Better than Dancing with the Stars!

Got this story from Jon Keller who took our class in St.Louis. This is such a great story i asked him if I could post it here. This is a beautiful picture of intergenerational youth ministry. Way to go Jon!

Mark,
I attended "Rethinking Traditional Youth Ministry Models" presented
by you and Brock in St Louis. Again, I thank you for your study
and research in this area. I have been uneasy about youth ministry
for the last several years and know a shift needs to happen. Personally
I believe the shift needs to move more toward family ministry and
inter-generational ministry.The other night I think I saw what this
kind of ministry should look like.

I have a daughter, Andrea who is 15 years old. This past spring a boy
at her school(Clayton)asked her if she would be interested in taking
Ballroom dancing lessons with him. She accepted the invitation and
they have been having a ball ever since.

At the start of this school year Clayton asked me if he could again ask
my daughter to take a second set of lessons with him. I told him he
was welcome to ask her but she would probably turn him down because
the lessons were on the same night as her small group. (My daughter
loves her small group!) That is why I was shocked when she told me
that she accepted Clayton's invitation again to take more Ballroom
dancing lessons.

Two weeks ago Clayton and Andrea invited my wife and I to go watch
them dance, so we went with them. I then understood why my
daughter chose to miss half her small group each Wednesday night to
go to dancing lessons. As we walked into the dance hall we were warmly
greeted. My wife and I took a place at a table at the back of the
dance floor and Andrea and Clayton took to the dance floor. Most of
the people there were forty or older. Andrea and Clayton were the
youngest in the crowd. During one dance Andrea and Clayton

were struggling with the steps. The next thing I saw was an older couple coming up to them - the gentleman took Andrea and the lady took Clayton and they
helped them learn the dance. After that dance Andrea and Clayton came
over to my wife and me. I told Andrea that it was nice of that older
couple to help them out with the last dance. She responded "Ha! We're
their favorites!" That is when it clicked for me. It just wasn't dance
lessons! Andrea and Clayton felt part of a community of caring
adults. This is why dance was as important to her as her small group!
Here was a group of adults passionate about Ballroom dancing and they
wanted to share their passion with the younger generation. I thought to
myself, "this is what youth ministry should look like!"

Later, two of the dance instructors invited my wife and me to the
dance floor. I am not a dancer and I tried to explain that to the
instructor, but she said that was okay, she would teach me. She soon
had me moving across the floor with her.

What an image for the Church and youth ministry.