i have been spending time listening to God in regards to the youth ministry of our church at hfumc for the last three or four months. this period has led to a number of posts on youth ministry, but i'm fleshing out a vision, methodology, and liturgy for our youth ministry at hfumc. i'm sharing the inspirations as a gift to whomever they bless.
i'm calling this our seasons of youth ministry. in order to give focus to the event programming with the youth ministry we are naming the seasons and their purposes. the events/retreats, whatever form they take, will be used to enhance the particular season.
community: our season for connecting is the fall. we take in new youth with our seventh graders changing the landscape of our group. we loose our seniors giving gaps to what (hopefully) were our role models and leadership. as a new community in Christ we will spend the season of community by learning what our identity is, who we are, what we want out of ourselves, how we get along, how we welcome. community will be circled around some common unique experiences that root each other in story. for us at hfumcyouth, this is going to take shape in some camping and adventure retreats, as well as some initiative type tests. the hope is that we break down walls, give common grounds to communicate and tell stories from, give space to experience God as a group, and develop the foundation for a safe community to build on.
connecting: our season of connecting is in the winter. connecting is about understanding and touching base with the greater church. the community of faith is not just centered around our one church. in order to create and nurture relationships with others in the community of Christ , not to mention our 'united' church, we will engage in retreats/events that bring together different churches in fellowship, worship, prayer, play, and education growth. two things we will continue to be involved in and start up are warmth in winter (our conferences biggest retreat) and a district ski trip. the hope is to have lasting relationships that youth continue with and nurture over the years giving them confidence that they can develop new relationships that take on meaning within their life of faith.
formation: our season for formation is spring. another name could be considered contemplation. we are seeing the space around Holy Week as a time to focus on the individual spiritual growth. we take time from what has been a busy academic year to start a process of slowing down and noticing what we've learned, experienced, people met, and where God was in the midst of all that. events or retreats would be small in nature. programming would help to slow down the growing pace of testing, future life decisions, and growing questions of faith. for us at hfumc we'll give ourselves space with a sabbath retreat and confirmation retreat.
outreach: our season for outreach comes in the summer. this is our response of all the experiences of God through the year brought together in one season. we bring together our learning in teaching of those younger than us, vacation bible school and summer camps. our compassion leads us to give of ourselves in short term mission. sharing of our gifts through worship on a choir tour. at the end the joy of giving of self in response to God movement in ones life should give a new perspective on the Christian life.
the community changes and the seasons start over, but the rhythm of the seasons brings everyone back to God.