Four Views of Youth Ministry and the Church download epub

Overall, this is a great book looking at several models of youth ministry, and a must read for any current or future youth minister. Be prepared to put your mind into overdrive though, as the book many times gets its powerful message lost in a sea of academic mumbo-jumbo and theological jargon. Definitely a worthy read, however.

This book was a quicker read than I expected. The contents were very thorough. Over all, this book reminded me of Four Views of Family Ministry and the Church.

I am enjoying reading this book!

This book was great. It gives you several differnt views on how to run a youth ministry. It focuses on four ways as well as how each of them focus on missional or fellowship. This book is very helpful for those looking to going into youth ministry or those already there.

INTRODUCTION
A little hectic to read at first, Four Views of Youth Ministry is a thorough look at the "Inclusive Congregational", "Preparatory", "Missional" and "Strategic" approaches to reaching and discipling students. With rebuttals from each viewpoint offered at the end of the sections. This work does what others have not attempted in that it has respected men in youth ministry openly critiquing each other's philosophies. If there were an ESPN for academic youth ministry, this would be a prize fight observed by many wondering spectators eager to see which is the last philosophy standing.

WHAT IS THE MESSAGE OF THE TEXT?

It is clear from the amount of attention shown by each of these men that the message of this text is two-fold; first, the current state of youth ministry is failing this present generation in evangelism and discipleship. Second, the current state of ecclesiology is failing youth ministry by not incorporating younger Christians into the work of the body. The goal of the text is to address these concerns in an intellectual dialogue using scriptural principles and cultural relevance.

HOW WAS I CHALLENGED?
There is no question that each of these principles is scripturally based. There is also no doubt that each of these men is spirit-led and has a heart for reaching and equipping students. There was plenty to be challenged with from each of the four philosophies. First, from the "Inclusive congregational" approach, Malan Nel challenges the church to see youth as the church of today gifted for today's service, rather than as a separate body of believers that are disconnected. In an answer to our dilemma about youth ministries not being unified with churches, Nel says "The problem is not our youth ministry, the problem is our church."(2) Nel's challenge for the church to see teens as viable resources for ministry using their gift of teenagers rather than considering that gift a burden is refreshing. Wesley Black presented the "Preparatory" approach to youth ministry. The key challenge I took from this section was to view youth ministry more as an apprenticeship program. The focus here was one preparing teens for future service. There is a definite conflict here with Nel's philosophy and that is the subject of some discussion in the rebuttals, but if taken for face value, one could see that the middle ground on each of these is beneficial to the development of teens and to the growth of the local church. The "Missional" approach, in my opinion is likely the most pure in regards to biblical ministry. The focus that Chap Clark puts on students as a people group is enlightening. The recognition that youth workers are really just reaching another culture is refreshing. The expectation that we should be able to reach them because "they are ours" is out the door. The understanding is that they are their own and they will make spiritual decisions for themselves. Mark Senter contributed the final approach to youth ministry called the "Strategic" approach. The challenging part of this section came on page 118. Senter flies in the face of Mark Yaconelli (Contemplative Youth Ministry) and the like who have called for a more simple approach to student mentoring. Senter says returning to the simplicity of the old days would be much like returning to the one-room schoolhouse in public education." The "Strategic" approach recognizes the multifaceted nature of today's youth ministries and the cultural complexity of today's youth and seeks to unify the body of Christ (young and old) through youth ministry church planting. I was challenged to learn of the number of churches that began as thriving youth ministries.

WHAT DID I LIKE ABOUT THE BOOK?

The idea of allowing four men who are passionate about the way God has led them to do ministry to "duke it out" in a book is a great idea. So in general, I liked the very idea of the book. More specifically, the contributors were honest enough to not pull punches. There are times when the "arguments" seem to get a little heated. It was also extremely insightful that they each shined light on the positive points in each other's philosophies.

WHAT NEW THINGS HAVE I LEARNED FROM THIS WORK THAT I WILL APPLY IN MY FUTURE YOUTH MINISTRY STRATEGY?

First, the "Missional" approach opened my eyes to youth as a people group rather than just an age group. I will apply more of a "Missional" strategy to my youth work the "Inclusive Congregational" model excited me about what teens can be doing in churches today, and the lasting relationships that can be built with people in older generations. I am particularly excited about what that might do for our church's retention rate of graduating seniors. The stark contrast found in many of these four models taught me that there is definitely more than one "right" way to do youth ministry...none of these authors are failures. This contrast also taught me that each of them have strengths and weaknesses and it would behoove any youth leader to squeeze out the flaws and implement the strengths without concern of allegiance to any title on the philosophy or proponent thereof.

WHICH VIEW OF YOUTH MINISTRY IS CLOSEST TO MY STYLES AND HOW WOULD I COMBINE STYLES?

Part of the struggle I have had over my eleven year youth ministry career is that I have tried to do three of these four exclusively and it has crashed and burned. I have taken Jesus to the youth culture (Missional) to the extent that the message was watered down and lost. Then I got into ministry teams and was including students in leadership positions (inclusive congregational) before they were ready for such a position. I then pulled them all out and started focusing on discipleship (preparatory) before they would be allowed to serve. The only thing I hadn't tried is starting a youth church and I don't think I will be trying that. Perhaps with more balance I would have been more successful in one or more of these ventures.
To combine the qualities, I would reach youth as a people group rather than an age group; prepare them as they serve in youth / children's ministry for service in the whole body. The next major factor would be to integrate them outside of leadership into as many facets of the corporate body as possible.

WHAT ARE THREE NEW THINGS I CAN DO TODAY IN THE AREA OF PERSONAL STUDENT DEVELOPMENT?

Reach parents, Develop a scope and sequence for discipling students, and go to them rather than expecting them to come to me.

CONCLUSION

I have used this book in the youth classes I teach, the insights are very helpful. Even the questions that are posed are as helpful as the answers given. "Four Views" goes along way in the educational process of youth ministry undergrads by allowing the reader to be a part of the decision making between the different models.