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Purpose of Youth Ministry  

1.  Evangelism (expose): "Go and make disciples"

Evangelism is sharing the good news (gospel) of Jesus Christ with those who don't have a personal relationship with him. God has chosen to use his people to help communicate his plan for salvation.  Jesus' last words remind us that we are called to be his witnesses

  Evangelism is a process- a process of a person modeling his or her transformed life to someone in need of God's transformational grace. 

  Evangelism in our youth ministry encompasses an understanding and a practical  expression of these elements:

1.The development of an evangelistic attitude

2.The continual challenge to become evangelistic

3. A worship service to which students are proud to bring their friends. 

             Jesus said in Matthew 9:12-13:"It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. For I have not come to call the righteous, but  sinners.  "We are here to invite those outside the body of Christ, not those who are in the body of  Christ.  Wheless youth will understand that those outside the faith are attracted to Christians before they are attracted to Christ.  In Matthew 5:14, we are to be lights and to

            This verse introduces lifestyle as an important factor of evangelism.  The youth will be reminded of this at all times.  The youth workers do not expect all youth to be evangelists, but we do expect them to

2.  Discipleship (Equip): "Teaching them to obey"

  Discipleship is the term regularly used to describe the up building or of Christians in their quest to be like Christ.  and go on to maturity. "Discipleship” is a lifelong process that God uses to bring us to maturity in Christ.

3.  Worship (Exalt): "Love the Lord your God with all your heart"

We define worship as celebrating God's presence and honoring him with our lifestyle.  It is our reason for existence.  Romans 12:1 states, "... ye present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service"-spiritual act of  worship.  Everything we do in this youth ministry is done because we love God, desire to honor as well as worship him with our lifestyle.

Worship will be expressed by singing praises in song, praying (Ps.95:6), hearing   the  Word (John 17:17), giving (ICor.16:1-2), baptizing (Rom. 6:3-4), and  meditating (Hab.2:20).

4.  Fellowship (Enjoy): "Baptizing Them" 

Ephesians 2:19, "Now therefore ye are fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God".  God did not want Christians to live in isolation, but in fellowship with other Christians and to be identified as the body of  Christ. True fellowship happens when youth are known, cared for , held accountable, and encouraged in their spiritual journey.

5.  Ministry (Experience): "Love your neighbor as yourself" 

Ministry can be defined as "meeting needs with love". God has blessed every Christian with special gifts to be used for ministry.  God-given gifts don't come with an age limitation.  Students shouldn't have to wait until they are adults to minister.  A healthy youth

Youth Program Structure Levels

Level 1:Ages 2 and under

Level 2:Ages 3,4, and 5

Level 3:1st and 2nd grades

Level 4:3rd, 4th , and 5th grades

Level 5:6th, 7th, and 8th grades

Level 6:9th, 10th, and 11th grades

Level 7: 12 grades and Young Adults

YOUTH EDUCATION BASICS

Levels 1-6

 This list is divided into three parts: Knowledge (what a youth should remember), Comprehension (what a youth should understand), and Application (what a youth should be able to do with the knowledge)

 1.       KNOWLEDGE

1)  The books of the Old and New Testaments in order

2)  The different classifications of biblical literature (e.g., history, poetry, prophecy, gospel, epistles).

3)  Three distinct ages or dispensations in the Bible (e.g. Patriarchal, Jewish , and Christian)

4)  The general chronology of the Old and New Testaments (e.g. the basic order of events, who lived before whom, the basic outline of Jesus’ life, how the early church spread).

5)  The names and deeds of major Old Testament figures (e.g. Adam, Eve, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Ruth, Samson, David, Ester, Nehemiah).

6)  The names and deeds of major New Testament figures (e.g., John the Baptist, Mary, Joseph, Jesus, the 12 Apostles, Stephen, Paul, Barnabas, Aquila and Priscilla, Timothy).

7)  The known authors of the New Testaments (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Peter, Paul, James, Jude).                 

        NOTE: The church was established in Acts 2:38

8)  The key elements of biblical geography (e.g., names of essential countries, regions, rivers, bodies of water, cities, mountain).

9)  The names of at least three translations of the Bible.

10)  The plan of salvation

Scriptures a youth should be able to locate and understand:

1.      The Ten commandments (Exodus 20:1-17)

2.      The 23^rd Psalms

3.      The Beatitudes ( Matthew 5:3-10)

4.      The Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)

5.      The Lord’s Prayer ( Matthew 6:9-13)

6.      The Great Commandments (Matthew 22:36-40)

7.      The Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20)

8.      The Golden Rule ( Matthew 7:12)

9.      The Golden Text (John 3:16-17)

10.      The Christian Graces (2 Peter 1:5-7)

11.      Acts 2:38

12.      Hebrews 11:1,6

13.      Philippians 2:3-8

14.      Philippians 4:4-7

15.      I Corinthians 13:1,4-7, 13

16.      Ephesians 2:8-10

17.      I John 1:5-7

Skills a youth should be able to demonstrate:

1.      Find a passage in the Bible quickly

2.      Use a concordance or  a marginal reference

3.      Locate key points of biblical geography on a map.

2.     COMPREHENSION

1)  Key Biblical terms (e.g., law, covenant, holiness, righteousness, baptism, redemption, church, grace, faith, love, hope).

2)  Words describing the various types of biblical literature (e.g., psalm, proverb, prophecy, parable, Gospel, epistle, apocalyptic)

3)  The purpose of concordances, commentaries, atlases, and Bible dictionaries.

4)  The difference among various translations, including strengths and weaknesses of the three in common use.

5)  The essence of the Great New Testament teachings(e.g. the Sermon on the Mount; parables about the good Samaritan and the prodigal son; Peter’s sermon on Pentecost; Paul’s sermon on mars Hill; Roman6:12; Hebrews 11; I Corinthians 13; John 17; the qualities of church leaders.

6)  The content of distinctive themes, briefly stated, of at least half of books of the Bible (e.g., Job-suffering: Psalms-poetic expressions of faith and praise; Jeremiah- the destruction of Jerusalem; Haggai-rebuilding the temple; Acts- the spread of the early church).

3.     APPLICATION   

Youth should be able to apply biblical principles to everyday life in order to:

1)  Relate well to family, friends, and others.

2)  Make decisions about personal morality.

3)  Establish priorities

4)  Serve others.

5)  Teach others how to live.

6)  Explain to others how to become a Christian.

YOUTH ACTIVITIES:

Youth Day:

Assigned Elder:Paul Noel

Deacon: DeWayne Calloway 

Mission: Invite area youth from sister congregations to participate in issues facing young Christians. Provide programs that will enrich and strengthen the lives of our youth.  Wheless lane will be the host of the 2003 and 2004 State Youth Conference.

Purpose: To provide activities for the youth to gather and interact with one another.

Youth L.O.V.E. Feast:

Mission: Bring about closer relationship among the youth

Purpose: Allow the youth of the congregation to meet on a monthly basis, prepare a dish for the meal and, fellowship with one another. 

Youth Singing:

Mission:  To sing with the intent to exalt the Lord in praises while ministering unto all who hear us. "O come let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation." Psalms 95:1

Purpose: Spiritual songs, psalms, and hymns provide edification and nurturing for the soul.  Most importantly, the praise of songs is satisfying unto the Lord our God. It pleased God so, that in Acts 16:36, God released Paul and Silas from prison.  The power of song and praise is priceless. Spiritual songs and praises are to minister and exalt the Father!

Arch Angels………ages 5 – 9

One L.O.V.E…….ages 10-young adult (Let Our Voices Encourage)

Role of the Youth Workers at Wheless Lane

• To help provide a well-balanced, well- planned program of activities, learning, and fellowship.

• To participate in all youth ministry planning and training events.  Regular planning meetings will take place on the 2nd Sunday of each month

• To be prepared for all youth group activities, meetings and programs in which you have responsibilities.  If the youth worker can't attend a particular program, he/she will be expected to find a substitute.

• To be willing to get personally involved with the young people in the youth group through regular phone calls and visits.

• To serve wholeheartedly-- with Christ like mind and actions.

• To pray for the church, the youth ministry, the young people, and the leaders.

  LINKS:

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