Lead a Weblog for Young Adult Leaders

The Scriptures teach us to “remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.” In addition to Sundays, I think the Bible is reminding us we need some special down time. What I don’t think is that it’s calling us to be lazy and neglectful.

My husband and I have officially worn out our welcome. The “welcome” word on our doormat, that is.

A few weeks ago, Ryan noted that the welcome mat at our front door was faded and shredded. You couldn’t even read any of the various multi-lingual “welcomes” that once covered it. As usual, our perspectives on this mundane domestic development were about as distant as the loyalties of Red Sox and Yankees fans or the political views of Mary Matalin and James Carville.

Church historians consider Nehemiah among the greatest leaders in the Bible. What is the pedigree for a man with such a reputation? What was the background of one who could rebuild a city in 52 days? Nehemiah was a nobody before he was somebody.

The simple truth of the gospel does not change—Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died as a sacrifice so that we might, by faith, be put in right relationship with God. Though this truth is timeless, we must always evaluate the presentation of that truth to make sure it’s connecting in a culturally relevant way. Here are a few principles we’ve found to be helpful in the discussion of how you evangelize young adults:

Groups focused exclusively on themselves are sad to see. Sure, they have lively discussions. They know incredible amounts of theological terms. There is never a shortage of opinions regarding predestination, the end times, or the Nephilim. The problem with groups like that is that they have given themselves over to intellectualism, and in so doing, have lost many of the other benefits (serving, praying for one another, bringing new people into the group) of meeting together.

All of us know the tragic stories of wives and children of pastors and planters that grow up to hate the church. The greater tragedy is that I believe most of these stories should never have to be told. Instead, the stories exist because the leader of the home is failing to lead well.

January is traditionally designated as the most depressing month of the year by psychologists, who cite cold weather, credit card bills, and a post-holiday emotional swoon as reasons you should just consider staying in bed. In fact, January 18, 2010, was designated “the Gloomiest Day of the Year.” So, how do you beat the blues in the dead of winter? One way we recommend is by getting a Bible study going with a group of your friends.

Let’s be honest. Our prayer lives need some help! Some of us pray as if God is a cosmic genie, granting wishes and doing the bidding of those who pray the most or the best. Others treat prayer like a fire alarm—pull in case of emergency. For those of us leading Sunday School classes, Bible studies, and small groups, prayer is often more like an administrative task to check off our to-do list rather than an encounter with a living—and listening—God.

We’re often asked the following question from young adult leaders: What do I do if my group has differing levels of spiritual maturity? That’s a valid question, and a challenging one. For starters, separating groups according to their supposed spiritual maturity isn’t a good solution. It creates pride and division, and it prohibits community. But how do you lead a group of mixed spiritual maturity when you want to make sure everyone is challenged?

We are living in an interesting time in history. For what is likely the first time in the history of the Christian church, generations aren’t worshiping together. It now appears normal to see older generations meeting together wearing suits and singing hymns, boomers wearing Hawaiian shirts and singing peppy songs about how Jesus changed their lives, and emerging generations meeting in dark rooms singing in minor keys. But, from an historical perspective, this is not normal. Beyond that, it is ultimately harmful to the church.