I recently wrote an article chronicling some of the key tensions I faced while working in the formal position of Youth Pastor. It was published on the Youth Specialties site today. Can you relate or have you experienced this tension?
It was my first day working in the local public high school. The teenagers walk into my classroom, 70% listening to their iPods while the other 30% are busy texting. They turn the chairs from their desks and face them towards their friends so they can carry on the conversation they were having on the bus. Trying not to show my inner panic, I calmly walk around the room and keep a stern face while thinking, “I’m sure they will all focus once the final bell rings for class to start.” One minute later the bell rings. It might as well have been their mom asking them to take out the trash…no response. I think, “What have I gotten myself into?”
I had worked at churches and been in youth ministry my whole adult life. I owned the title of “youth pastor” and was pretty good at it. Most little boys want to be baseball players or astronauts when they are little. I wanted to be a youth pastor. Weird? Maybe, but there was some truth to that dream and aspiration. I loved teenagers and being a youth pastor was a great context to serve them.
My time as a youth pastor was full of authentic relationships, generally; the teenagers came to me and I was the guy that was supposed to have all the answers and create a good time. Everything was going smoothly until I started asking myself some hard questions…Read Complete Article Here