The paradox of Youth Workers
We just got back from youth Camp, and we had an awesome time. We took 22 kids and had 4 get saved and 4 rededicate their life.
Working with students is something I love to do, and I have done a little bit of everything in the church. But Youth is different for lots of reasons. As a a Youth Pastor, I am all at one time the students friend, leader, pastor, teacher, and in some ways parent. I have to tell them to take showers at camp. I tell them what to do when we clean up to go home. But at the same time I am their friend, we talk and tell jokes and stories. It is something that doesn't really happen anywhere else in ministry. In pastoring, I was the leader and friend, but I couldn't tell them what to do, or what to wear or say. But with students I have to do all those things at once, and it makes the road tricky. It is not something that people always understand, and typically they think being youth pastor just means being their friends, but it is not that simple.
In the coming days I want to write some more about the challenges of youth ministry.
Working with students is something I love to do, and I have done a little bit of everything in the church. But Youth is different for lots of reasons. As a a Youth Pastor, I am all at one time the students friend, leader, pastor, teacher, and in some ways parent. I have to tell them to take showers at camp. I tell them what to do when we clean up to go home. But at the same time I am their friend, we talk and tell jokes and stories. It is something that doesn't really happen anywhere else in ministry. In pastoring, I was the leader and friend, but I couldn't tell them what to do, or what to wear or say. But with students I have to do all those things at once, and it makes the road tricky. It is not something that people always understand, and typically they think being youth pastor just means being their friends, but it is not that simple.
In the coming days I want to write some more about the challenges of youth ministry.
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