Kids

Have you ever thought about what happens in the life of a student when they are involved in personal ministry on a consistent basis?

Currently 60 percent of our high school students serve in our ministry environments. Our students are involved and we believe that we are seeing incredible things happen in their lives because of it.

This is what we’re seeing:

1.    Students see that they can make a difference.

Our kids are growing up in a more self-centered, “all about me”, “get all you can” world than ever before. And yet, when they serve in ministry we are able to watch a generation of kids get involved in something that is bigger than them.

They are learning what it means to meet the needs of others. We are watching our kids experience personally what it feels like to be used by God to make an eternal difference.

2.    Students experience the importance of responsibility.

Every Sunday our students know that the expectation is high and that we are entrusting them with a great responsibility. They know that we are working together to create an environment where our kids are learning what it means to put their faith in their Heavenly Father.

As they serve along side the adults on our teams and see the heart behind every task that is completed, they learn that everyone has a role to play and that what they are doing is important. Each Sunday there are kids waiting on them to show up and fulfill a role.

3.    Students become role models.

We discovered something amazing when we started placing high school students as small group leaders. Kids love high  schoolers!

They think they are cool. They think they are fun! They listen to what they say! They want to be just like them! Oh man…they want to be just like them.

Our students begin to understand that the kids they lead are watching them and that what they say in small group needs to match how they are living during the week!

4.    Students learn God’s word at a faster rate.

Think back to when you really started growing in your knowledge of truth. Isn’t it true for many of us, it’s when we started teaching that truth?

It’s one thing to sit in a room and listen to a message. It’s another thing entirely to explain it to a child who is full of questions and who is trying to make it fit in their own life.

The very nature of teaching children means that we teach a message in a kid friendly way, we make it interactive, and we repeat it often. These are all of the ingredients that also help our students get a firmer grasp on the truth of God’s word.

Do you agree that students should be given “adult size” volunteer opportunites?

Post written by:  Gina Ragsdale - UpStreet Director - Browns Bridge Campus