involve children, youth and young adults up front in the worship service as much
as possible. Include elements in the program that will appeal to them. Have
special Sabbaths on a regular basis during which the program is presented entirely
by the children, the youth group, or the Pathfinder Club.
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          Some large churches have addressed the issue of differing worship styles
by presenting two different worship services at different times on Sabbath--one for
those who favor a traditional worship style and one for younger members and
visitors who like a more contemporary approach. If your congregation has sharply
differing worship needs and such an approach is not practical, do your best to
encourage everyone to work together to find a worship style that will include and
involve the youth. If your church has a worship committee, be sure it includes
young people
Sabbath School
AY Meetings
Adventist Lifestyle
Spiritual Gifts
          God the Holy Spirit gives gifts to every believer. Your young people may
not feel gifted, but your job is to help them discover and develop their gifts. Study
the topic of spiritual gifts with them, using relevant Bible passages such as
Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4. If possible, use a spiritual gifts
test or inventory to help your youth discover their gifts.
          (Many good spiritual gifts inventories are available: for a good list, check
with www.plusline.org. Their listings include some inventories specifically
designed for Seventh-day Adventists, such as Spiritual Gifts: Keys to Ministry by
James Zackrison, as well as many general Christian resources on the topic. A
spiritual gifts inventory designed especially for young people is Discover Your
Gifts and Learn How to Use Them, by Ruth Vander Zee, published by CRC
Publications).
          Since Luther Warren and Harry Fenner began the very first Adventist
Youth Society in 1879, young people and their adult leaders have recognized that
social activities are an important part of any youth program. In that first AY Society
in Hazelton Michigan, social activities consisted of sleigh rides, taffy pulls, and
other nineteenth-century amusements. In the twenty-first century, our list of
26
attractive and interesting recreation activities has changed (and is dependent on
the culture in which we live). What has not changed is the central fact that social
relationships are tremendously important to young people, and that a large part of
our responsibility as youth leaders is to create opportunities for Christian young
people to fellowship together.
          Sometimes we may feel that social activities are frivolous or irrelevant
when our goal is the salvation of our youth and their training in service. While it’s
true that youth need far more than simply to be entertained, we cannot ignore their
social needs. Young people form strong bonds of friendship with each other, and
older teens begin the serious dating relationships that often lead to marriage. If
recreational opportunities are not available within the church, young people will
look elsewhere for enjoyable activities to share with their friends. If we do provide
these kind of activities, we not only encourage them to be involved in healthy,
positive activities, we also promote the kind of Christian friendships that will help
our youth grow spiritually.
          Social activities are not irrelevant, but central, to our twin goals of
Salvation and Service.
         Another aspect of youth ministry that has been part of Adventist youth
work almost since the beginning is the idea of the youth congress or youth rally-
-a gathering of young people from across a large geographical area for worship,
Bible study, fellowship and/or outreach.
         Youth rallies can be small-scale events planned within a specific group
of churches, conference or region, or they can be large-scale congresses including
youth from across an entire union or division of the world church. Youth rallies
and congresses provide a valuable opportunity for Seventh-day Adventist youth to
meet others who share their beliefs and outlook, and participate in activities that
will build their faith and their connection to the church. This is particularly
important for Adventist youth from small churches who may feel isolated and
disconnected in a church with only a handful of young people.
         Many youth rallies and congresses also include an element of community
outreach, the idea being that the Adventist young people have something to offer
to the community in which they meet. For example, the one-day youth congress
that ran during the 2000 General Conference Session in Toronto, Canada, was
preceded by the week-long “Impact Toronto 2000" youth ministry event in which
young people participated in a variety of outreach ministries directed at the people
of Toronto.
         With the heightened atmosphere and excitement that youth rallies and
congresses often provide, combined with the high-quality speakers and presenters
usually found at these events, these can often be good opportunities for your
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young people to make a commitment or re-commitment of their lives to Christ.
However, it’s important for you as a local youth leader to follow up on events like
this with your youth, to make sure that these commitments are not one-time
occurrences but are the foundation for a growing Christian experience.
Prayer Conferences
          The prayer conference is a particularly type of youth rally that has been
gaining popularity in recent years. Like a traditional youth rally, the prayer
conference brings together Adventist young people across a geographical area.
Unlike the traditional youth rally, the focus is not primarily on fellowship,
recreation, or preaching, but on prayer. Young people have the opportunity to
practice the power of prayer individually and in small groups.
          While young people always enjoy attending “big” events, today’s youth
can sometimes be cynical or distant about some of the large-scale activities at a
youth rally or youth congress. It’s easy for them to distance themselves and remain
uninvolved. A prayer conference, with its emphasis on small groups and
individual involvement, can break through this barrier and make a larger impact
on sophisticated, postmodern young people.
          Youth who attend prayer conferences usually return eager to share the
power of prayer with those “back home.” A prayer conferences can be the
beginning of an exciting revival for the young people in your church.
          Another special even that often gives young people a chance to take a
stand for Jesus is the Week of Prayer or Week of Spiritual Emphasis. These are
usually yearly or twice-yearly events at Seventh-day Adventist schools or within
church youth groups. Most schools or churches will bring in a special youth
speaker for a week of daily meetings. These meetings can be good opportunities to
challenge young people to accept Jesus or move to a higher level in their
relationship with Him.
          Some young people may be bored with a traditional Week of Prayer
format in which a speaker preaches a sermon every day. There are many new and
innovative approaches you can try to make a week of spiritual emphasis more
meaningful. These might include having a speaker who uses a more hands-on,
interactive approach with games and activities. Your Week of Spiritual Emphasis
might center on small-group meetings, or include an outreach project.
          Many schools and churches successfully turn the Week of Spiritual
Emphasis over to the young people themselves, giving them the opportunity to
speak and lead out. Week of Prayer sermons are provided for youth just as they are
for adults in the church, and youth speakers may make use of these resources. The
AY Week of Prayer sermons for the Junior Youth and Senior/Young Adults are
published every year in the Youth Ministry Accent Magazine with enough time to
allow the translation of the World Divisions into all major languages worldwide.
          A youth-led Week of Prayer develops leadership talents and other
spiritual gifts, though the quality of presentation may be more uneven than with
a professional speaker. Hearing a young person speak may make more of an
impact on other youth in the audience.
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                                                              Chapter 4
Leadership Strategies
A youth leader who is committed to the Salvation and Service model of youth
ministry will be motivated to train young people for leadership in the youth group,
in the church, and in the community. Here are some practical suggestions for
developing leadership skills in your young people.
Involvement
          Young people are interested in programs and activities for which they
feel a sense of ownership. They are generally not interested in having pre-
packaged programs delivered to them by an adult leader. If we think back to the
very foundations of the Adventist Youth movement, we’ll remember that our
movement began with teenage leadership. We have the opportunity to help train
the Luther Warrens and Harry Fenners of this century.
          At every level, involve young people in the planning of your youth
program. Their level of involvement and responsibility will, of course, increase
with age, and the tasks you assign them should always be age-appropriate.
Younger Pathfinder-aged children may not be able to take on as much
responsibility as older youth, but they can still be involved in planning for a
campout, a social, or a service project. As a general guideline, it’s usually safe to
assume that a young person is ready to shoulder responsibility sooner than we
assume he or she will be!
          Give your young people a role in planning your worship, your social
activities, your outreach activities. Provide them with the necessary support to
ensure they can do the job, then stand back and allow them to do it. Youth will be
much m ore motivated to participate in and support a program if they think it is
theirs. Establish an AY Society executive, a youth council or youth leadership
team, a spiritual life committee for your school, a student association, a campus
Adventist Club--and encourage your young people to guide and direct the program
themselves.
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When young men and women are sober-minded and cultivate piety
and devotion, they will let their light shine forth to others, and there
will be vital power in the church. It would be well to have an hour
appointed for Bible study, and let the youth, both converted and
unconverted, gather together for prayer and for the relation of their
experiences. The youth should have a chance to give expression to
their feelings. It would be well to have a judicious leader chosen at
first, one who will talk little and encourage a great deal, by dropping
a word now and then to help and strengthen the youth in the
beginning of their religious experiences. After they have had a little
experience, let one of their number take the leadership, and then
another, and in this way let workers be educated that will meet the
approval of God.
      (Ellen G. White, Counsels on Sabbath School Work, p. 69    69)
  Training
           If any one of these six key elements is missing, young people may have a
  negative experience with leadership and be reluctant to try again.
Leadership Styles
           There are several different ways to define “leadership styles,” but it’s
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important to recognize that both you and your young people will lead in different
ways depending on the kind of people you are. Different leadership styles may be
appropriate in different situations.
          Three major leadership styles are sometimes defined as: autocratic
(maintains total control of every situation); democratic (allows everyone in the
group to have input and work together towards goals); and laissez-faire (takes no
control and allows everyone to do whatever they like). If we look only at these three
styles, it should be obvious that a democratic style of leadership is most
appropriate. Neither autocratic or laissez-faire leadership will lead to the
salvation of our youth and their training for service.
          It might be more helpful, however, to look at leadership styles as a
continuum. While extreme autocratic leadership is usually damaging, there will
be situations where you, as a leader, will need to take a more strongly authoritarian
role, particularly when launching a new project or idea. The level of involvement
of group members can vary depending on what goals you are trying to achieve.
You will never want a completely laissez-faire leadership style in which everyone
mills about with no purpose, but there will be situations--for example, some social
activities--in which the need for strong leadership is minimal and the focus can
simply be on everyone enjoying themselves.
          You will find that as you train your youth to become leaders, their
personal leadership styles will fall at different points along this continuum. Some
youth have very strong ideas about how thing should be done, and when put into
leadership positions, they assume an autocratic style. Others are so timid and
unsure of their own leadership skills that they give no leadership at all and produce
a laissez-faire environment. Your job is to help them become strong, democratic
leaders while using them in situations where their natural style is most
appropriate. Your strong-willed, autocratic young woman could be put in charge
of a challenging fund-raising campaign for your mission trip, while the quiet,
unsure boy might be asked to plan a trip to the beach where the main responsibility
is inviting everyone to show up and bring food.
Delegating
           “If you want something done well, do it yourself,” the saying goes--and
though we might not admit it, many of us agree with that! We find it frustrating
to delegate tasks to others, knowing they may not be done well. It’s especially
difficult to give up the reins of control to young people, since the results are often
mixed when an inexperienced youth takes over.
           Remember that training your youth to serve is a more important goal than
producing a perfect result. Guide and support where you can, but don’t be afraid to
take your hands off the steering wheel and delegate responsibility to your youth.
They may surprise you with their results! Even when they are not successful, they
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will learn from the process.
          When you put youth in leadership roles, they, too will often be tempted to
do everything themselves. Encourage them to delegate to others in the group--this
will create even more potential leaders!
     Though not every young person will shine in an individual leadership role,
anyone can develop their skills as part of a leadership team. If your church has an
active Adventist Youth Society, the AY executive can provide this opportunity. In
a large church with many youth, you can have many different young people fill the
various roles on the AY executive committee. A young person who might not be
an assertive “leader” type might use his musical gifts to fill the role of chorister,
or use her gift of friendliness to serve as fellowship or social leader.
     If the highly structured format of the AY Society executive does not meet the
needs of your church, you may establish a more informal “youth council.” This,
too, would involve young people as well as youth leaders, and would provide
opportunities for youth to use many different gifts in planning and carrying out the
youth work in your church.
     It’s vital that youth be involved in the church’s youth program, but if that is
their only involvement in church life, they may begin to feel like they are placed
on the sidelines. Comments like, “This church doesn’t have any place for us,” or
“We don’t feel we’re important to the church” are commonplace.
     Encourage your church nominating committee to place young people in roles
of real significance within the church. Of course it is important that the
responsibilities given to youth be age-appropriate, but by the time a young person
is in high school, and often sooner, he or she is well able to serve on church
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committees such as social committee, personal ministries, health and temperance,
and many others. Young people can assist in children’s Sabbath School divisions,
and senior youth can be leaders in the Pathfinder or Adventurer Clubs. Some
churches like to assign youth to the roles of junior deacons and deaconesses, while
other (often smaller) churches use young people as full-fledged deacons and
deaconesses.
    When youth have been assigned to offices in the church, you as a youth
leader can offer to help and mentor them in filling those roles, especially if they are
not already working with a competent adult leader. Make sure they understand
what is expected of them and help them develop the skills to do the job well.
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36
                                                             Chapter 5
Mission Strategies
     Volunteers are the backbone of any community. Don’t be afraid to take your
youth outside the church environment to work with other churches and service
organizations within your community. Whether it’s serving lunch at a soup
kitchen, singing to elderly people in a nursing home, shovelling snow-covered
sidewalks or mowing lawns for shut-ins, visiting with children at an orphanage,
visiting or volunteering in nursing homes, or helping build homes for low-income
families, your youth can make a positive impact on the community. Furthermore,
people in your community will learn that Seventh-day Adventist young people can
be counted on to help.
     Get in touch with groups and organizations in your community that need
volunteers. Find projects that match the skills and interests of your young people,
set up a volunteer opportunity, and be on hand to model enthusiastic participation.
     The King will reply, “I tell you the truth, whatever you
     did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you
     did for me.” (Matthew 25:40, NIV)
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Supermission / Impact / Storm Company
YouthNet
38
Short Term Mission Projects
     These projects are probably the single most powerful tool for giving young
people a vision of service and changing their perspective on their own spiritual
lives and the needs of the world. Each year, thousands of Seventh-day Adventist
young people travel to an area, usually outside their own country, where they can
work for a week or two on a service project. These projects may involve building,
repair work, evangelism or outreach. Youth groups and schools often work with
organizations such as Maranatha or ADRA to plan short-term mission
opportunities for their young people. If you have the opportunity to take a group
of young people on a short-term mission trip, you will never regret the experience.
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40
                                                              Chapter 6
Evangelism Strategies
     As a youth leader, your most fertile field for evangelism is right in your youth
group. Young people within the group who have not yet accepted Jesus as their
Savior, or who have not yet been baptized, need opportunities to make these
commitments. The youth in your group who are already committed to Jesus can
begin their evangelistic work by sharing their faith with their own friends within
the group. The witness of another young person can be powerful and effective.
     When we talk about “evangelism” with our youth we should, of course, look
outside our church family to try to win others to Christ. But we should never
neglect the unsaved youth within our own “fold.” Take time to talk to them about
Jesus, about the doctrines of the church, about baptism. Provide opportunities,
such as Weeks of Spiritual Emphasis and other events (discussed in more detail
under “Discipleship strategies”) where they will have the chance to respond to an
invitation for commitment.
Bible Studies
    All young people, especially those from unchurched backgrounds, need some
in-depth Bible study, either one-on-one or in a small group setting, before they are
ready for baptism. You should be prepared yourself to study the Bible with your
young people, and you can also train them to lead other youth in Bible studies. If
you have studied the concept of spiritual gifts with your youth you will know that
some of them have a gift for teaching or explaining the Bible. Armed with a good
Bible-study course and paired with an adult mentor with whom they can work
closely, your young people can become skilled at sharing Jesus through Bible
studies.
Friendship Evangelism
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