Thanks to my friend, colleague and our Youthfront Chairman of the Board, Dr. Dean Blevins for pointing me to this video.
“If anything is certain, it is that change is certain. The world we are planning for today will not exist in this form tomorrow.” Philip Crosby, Leadership Specialist
I have always been fascinated with thinking about the future, trends and change.
During 33 years of youth ministry I have experienced a lot of change. Change is certain. How do we respond to change?
I Chronicles 12:32 mentions “Men of Issachar, who understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” Understanding the times and the culture of the world around you is always an important aspect of a missional life and ministry. The rate of change is fast and furious. This is why the task of contextualization is so important.
When I came on staff the teen culture in North America was quite homogenous. Most teenagers in the ‘70’s watched Gilligan’s Island and Happy Days on TV; listened to the pop music of Elton John, James Taylor, The Eagles, America, and Chicago; and the Rock Music of The Doobie Brothers, The Who, Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin. Today’s adolescent’s are far from being homogenous. Diversity rules. There are so many genres of music and so many options for TV viewing. Adolescents are divided into a multiplicity of tribes and sub-groups. There is no such thing as one type of ministry model to fit all. Everything has to be localized and small enough to adapt and respond to the speed of change.
Think about how much more difficult it is to minister the Gospel in effective ways to all the diverse adolescent sub-groups in today’s youth culture. Back in 1975, 90% of the students used the same language and had similar interests. Doing large rallies (which I was involved in producing) made sense because of the homogenous nature of teenagers of the 1950’s – 1970’s. Today, more targeted specialized ministry is essential.
Think about the changes that have happened in Communication. We’ve evolved from shared party lines in our homes to car phones for a few privileged people who could afford this technology to almost everyone, including teenagers carrying their own cell phones. We’ve gone from Mail, to the first consumer dial-up online service Prodigy back in 1991, American Online and e-mail, to IM (instant messaging), followed by social networking through MySpace, Facebook etc., and now new technologies like Twitter, etc. emerging. It is a challenge to keep up with the changes. In the same way that communication and technology changes, so does youth ministry.
In what ways have you experienced changes in youth ministry?
How are you responding to and dealing with change in youth ministry?
“If anything is certain, it is that change is certain. The world we are planning for today will not exist in this form tomorrow.” Philip Crosby, Leadership Specialist
I have always been fascinated with thinking about the future, trends and change.
During 33 years of youth ministry I have experienced a lot of change. Change is certain. How do we respond to change?
I Chronicles 12:32 mentions “Men of Issachar, who understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” Understanding the times and the culture of the world around you is always an important aspect of a missional life and ministry. The rate of change is fast and furious. This is why the task of contextualization is so important.
When I came on staff the teen culture in North America was quite homogenous. Most teenagers in the ‘70’s watched Gilligan’s Island and Happy Days on TV; listened to the pop music of Elton John, James Taylor, The Eagles, America, and Chicago; and the Rock Music of The Doobie Brothers, The Who, Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin. Today’s adolescent’s are far from being homogenous. Diversity rules. There are so many genres of music and so many options for TV viewing. Adolescents are divided into a multiplicity of tribes and sub-groups. There is no such thing as one type of ministry model to fit all. Everything has to be localized and small enough to adapt and respond to the speed of change.
Think about how much more difficult it is to minister the Gospel in effective ways to all the diverse adolescent sub-groups in today’s youth culture. Back in 1975, 90% of the students used the same language and had similar interests. Doing large rallies (which I was involved in producing) made sense because of the homogenous nature of teenagers of the 1950’s – 1970’s. Today, more targeted specialized ministry is essential.
Think about the changes that have happened in Communication. We’ve evolved from shared party lines in our homes to car phones for a few privileged people who could afford this technology to almost everyone, including teenagers carrying their own cell phones. We’ve gone from Mail, to the first consumer dial-up online service Prodigy back in 1991, American Online and e-mail, to IM (instant messaging), followed by social networking through MySpace, Facebook etc., and now new technologies like Twitter, etc. emerging. It is a challenge to keep up with the changes. In the same way that communication and technology changes, so does youth ministry.
In what ways have you experienced changes in youth ministry?
How are you responding to and dealing with change in youth ministry?
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