Who am I? When I started with youth ministry I asked, “What do I do?” However as I spend more time doing it, that seems inadequate. There are many things to do but is that all? Is it enough to run activities, speak to teens one-on-one, and tell them about Christ?
Maybe not.
Will this really help teens come to know and experience Christ? At times “yes” and I have the experience of it. But is it the activity? The more time I spend with youth ministry, the less convinced I am that the answer is yes.
As I continue the ECyD Advisor’s course in Madrid, this inquietude of mine has come up to the surface. As I think about it, it doesn´t seem as much what activity is done but who does it and how. If a saint does a simple activity, he will transmit Christ more than if some functionary does the most magnificent activity. In the end, I need to ask myself, “Who I am accompanying these teens?”
We have a certain method in ECyD, but what is the key? If the key is the activities, we remain on the outside of teens. We want to transmit Christ to their interior. Only someone who knows the teen interiorly can transmit Christ to his interior. So any aspect of a method needs to begin with the person, the teen and the one who helps him to know Christ. This conclusion seemed to be common to all those who participated in the course.
This affects my responsibility dramatically, I write the activities so the rest can prepare quickly. I need to focus more on the individual team leader reading these activities that the activities themselves.
