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Is your ministry a TV SHOW?
Consider the Television Show. Consider the news. What is it’s purpose?
You might say to entertain or to inform. Maybe you’d even say that television shows are beautiful form of art.
But that’s not what they’re intended to be.
Television Shows are created with the intent of getting enough eyeballs facing the TV that a network can sell 30 second slots to companies. Companies use those slots to advertise their good/services in hopes that those sales will lead to a profit.
So television shows are – at their core – a simple bait-and-switch.
Reminds me of a the classic youth group all-nighter. Reminds me of the classic youth group ski trip.
HEY KIDS! COME TO THIS SUPER AWESOME EVENT AND BRING EVERYONE! (oh yeah, and don’t tell anyone, but we’re going to interupt this exciting event for a boring brief gospel presentation).
So let me know America. How’s the bait and switch been working for ya?
Show me some statistics over the last 25 years (since this whole youth ministry thing became a profession) regarding whether more or less teenagers are connected to a church. Show me how our “professionals” have done at helping teens faith stick once they get to college?
So, about that bait & switch thing….
WHY ARE WE STILL DOING IT!?!?!?!?!
Austin Young
DmL
Todd Hiestand
jason
Kris
Matt Flinner
Raf
Sam Mahlstadt
Brandon Mouser
Chad Estes
So what should we be doing?
Have a read of: http://paultilley.net/how-to-start-a-youth-ministry-from-scratch/
Here in the UK (and EU I guess), we are so far from ‘hey come to the great event in the church’ that we now just have to go to the young people are, on their patch and hope that they give us the time of day. Also ask local schools very nicely if we can come in and serve them! We no longer assume it a privilege for them to come to our great show, but see it as a privilege to go to them…maybe thats the direction the US has to start to think about?