Confirmation

 This weekend I got to do something I hadn't done for three years! I got to help lead an overnight youth event! It was actually a two day confirmation retreat. The Sunday before actually kicked off our 18 month confirmation class so this event was really about getting to know each other and introducing them to confirmation.

Events were always one of my favorite parts of leading youth ministry. I remember so many youth leaders saying how much they disliked lock-ins, but I think I was always more excited than the youth.... and they were pretty excited! So, I feel grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this ministry again. I have missed it in its absence and whenever I start doing things, I realize how much I miss it and how much I realize it's one of the things God has called me to do. I'm so glad I can still do it even though it's not my full-time job. 

Why do I love these overnight events, where sleep is at a minimum, energy is at a high, and there are so many unknowns about what the time will hold? That's just it! I get to experience all of that! And, while all of that is happening, relationships are forming- relationships with each other, with adults, and with God. Events are like the fast track to connection. This makes the other times extremely important, too because they are the glue that holds everything together. But, by the end of an event, so many things always happen that couldn't be planned, but that just happened. 

When I plan an event, I typically plan to the minute. And then God laughs and laughs... 

I plan out what we are going to do, but then I let God take over and decide what really needs to happen during that time. I never let the youth see the schedule because it's going to change as God decides. And some of my youth would have really been stressed by that. There was the time we were told after the first day on a mission trip that we couldn't come back because the youth were under the required age limit, even though we had sent them all of the paperwork way ahead. There was the time we had to build a ramp with no instructions, or when emergencies came up with volunteers. The snow storm that happened when we were supposed to spend time somewhere else and had to rethink our activities. So, many little things that changed our course and by the end, I knew God had stepped in. He always does. 

This weekend was no different. God stepped in. He changed some things on our schedule and that was just the way it was meant to be. During the weekend, these are some of the thigs I got to experience. I saw a group that didn't know each other well spend time laughing and being silly. I'm pretty sure someone got a new nickname (grandma!). I saw adults come to spend time with youth and talk to them about faith, about their lives, and build relationships. They learned from people of other generations, they taught people of other generations. They prayed out loud. They got more comfortable looking things up in the Bible, and they had fun doing it! They thought of people in the community that needed prayer. They asked questions about God, about creation, about death. They ask questions some adults want to know but are afraid to ask. They learned a body prayer and created their own, and used it as part of waking up the next day! When someone was upset, another one comforted her and assured her she wasn't alone. They got comfortable in the church. There is something about sleeping in the church, getting in your most vulnerable state, that makes the connection with the church so much stronger. When asked what impacted them, they shared about the connections they had made throughout the day, with each other and with the adults that came by. They loved serving others at the soup kitchen because they said it made them feel good to help others and that that was what they are supposed to do. This generation is working to save the world- to help each other and the environment and to stop the hate of discrimination. I love seeing the potential and the depth that happens when a group of youth come together for a couple of days. Who wouldn't love to experience this?

While I know this is my thing and not everyone's, I also know that everyone has gifts and that there are ways to use them. Part of the blessing of ministry is connecting people to use their gifts in ministry together. One person can lead, another can donate food or supplies, another can teach something, another may love playing games, and someone may have a mission opportunity they could use some young people to help with. To me, that's what it's all about- ministry, church, being a Christian... sharing our gifts to help each other, to show God's love to each other, and to make disciples for God. That's exactly what happened on our first annual confirmation retreat this weekend! 

So, where did I see God today? He was everywhere in the people I was surrounded by!

Blessings,

Jennifer