Young Life is a huge part of my life as I have been involved in it since I was in sixth grade, and am now a leader in Sharpsville. It is such an amazing organization that meets kids where they are at and shares the gospel with them. Middle and high school are such crucial parts of life that can determine the trajectory of the rest of your life. Hearing about a God that loves you at any age is the greatest news you can hear. I feel like this is especially true for teenagers because of the pressure and need to feel accepted by others.
The story of Young Life begins with a prayer group that prayed for teenagers at the local high school. In 1939 Clyde Kennedy realized how disengaged the local teenagers are with the traditional church. He decided something must be done so he hired Jim Rayburn to work for the church and reach these teenagers. Jim created Young Life club which is held at a kid’s house involving songs, a skit, and a short talk about Jesus. Teens who decided to come to Christ then became in Campaigners, a discipleship group with the leaders. The best way he discovered to reach kids was to meet them where they are at and become friends with them. There is much more to the story of Young Life, but just getting it up and running is a feat in itself.
What started with a prayer group has turned into seven different ministries reaching a specific group of people whether that be people with special needs or middle schoolers. They also have expanded their properties to hold Young Life Camp. Six days of fun with friends where you get to hear about Jesus. Clyde and Jim’s vision to reach teenagers was extremely entrepreneurial as they have found unique ways to reach them and share the love of Christ with them. Ministry is very entrepreneurial as you are discovering new and engaging ways to reach people. We can clearly see this with Young Life.
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This is amazing! I must admit that I am not very well-informed about the Young Life ministry. I had no idea that it has 7 different ministries, but I love how this exemplifies the concept of contextualization from class. It really is incredible that they were able to launch a full ministry from a single prayer group. Young Life has been so influential to so many people I know, but I love that its mission is to step into kids' lives and love them where they are in life.
This blog post was written very well and was so informative. First and foremost great job. Secondly I had heard of this organization through friends and family but didn't have a clue it has 7 different ministries. That is amazing. Lastly, this organization really symbolizes contextualization at it finniest and displays a lot of what we talk about in class. This organization is going to have a bright future and influence so many people. Cannot wait to see what God will do in the future for Young Life!
Yes! I love New Life! And I love the part where you say that this organization focuses on the vision of us being able to meet people where they are right now. Not when its convenient for us. Not when they have already started on the right path. Not in 5 years when they enter the next stage of their life, but RIGHT NOW. Make the decision to enter into their lives right now and work to help them move forward where they currently are no matter what they are struggling with. And sometimes this is not the easiest thing for us to do, but it is so important for us to do. We can say we want to help all we want but until we actually do something it means nothing. I need to continue to work on taking this to heart and just jumping at the opportunities when they come and not wait to consider, often times then being too late. Excellent post!
Many times I feel like adults struggle to understand the mind/ society of teenagers but I believe that all it takes is the effort by older folks to try to understand them. Teenage years are the most formative time of a persons life, they are presented with many tough decisions that need to be made and all could have large impacts on the rest of their life. Having an advocate, and the guidance of an older person through this time can truly impact lives, and have a domino effect.