There are many ways to take this title. The way I am going to take it deals with a very specific issue.
There is an all night youth/young adult event sponsored by a church and led by Christian youth leaders who can be trusted to keep the event Christ centered. Many of these persons attend church. Some probably do not. Not all of them go to the same church. The event is held on Saturday Night. Sunday service is lightly attended, in part because the youth and youth leaders have gone home to sleep after the all nighter. It is made very clear that folks should encourage the youth leaders to never again hold such an event on Saturday night. The reason is that Sunday church attendance is so very important (of course).
Now these folks were up all night worshiping the Lord and relating to one another. They are also people who understand the importance of Sunday attendance and are present every time they can make it. There is every reason to expect that these leaders will/or have already taught that attendance on Sundays is important. It is also known that some youth have difficulty relating to the Sunday service at times.
What shoud be the priority? Doing an event that blesses young people at a scheduled time that is best for everyone? Scheduling events so they never bump up against Sunday Morning? Maybe never scheduling such an event at all if leaders are unable to do it any other day of the week?
To me the last two options could result in young people not experiencing ministry in a way that means something to them. Is this worth the possible cost? Your thoughts?
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The Church is a family and Jesus is our brother, we are brothers and sisters in Christ who are being sanctified by Him, so He is not ashamed to call us brethren((Heb 2 vs 11). When I lived here in 1988 this guy I knew used to make fun of me for going to different churches, he would say 'Steve is to big for just one church'. I think it is my calling in the Body of Christ not to be tied down to one church. The church that I'm planning on going to Sunday, assembles for corporate worship in a secular temple(public high school). One of the brothers became an atheist while attending school there, the room where he gave his life to Satan is now being used as a nursery during the church service. Babies and toddlers would be disruptive during a church service, but after that I think we are being conformed to this world. One of the characteristics of people in these perilious times(2 Tim 3 vs 2) is being disobedient to parents. We are indoctrinated to believe that children should be snotty unhappy brats, instead of well behaved and restful. A peer pressure system of education where children are indoctrinated into CLASS is the perversion of a true public education. Church leaders should discern this and should overhaul the practice of breaking older children, teenagers(young adults) into peer pressure based groups. As far as the church Ekklesia meeting at John Glenn High School, if they do have a brotherhood of Christians that has a resemblence of the early Church(Ekklesia) in there love for one another, then I'm sure that there will be some people who will raise objections to God being worshipped there. Lisa said:
Mark, It was done though not by myself. The comments during Sunday AM announcements were quite ahhh...interesting.
Steve, love the idea of integrating older youth and most times they are. Youngsters and tweens are seperated for nursery and suday school during the message. Most would not be able to sit through it anyway. Those roughly the age of your daughter and older are on a rotating schedule alongside adults and help teach what is called the Super Church class. Teens stay and hear the message wtih adults. This Lock In described above is an occaisional event where teens get to be teens with other teens. Youth leaders guide the thing and control chaos.
Parents not comfortable with letting their children go to nursey or class are free to keep them at their side. Thats why there is sometimes a young todler with his momma or an older child remaining for the message.
Thanks for the reply. I have been praying all day for Kingdom Insight and me and James and that the Lord would come to our rescue. I want be a blessing and never a hindrance. But the Lord's annointing has been on Kingdom Insight from the beginning so He will work things out.
Steve has a good point. A Saturday Night Teen gathering is not a substitute for Church. My thought was the other way; Having a Saturday outreach might reach kids that don't know the Lord and don't go to Church, that they might accept an invitation from a teen friend to go to the Saturday Night Praise Gathering where they might not accept an invitation to Church. But it is interesting in how we all approach things or see things. And I think the Lord might lead one this way and one another, just like the elbow and the shin bone. I think I might be a little toe. :-))
Mark, It was done though not by myself. The comments during Sunday AM announcements were quite ahhh...interesting.
Steve, love the idea of integrating older youth and most times they are. Youngsters and tweens are seperated for nursery and suday school during the message. Most would not be able to sit through it anyway. Those roughly the age of your daughter and older are on a rotating schedule alongside adults and help teach what is called the Super Church class. Teens stay and hear the message wtih adults. This Lock In described above is an occaisional event where teens get to be teens with other teens. Youth leaders guide the thing and control chaos.
Parents not comfortable with letting their children go to nursey or class are free to keep them at their side. Thats why there is sometimes a young todler with his momma or an older child remaining for the message.
The way I see it, we are being conformed to the world when we separate people according to age. Homeschooling children are more advanced socially, because they interact with adults in a real world setting. The church scheduling dilemma has more to do with being conformed to this world, then a scheduling problem. I think the church leaders should work on something that incorporates the whole church in the worship of God. I'm not talking about a one time event or church service, but having a strategy to counter the world's "class" system. I'm not saying that young people should never be around other young people, but we should not imitate the world when it comes to this. Last year I went to church with an unbelieving friend and his 11 year old daughter, the church leaders tried to separate them, but my friend would have none of it and had his daughter at his side during the church service. This is an extreme example, but I think it does show we are being conformed to this world by dividing people into different age groupings.
Just my views. I believe the Lord works in mysterious ways. I believe He hears the heartcrys of His children wanting to lift up His Name and draw others from afar. I believe the letter of the law killeth, but the Spirit brings something to life. I believe the Lord starts things sometimes in ways we don't understand to take them places we can't now see.
So if one were asking me, do it. Then pray, pray, pray. Doesn"t Paul say, "One has this day special and one has all days special..." Anytime someone is introduced to the Lord is special.
We hear wonderful stories of people who were set on fire for the Lord by being introduced to Him in an unexpected way. Kids need something to compete with Saturday night Raves. Something with prayer warriors interceding for them. Something to show the kids the Lord has a wonderful joyful Spirit and He is a God of adventure.
You start it and He will run with it. What do ya think? :-))
Replies
Lisa said:
Hi Lisa,
Thanks for the reply. I have been praying all day for Kingdom Insight and me and James and that the Lord would come to our rescue. I want be a blessing and never a hindrance. But the Lord's annointing has been on Kingdom Insight from the beginning so He will work things out.
Steve has a good point. A Saturday Night Teen gathering is not a substitute for Church. My thought was the other way; Having a Saturday outreach might reach kids that don't know the Lord and don't go to Church, that they might accept an invitation from a teen friend to go to the Saturday Night Praise Gathering where they might not accept an invitation to Church. But it is interesting in how we all approach things or see things. And I think the Lord might lead one this way and one another, just like the elbow and the shin bone. I think I might be a little toe. :-))
Thanks Lisa,
Mark
Mark, It was done though not by myself. The comments during Sunday AM announcements were quite ahhh...interesting.
Steve, love the idea of integrating older youth and most times they are. Youngsters and tweens are seperated for nursery and suday school during the message. Most would not be able to sit through it anyway. Those roughly the age of your daughter and older are on a rotating schedule alongside adults and help teach what is called the Super Church class. Teens stay and hear the message wtih adults. This Lock In described above is an occaisional event where teens get to be teens with other teens. Youth leaders guide the thing and control chaos.
Parents not comfortable with letting their children go to nursey or class are free to keep them at their side. Thats why there is sometimes a young todler with his momma or an older child remaining for the message.
Hi Lisa,
Just my views. I believe the Lord works in mysterious ways. I believe He hears the heartcrys of His children wanting to lift up His Name and draw others from afar. I believe the letter of the law killeth, but the Spirit brings something to life. I believe the Lord starts things sometimes in ways we don't understand to take them places we can't now see.
So if one were asking me, do it. Then pray, pray, pray. Doesn"t Paul say, "One has this day special and one has all days special..." Anytime someone is introduced to the Lord is special.
We hear wonderful stories of people who were set on fire for the Lord by being introduced to Him in an unexpected way. Kids need something to compete with Saturday night Raves. Something with prayer warriors interceding for them. Something to show the kids the Lord has a wonderful joyful Spirit and He is a God of adventure.
You start it and He will run with it. What do ya think? :-))
Mark