Where Conversion Takes Place

Every now and then I am asked to fill out a survey sponsored by my denominations Youth Leadership Team. I never do because the survey is dripping of preconceived ideas and as I look at the questions I see that they often put me in a catch 22.

They ask how much of the budget is designated for youth. I'm not sure what they want here. We do have a line item for youth but that really doesn't tell the story. That amount would be about 1% of our total budget and I can just hear the rant that would generate. On the other hand we don't have a similar category for adults so by comparison the youth do pretty good. Of course being in a small church the majority of the budget goes into things like salaries, utilities, maintenance, etc. To get an accurate figure of how much we spend on youth you would have to figure what percentage of those numbers should be "billed" to youth. (They would get a high percentage of the building maintenance, that's for sure.)

The other thing we often hear from youth folks is that most people are saved before the age of 18 so that is where we should be putting our resources. That's a half truth because actually most people are saved before age 13 or 14. Teens don't accept Christ at a much higher rate than adults do and those that do tend to be shallow Christians according to Barna.

So, if most people are saved as children we ought to be putting our resources in children's ministry right? Actually most of the children who are saved do so in their homes led by their parents. All this seems to lead me to think that the important thing is to be a community of faith that helps ALL its members in their journey as a disciple.

One more thought about kids being saved in the home. It is interesting to note the child's "place" in the home before they accept Christ. They are loved just as much, allowed to participate just as much, they are not thought of as second class family members, they are cared for just as much, etc. I think the church can learn something here.