In Luke 15:4 Jesus says..."What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the other ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?"
The Student Ministries program at CrossLife church is for Junior and Senior High School students. The Junior High group is called SaltCo and the High School group is Gateway. Pastor Ryan Johnson joined the ministry staff in November, 2021. Ryan was previously the staff leader of SaltCo 12 years ago. I have been a lay leader in either Gateway or SaltCo since 1982.
In many ways high school students are the same now as they were then, but in some important ways they are very different. They are still trying to learn who they are, what they want to be, and how they fit into the various settings such as family, school, work, friends, and teams/groups. Teenagers are also going through one of the greatest periods of personal intellectual growth and are now able to make decisions for themselves rather than accepting what they have been told at face value.
However, the culture around them has significantly changed. Change doesn’t necessarily mean worse, though many may see it that way. The culture isn’t pursuing anything that hasn’t been pursued since the beginning of mankind, but each generation has a different way of expressing themselves and what is important to them. Today’s culture is more focused on expressing sexuality and understanding sexual identity in different ways. It is also focused on a different definition of justice and equality. While justice and equality have been topics of discussion for the last 250 years in the United States, it has included a much broader range of application in the last 10.
Perhaps the biggest change is that parents may no longer be the biggest influence on teenagers. Social media, school systems, and peers all have a bigger voice with today’s teenagers. The issues that are important to today’s teenagers are not new, but different issues have increased significance. Due to societal trends the issues of violence and crime, justice, welfare and poverty, sexual identity, environment, and war and of greater importance to this generation of teenagers.
At Gateway, Ryan and a great group of lay leaders, many of whom have been involved in Student Ministries for several years, provide students with a Biblical world view. Our intent isn’t to tell students how they should think, but rather to share with them what God has said through the Bible. It is up to the student to decide what they are going to do with that information. We pray that they will understand God’s plan and will put their trust, hope and world view in Him.