Confirmation Sunday
Text: Judges 2:6-15 & Deuteronomy 6:4-9
“God’s Primary Learning Community”
Jay Lindell
April 27, 2008
Thank you for your kind invitation to join you this morning and thank you for your partnership with Young Life over the past five years. It was five years ago that Ken Diekema began here. We also share something in common with Aaron Clark. Aaron has been a spiritual leader to my son. Aaron is a special person to me.
A few months ago I came across this passage of scripture from Judges Chapter 2. I was captivated by it. The words jumped off the page (which doesn’t always happen to me). I began to think about this scripture in context of youth ministry, in the larger context of Christian Formation.
My message today will be successful if it raises more questions than it answers. It will be a worth my time of preparation and your time of listening if some of you are still talking about it two weeks from now.
Star Trek (1966-1969)
How many are familiar with the original television series Star Trek? Star Trek was produced by Gene Rodenberry. The show used science fiction for the purpose of social commentary.
· Women in positions of leadership
· Multi cultural crew
(Ethnic minorities, a “Russian” in the crew during the cold war)
The Crew of the Enterprise would interact with people or beings from other planets. The interaction between Landing Party and “aliens” would provide the background for the social commentary.
Significant themes: Peace, Justice, Tolerance for differences.
In one particular episode the landing party (beam me up Scotty) visits earth in a time that looked very much like present day (1967). A man is injured, in need of surgery. A Physician from that present day (1967) puts the man on an operating table and pulls out a scalpel, ready to make an incision.
Dr. McCoy, the ship’s doctor, asks the physician what he is doing. The physician replies, “This man is injured, without surgery he will die. I’m going to perform surgery.”
Dr. McCoy responds, “By slicing him open! That’s Barbaric!”
He then pulls out his penlight (sound) the man is healed. I remember watching that show, wondering how else could a surgeon perform surgery”
The writers had an idea that what was standard medical practice in 1967 would be considered “barbaric” in the future. Now surgery is performed arthroscopic, with laser, sound waves and radiation.
For many disciplines change is constant. The disciplines of science, computer programming, medicine, education not only expect change, and embrace change. These disciplines actually SEEK CHANGE
For some reason, disciplines associated with religion tend to resist change or, accept change at a much slower pace. It begs the question:
What are we doing now that in the future people will say, “That’s Barbaric?”
There is clearly a need for a new paradigm when it comes to spiritual formation of our young people. (Youth Ministry must fall under the umbrella of “Spiritual Formation”)
“The Barna Update” September 11, 2006 (Barna Group LTD 2006)
“In fact, the most potent data regarding disengagement is that 61% of twentysomethings had been churched at one point during their teen years but they are now spiritually disengaged (i.e., not actively attending church, reading the Bible, or praying).”
“Only one-fifth of twenty somethings (20%) have maintained a level of spiritual activity consistent with their high school experiences. Another one-fifth of teens (19%) were never significantly reached by a Christian community of faith during their teens and have remained disconnected from the Christian faith.”
“Only 20% of people who were “churched” as teens are connected at 29.”
This is a Staggering Statistic
I don’t want to overstate this but; I believe there is a Connection between First Generation in Palestine and today.
Judges 2:6-15
Vs. 10 “Moreover, that whole generation was gathered to their ancestors (the first generation into the promised land has now died), and another generation grew up after them, who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel.” NRSV
The first generation to grow up in the Promised Land! How could this happen? How could Israel’s children not know about God? How could they not know about Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob? About Joseph, the plagues, the Red Sea, Mt. Sinai, water from rocks, and manna from heaven?
We don’t know exactly what happened but we know what did not happen!
Moses final commandments to the people of Israel before they entered the Promised Land.
Deuteronomy 6: 4-9
Vs. 6 “keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and write them on the doorpost of your house and on your gates.” NRSV
God designed Family as the Primary Learning Community
Parents, you may feel ill equipped, but you know far more than you think you know. It is this simple; creating space to process life through the lens of faith.
“Talk about this when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise up.”
Cultural pressures, the very PACE of our lives have eroded these learning times. Driving our children from one activity to another is not the same as being with them. Sitting in the stands watching our children play soccer is not being with them.
More than devotions around the table.
In our family, we stumbled upon a secret to making dinner last more than 7 minutes: Tell our children stories from our lives! They are fascinated by our stories of growing up, our high school years, college pranks, how mom and I met, how we began dating, fell in love, the early years of our marriage.
Do you find joy in belonging to Christ? Do your children see your joy?
Have you ever experienced how God has used a difficult circumstance to get you to a better place? Do your kids know that story?
Meals together are where we process life. Couple months ago, I heard on NPR “80% of families do not share a meal together during the week.”
Another good reason to sit down together for meals. National Merit society discovery: The common factor for National Merit Scholars is they eat dinner with their families nearly every night.
In our home the best theological discussions happen at Bed time if we create space and time: What if we just make up God in our minds?
What is heaven like?
Why doesn’t God just kill all the bad people?
Why does God allow war?
Family as the “primary learning community” is good news for some and bad news for others. You may be wondering why a person who has made a career of Youth Ministry is telling you the family is the answer.
What if Youth Ministry is understood in the context of Christian Formation instead of the context of PROGRAMMING?
25 years ago most youth ministers understood that there is no correlation between the number of kids who are in a room for one hour a week and spiritual formation. But we have not been able to shake this paradigm.
Result is: Unrealistic expectations that burn out people. Average tenure of a professional youth minister is still 18 months.
Can you imagine your child coming home from school? How was school today? It was awesome! We had 150 kids in algebra class! It was a riot!
“That’s Barbaric!”
What if we measured and valued mentoring relationships between a mature adult and a young person? Number of leaders connected to kids instead of the number of kids in a room for one hour, 26 weeks of the year?
Those most likely to stay connected to the church are those who are involved in the life of the church beyond youth ministry. (Multi generational mission trips, teaching Sunday school, leading worship, physically with parents and grand parents while at church)
What if Youth Ministry is understood as an aid to parents & families instead of something that exists apart from families?
If family is most important, Why youth ministry at all?
Youth Ministry is the Front Line to the many young people outside of the faith community. Church becomes the extended family for many children & teens.
When a child is baptized in this congregation you make a vow to help raise the child in the faith. I see your partnership with YL as your vow to reach those children being raised outside of a community of faith.
80% of those raised in the church exit the church. BARBARIC! A new paradigm is needed! What if every child baptized in the church remained in the church? What if every fifth grader in the church was still involved in 12th grade? What if every young person who made profession of faith was still involved in the life of the church 10 years later? Is it Possible?
Roger Bannister
In 1954 a record was broken that many people thought would never be broken, the four minute mile. People thought the human body was just physically unable to run a mile in less than four minutes. On May 6th, 1954, a 25 year old medical student in Great Brittan, Roger Bannister, ran a 3:59.4 mile in front of 3,000 spectators.
“The race was carefully planned and he was aided by two pacemakers, Chris Brasher, and Chris Chataway. When Brasher began to feel the strain, Bannister signaled for Chataway to take over. Just over 200 yards from the finish, Bannister took the lead with a final burst of energy. He sprinted to the line in record time and fell exhausted into the arms of a friend, the Rev. Nicholas Stacey.”
What was thought might be impossible was now possible. And that changed everyone’s thinking. Over the next 12 years a new record in the mile was set 8 times.
Is it possible that 99% of the children of this congregation would grow up, “knowing the Lord and what He has done for them”?
It must be possible for the children of this congregation to grow up knowing the Lord, and involved in the life and witness of the Christian church at the age of 29.
I invite you to enter into the conversation.
