The Cure
I was having a conversation with my hair stylist the other day about how I am a youth minister and my husband is a neuro scientist. She looked at me in shock saying, "How does that work? Those are at opposite ends of the spectrum." I laughed and nodded. But after thinking about it I realized they are not so different.
When I tell people my husband is a neuro scientist I get about three different reactions. Some people have no clue what I am talking about and change the subject, or they automatically separate him in his own different category of human existence, or they are genuinely interested in what he does. The people from the first two categories almost always ask... "So is he looking for a cure or something?"
I used to have the same thoughts myself but now let me explain to you a much more enriched understanding of how science works.
Neuro scientists study the brain. They don't just whip up a cure or discover one by chance. Through years and years of research most neuro scientists are just trying to gain a better understanding of how the brain works and how certain diseases work. They make tiny little discoveries just figuring out how intricate parts of the cell work. They don't just one day find a cure for Parkinson's or other neurological diseases, but they learn as much as they can about the unknowns of the brain and the disease to discover little things that may help with the bigger solution.
I don't think youth ministry is much different from this. I think so many people involved in youth ministry are looking for an instant cure. I have had parents tell me they think I am the one who can fix their kid... (There are so many things wrong with this I am not even going into it)Sometimes churches believe if they hire the perfect youth minister their youth ministry program will be fixed. Some students think if they pray the magic prayer of accepting Jesus their messy life will be cured. Some youth ministers are looking for the quick cure of getting kids saved so they can feel as though they are doing a good job.
Maybe that's our problem. We are looking for a cure to fix our lives instead of embracing whatever mess or goodness God currently has put in front of us. Maybe if we stopped looking for a cure to fix our brokenness and embraced it our eyes would be opened to an abundance of new discoveries.
For example; last month I was at a youth event where all the speaker seemed to really care about was how many students got "saved" that night after his talk. Numbers were written down and remembered from the year before about how many kids were saved. He told kids to stand up to show they have taken an initiative of faith but really I believe it was to boost the speaker's already too large of an ego. This makes me sick a for a variety of reasons that I will save for another blog. I am all about student's coming to Christ but I don't think people need to shove Jesus down students' throats so that they don't have much choice but to swallow or puke Him out. It was as if the speaker promised a cure for students' problems in life and all they had to do was do whatever the speaker said. I believe that Jesus changes lives and brings healing. I believe Jesus saves and I believe we need to ask Him into our lives. But Jesus first showed love, grace, and compassion giving people a choice to follow him. He embraced people where they were at and loved them with grace and mercy. Take the woman at the well for example in John 4. Jesus spoke truth to her and gave her an opportunity to ask Him for living water.
What about when Lazerus died? Even though Jesus could have cured Lazarus when he found out he was sick he chose not to. When He heard Lazarus died Jesus didn't even go back right away. John 11:6 "So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days." Jesus even took time to weep and let Martha blame him saying, "If you were here this wouldn't have happened!" Why didn't Jesus just fix it right away? Why did he let everyone including himself sit in brokenness? Perhaps this is because Jesus knows there is value to embracing whatever situation God gives you at that time. Maybe Jesus didn't cure everything instantly because he knew it would be an even greater story if He allowed for brokenness. I think Jesus also waited because He wanted everyone involved to learn something from the situation.
I am trying to learn a lesson from Jesus and from scientists. Ministering is not about fixing kids or giving them Jesus as an instant cure to life's problems. It is about reflecting Christ and figuring out faith together. As a youth minister I am going to try to meet students where they are at by listening and loving instead of trying to fix them and make them Christian clones. Instead of using Christ as an instant power washer to clean up everyone's mess I am going to sit in their mud puddles with them first because this is what Jesus did. I will tell them about the living water and invite them to experience Jesus, but I will not leave the mud puddle until they are ready to do so. Maybe it is in this mess together where we will discover and better understand God's mysterious love for us.
I used to have the same thoughts myself but now let me explain to you a much more enriched understanding of how science works.
Neuro scientists study the brain. They don't just whip up a cure or discover one by chance. Through years and years of research most neuro scientists are just trying to gain a better understanding of how the brain works and how certain diseases work. They make tiny little discoveries just figuring out how intricate parts of the cell work. They don't just one day find a cure for Parkinson's or other neurological diseases, but they learn as much as they can about the unknowns of the brain and the disease to discover little things that may help with the bigger solution.
I don't think youth ministry is much different from this. I think so many people involved in youth ministry are looking for an instant cure. I have had parents tell me they think I am the one who can fix their kid... (There are so many things wrong with this I am not even going into it)Sometimes churches believe if they hire the perfect youth minister their youth ministry program will be fixed. Some students think if they pray the magic prayer of accepting Jesus their messy life will be cured. Some youth ministers are looking for the quick cure of getting kids saved so they can feel as though they are doing a good job.
Maybe that's our problem. We are looking for a cure to fix our lives instead of embracing whatever mess or goodness God currently has put in front of us. Maybe if we stopped looking for a cure to fix our brokenness and embraced it our eyes would be opened to an abundance of new discoveries.
For example; last month I was at a youth event where all the speaker seemed to really care about was how many students got "saved" that night after his talk. Numbers were written down and remembered from the year before about how many kids were saved. He told kids to stand up to show they have taken an initiative of faith but really I believe it was to boost the speaker's already too large of an ego. This makes me sick a for a variety of reasons that I will save for another blog. I am all about student's coming to Christ but I don't think people need to shove Jesus down students' throats so that they don't have much choice but to swallow or puke Him out. It was as if the speaker promised a cure for students' problems in life and all they had to do was do whatever the speaker said. I believe that Jesus changes lives and brings healing. I believe Jesus saves and I believe we need to ask Him into our lives. But Jesus first showed love, grace, and compassion giving people a choice to follow him. He embraced people where they were at and loved them with grace and mercy. Take the woman at the well for example in John 4. Jesus spoke truth to her and gave her an opportunity to ask Him for living water.
What about when Lazerus died? Even though Jesus could have cured Lazarus when he found out he was sick he chose not to. When He heard Lazarus died Jesus didn't even go back right away. John 11:6 "So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days." Jesus even took time to weep and let Martha blame him saying, "If you were here this wouldn't have happened!" Why didn't Jesus just fix it right away? Why did he let everyone including himself sit in brokenness? Perhaps this is because Jesus knows there is value to embracing whatever situation God gives you at that time. Maybe Jesus didn't cure everything instantly because he knew it would be an even greater story if He allowed for brokenness. I think Jesus also waited because He wanted everyone involved to learn something from the situation.
I am trying to learn a lesson from Jesus and from scientists. Ministering is not about fixing kids or giving them Jesus as an instant cure to life's problems. It is about reflecting Christ and figuring out faith together. As a youth minister I am going to try to meet students where they are at by listening and loving instead of trying to fix them and make them Christian clones. Instead of using Christ as an instant power washer to clean up everyone's mess I am going to sit in their mud puddles with them first because this is what Jesus did. I will tell them about the living water and invite them to experience Jesus, but I will not leave the mud puddle until they are ready to do so. Maybe it is in this mess together where we will discover and better understand God's mysterious love for us.
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