responsibility!” So they proceed to do just that. They dump the whole program in the laps of the teens. It is like the coach ap proaching his team and saying, “Here’s the stadium, the equip ment, and the game strategy. Now go to it—get out there and win!” It just doesn’t happen! Oh, some teens may be excited about complete control o f things, but underneath, their adolescent inse curities and lack of experience will soon bring the group disillu sionment, discouragement, and failure. Providing a m eeting room, curriculum, a plan or or ganization, including a job analy sis for each officer, will never, alone, produce responsible teens and fruitful youth ministry. Even the most able teen leaders of high school and college age will floun der under these circumstances. STAND BACK j GO MAN! There is still another game which youth workers play, and it is basically an interesting combi nation o f the previous two called, “ Stand Back—Go Man,” or “Let Me Do It, But It’s Your Baby.” It sounds like double-talk, and it is exactly that! A coach must pro vide his team with equipment, fa cilities, and good training, but when the team enters into the ac tual competition o f a conference game, he cannot go out on the field or court and run every play, taking the place of the team’s quarterback or captain. Of course, win or lose, the team reflects the coach’s training and leadership. The adult leader may play this game unknowingly. He maw build quite an organization (although there is usually a lack of organ ization) and then end up making it work himself, rather than wisely enlisting and developing the talent and energy of the Charles T. Smith is a graduate of Talbot Theological Seminary. He is director of Christian Educa tion at Reinhardt Bible Church, Dallas, Texas.
youth officers and members. Then again, youth workers fre quently may delegate responsibil ity to teens, but because o f their apparen t lack of experience , training, or preparation, they step in and perform the task for them. As a result o f this practice, youth may become silently resent ful and even more negligent in their assignments. When a worker delegates re sponsibility, he must be sure that authority to carry out the task is also delegated. Once a student of ficer is duty-bound, then the sponsor has no right to do the job for the teen, only the right and duty to guide and help him in the completion of it. If the officer fails to do his part, then a serious counseling session should be con ducted with him. Removing an of ficer from his position, however, is a last resort which demands great wisdom and tact. Sometimes it is good, for the youth officers to taste failure, just as it is good, at times, for adults in their responsibilities. Experi encing failure is just part o f the maturing process. In order for failures to lead towards future successes, however, they should be followed by pupil evaluation pe riods with constructive, positive steps outlined for meetings and activities to come. Nothing suc ceeds like success. When a teen is given responsibility, adult leaders must, under the power o f the Spirit, do all they can to see him experience some degree of suc cess. When the youth succeed, the adult workers have succeeded. KICK-THE-CAN If the youth are to develop in successfully handling Christian responsibility, the adult workers must play one other game called “Kick-The-Can.” This game, in years past, was a well-known neighborhood activity in some C a l i f o rn ia communities. Trans ferred into the church workers’ realm, “Kick-The-Can” means get rid of those games youth workers
play! They are no longer options in a solid youth ministry. Fur thermore, since this game is one which involves cooperation among neighbors, it means that pastors and directors of Christian educa tion or youth must help the lay youth workers; it is a team effort. Follow the excellent example of Christ! He called His disciples, taught them, and then delegated them responsibility commensurate with, and at times greater than, their present knowledge and skill. Frequently, they failed, but He always continued to meet regularly with them for evalua tion, further instruction, and for assignments of future responsi bilities and projects. As the Mas ter Teacher, He was a supernat ural guide to His pupils. Out of Christ’s twelve “ execu tive officers,” eleven were eventu ally a tremendous success, and one was a great disappointment and failure. All the fruit of the hours and energy Christ gave in the development of these lives for Christian service was not seen during His three years of active ministry on earth. Later, how ever, these men were known as those who “ turned the world up side down.” It is quite likely that the fruit resulting from the ener gies and time given by adults in the church youth ministry will not all be evident in the immediate future. Christian maturity is a process of development, and at times you may even be struggling with a “ Judas.” When youth workers play the first three games they are putting their youth ministry in a suicide dive, or at least placing it upon a very hit-and-miss, Russian Rou lette basis. Unless the youth are developed now in their attitudes toward, response to, and follow- through with, responsibility, the church may never again have the opportunity o f shaping their lives in and for Christian service. Suc cess will certainly depend on how youth workers delegate, and guide their church youth in, Christian responsibility. BE
AUGUST, 1968
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