It's not all about me.
I've been thinking that the biggest thing that needs to change is the way the ENTIRE CHURCH views the youth and the youth ministry. Here's where I get hung up. I hear how WE (as youthworkers) are supposed to connect kids more with their families and with the church. WE are supposed to get them integrated into creating and designing and owning the life of the whole church. I don't think that works. I'm busy building relationships with students. What I need is all the people who are the church to think of the students differently. Instead of approaching me and saying, "hey can you get a few youth to help with ....." they need to include, invite, approach, involve and relate to students just as they would to other adults. If I continue to be THE link between the youth and the church, nothing will ever change. People are happy with the one-eared mickey. They don't want that to go away, because then they will be relating directly with students that they may find unusual, annoying, or challenging. They want some token youth to be involved on their committee or join the adult choir so they can say they are reaching out to youth. They want to continue to pay me to run a great youth ministry program so they don't really have to spend much time thinking about young people. If new models and new ways are going to emerge, it can't be all about ME. I will need everyone in the church to start thinking differently. And how will that happen? Okay, maybe some of that does start with me, but not me just re-designing what I'm doing. In fact, I'm not even planning to re-design anything. I'm talking and praying and challenging and convincing and wondering. This could take a while.