The Right Answer

During the last 17 years of youth ministry I have had the privilege of attending and speaking at many different youth events, camps, retreats, conferences and training days.  My time at these events has always been refreshing and energizing to me.  I enjoy having the chance to talk to new, upcoming students and leaders.

Recently I was speaking at a conference and had a couple youth leaders say that all students really need is to have leaders in their life who are authentic followers of Jesus Christ.  I don't disagree with the statement, I just feel like there is more to it.  Just like there are different "stages" of a person's journey as a Christian, there are different needs for those different stages.  Some students need a friend; others need a leader while some need someone just to spend time with them.  All of these roles are different and usually only a small number of students are looking for authentic followers of Christ, at first.

Students are looking for more than adults who are authentic; they are looking for adults who actually want to spent time with them.  They want to have someone, anyone believe in them enough to invest in them as a person.  Students aren't looking for authentic followers of Jesus, they are looking for Jesus.