Youth Ministry Meeting notes

American Youth:

• Current state:
  • 7 in 10 Protestants ages 18-30 who went to church regularly in high school said they quit attending by age 23 (LifeWay Research).
  • 34% of those said they had not returned, even sporadically, by age 30 (Lifeway Research).
  • https://www.whitehorseinn.org/2012/03/generation-me-and-youth-ministry-today-part-1/
• What’s going on?
  • "When Christian Smith and his fellow researchers with the National Study of Youth and Religion at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill took a close look at the religious beliefs held by American teenagers, they found that the faith held and described by most adolescents came down to something the researchers identified as “Moralistic Therapeutic Deism.”"
  • "This radical transformation of Christian theology [Moralistic Therapeutic Deism] and Christian belief replaces the sovereignty of God with the sovereignty of the self. In this therapeutic age, human problems are reduced to pathologies in need of a treatment plan. Sin is simply excluded from the picture, and doctrines as central as the wrath and justice of God are discarded as out of step with the times and unhelpful to the project of self-actualization."
  • American youth in church don't really get to know Jesus Christ and are not converted. They don't understand the gospel and as a result don't really love or treasure Jesus Christ.
  • http://www.albertmohler.com/2005/04/11/moralistic-therapeutic-deism-the-new-american-religion-2/

Moralistic Therapeutic Deism

1. “A god exists who created and ordered the world and watches over human life on earth.”
2. “God wants people to be good, nice, and fair to each other, as taught in the Bible and by most world religions.”
3. “The central goal of life is to be happy and to feel good about one’s self.”
4. “God does not need to be particularly involved in one’s life except when God is needed to resolve a problem.”
5. “Good people go to heaven when they die.”

Hope?

• Jesus
• Prayer
• LifeWay Research’s Ed Stetzer reported that those who stay or return later in life had several things in common: they were raised by parents had both been regularly involved in church, there were meaningful and engaging sermons, “and church members who invested in their spiritual development.”

Youth Ministry vision:

• to see youth come into a living relationship Jesus

Curriculum:

• The Gospel Centered Life
  • The Gospel-Centered Life by World Harvest Missions Bob Thune and Will Walker is a nine-lesson small group study to help participants understand how the gospel shapes every aspect of life.
• Youth Summer Projects
  • Each youth was given a youth summer project. They will give presentations this Fall at our youth group meetings.

Youth Leaders

• Youth Leader: Henrik
• Student Leaders: Dwight and Pauline
• Parents Volunteers: Tito Jojo and Tita Gerrie

Schedule

• Friday, Sept 16- Resume youth group meetings
• Saturday, Sept 24- Bible study with youth pastor candidate
• Friday, Nov 18, 19, 20- Revival weekend at church
• Friday, Dec 16- Arts night

If you have any questions or concerns, do not hesitate to let us know! We are here to serve the youth. Thank you all for partnering with us in this ministry. May Christ be lifted high and treasured in the lives of our youth!

-Henrik