Grace in a Water Park

8 “Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it? 9 And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’ 10 Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

Last weekend me and a dozen leaders hung out with around 2,000 teens in an indoor water park the size of Jersey. Almost 50 of them represent our student ministry. Crazy I know. In the weeks leading up to, we made sure to pray for specific kids who we felt needed a meaningful interaction with a loving God. As with any youth event, there came a time where the speaker reared back and challenged the kids to make a step toward salvation in Christ. Now, these are incredibly difficult to deliver. The language and the sensitivity to the audience and the Spirit are crucial. A great speaker is transparent and never fools his or her audience into accepting something masquerading as faith. A wise follower will always call for death before He offers life. By the end of this call, the audience was well aware and 20 kids made life altering decisions. More than we prayed for, Christ saved the ones we mentioned by name and then some. God granted favor to a imperfect ministry and a flawed leader by working regardless. It is after all His ministry.

And while we rejoice in this, writing it on the tablets of the heart of our ministry, we know the real work starts now. The kids that took an incredible step toward Christ – regardless of social dynamics and criticism – have no idea what they are doing. It is up to the Church, not just those “called” to student ministry, to disciple and show the way lest they fall into the void of cultural Christianity. My heart for these kids is that they grow deeper than we can possibly keep up with. My prayer is they find adults who chase after Christ who challenge, comfort, and love them. A church is only as healthy as it’s ability to engage new believers. We can never grow if we get this wrong. Isn’t it like God to disciple the veterans of faith while He raised new believers into a faithful community?

Pray for salvation, but pray more for growth. We are committed to these teens and will break our back in loving support.

Lord, thank you for moving beyond what we expect. You are merciful and generous. Teach us how to disciple. Raise leaders to raise leaders. We love you.