Discipleship?
Our minstry to students has a simple motto --"Disciples Making Disciples." With a foundation in the great commandment and challenged by the great commission, we exist as a mission to middle school, high school, and college students. It is our hope that students would follow Jesus Christ as disciples and in the process guide their peers to do the same.
Recently, I read two articles by
Mike Yaconelli (owner of Youth Specialties) regarding the topic of student discipleship. Here are a few excerpts, as well as links to the full articles:
In
Hurried Discipleship he says,
"
I disagree with the popular practice of involving young people in an intense regimen of Bible study, prayer, worship, leadership, evangelism and accountability where young people are challenged to "take the campus for Christ," "be radical for Jesus," and "give 110%."
I know; I know. How could any Bible-believing Christian not believe in a youth ministry that encourages young people to be "on fire for Jesus?"
Well, of course I’m in favor of young people knowing Jesus. What I’m not in favor of is young people doing Jesus because what most youth oriented discipleship programs are about is doing—reading the Bible, praying, worshipping, attending, leading, and evangelizing with no mention of intimacy, waiting, listening, noticing, and paying attention.
Youth-oriented discipleship programs have reduced disciples to cheerleaders and political organizers. Discipleship has been turned into a measurable, external activity instead of an immeasurable, internal lack of activity. Spending time evangelizing has replaced spending time with Jesus, and sharing our faith with others has replaced growing in our faith with Jesus. But there is another, more serious problem.
Young people are…well…young, which means they are immature, confused by their hormones, inexperienced, naïve and idealistic. None of these qualities are "bad," in fact, they are wonderful gifts of youth that are needed in the church, but they are not neutral. Simply put, discipleship is a lifelong process, not a youth activity. "
and in
Disciple Abuse he says,
"
I don't believe in student discipleship.
I believe in encouragement, affirmation, education, service, and study. I believe in relationship, community, and fellowship. I believe in training, beginning, starting, and learning. I believe in praying together, playing together, talking together, hanging together, and living life together, but I don't believe in "pouring my life into a student." I believe in showing my life to a student and living my life in front of a student; I don't believe in discipling young people.
Young people are too…well…young to be disciples.
Apprentices? Of course. Beginners? Sure. Trainees? Interns? Absolutely. But not disciples.
We've convinced adults and parents that we have a program that can produce disciples. We perpetuate the illusion that we can take 13-year-olds and make disciples out of them. We actually act as though we can transform a group of inconsistent, uncommitted adolescents into mature, committed disciples by spending an extra hour or two a week with them.
Not possible."
Although I disagree with Yak's assertion that teenagers are too young to be disciples (even some of Jesus' twelve are thought to have been young men) and probably even his explanation of "
discipling young people", his thoughts are worth some investigation. Youth Ministry is not about filling in blanks and doing stuff, it's about calling students to life-long, intimate, and sometimes messy followship, or as I would say
Discipleship. And that means even at 13. But, as Yak points out, this takes time- lots of time. The strange thing is that the true evidence of our effectiveness in disciple making, or even beginning this process will not come for many years after students have left our youth groups.
0 Responses to “”
Leave a Reply