We used this mash-up of scripture, read as a script by 5 different voices:

Genesis: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

John: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.

Genesis: Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep.

1 John: If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth.

Genesis: And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

John: What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people.

Matthew: You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid.

Revelation: And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb.

Matthew: No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house.

Revelation: The nations will walk by its light.

1 John: If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another.

Genesis: God saw that the light was good.

Matthew: In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

1 John: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.

Genesis: He separated the light from the darkness.

1 John: And the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

Revelation: (The City) gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there.

1 John: This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you:

John: The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

Matthew: This is the Word of God for the people of God.

All: Thanks be to God.

Gen 1:1-5 (NIV); John 1:1-5 (NRSV); 1 John 1:5-7 (NIV); Matt 5:14-16 (NRSV); Rev 21:22-25 (NRSV)

A new website called Chat Roulette has become very popular among teens and young adults. The concept of the site is simple: turn on your webcam, press a button, and be instantly connected to another random user. The site says that you need to be at least 16 to use it, but there is no way to confirm a user’s age. In fact, you don’t even have to create an account or enter any information at all. Just click, and you’re face to face with…who knows who?

On one hand, our youth should be applauded for always working to break down social barriers. In fact, the site was created by a 17-year-old Russian high school student. While the desire to connect with people beyond ones own social class is admirable, not everybody comes to Chat Roulette with the best of intentions, or even a wardrobe. The site says it doesn’t tolerate the broadcasting of pornographic images, but it has no policing. There is a “report” button that users can click, but by that point they have already seen and heard offensive material, which abounds on the site. It only took me four clicks to come across something I wouldn’t want our kids to be exposed to.

It is not possible for us to completely insulate our teenagers from all the unsavory content on the world wide web, but we can certainly discourage them from seeking it out. The day might come when Chat Roulette becomes better monitored and filtered, but until then, it is not a teen-friendly website.

Regardless of the venue for online interaction, teens need to be reminded to never share personal information online. Have an ongoing open dialog with your teenager about his or her online activity, and keep the computer in a common area of the house.

For high schoolers, it’s all about texting and Facebook. Generally, kids prefer a text message to a phone call because rather than having to drop everything to answer it, they can reply when it’s convenient. Kids prefer this for their personal communications, as opposed to the formal communications I alluded to earlier. Consider which category allows for more effective ministry, and then add a texting package to you cell phone account.

The real communications goldmine is Facebook–not just because all your kids are on it, but because all the other kids in town are on it too. Some people have a real hang up about Facebook, and I think it’s because they don’t understand how it differs from chat rooms. Facebook isn’t about anonymity. You set up a profile which includes your name and your picture, and then you seek out your friends to share in an online experience. Most kids who get into trouble online are interacting with an anonymous somebody pretending to be somebody else in a chat room, but not on Facebook.

That’s not to say there isn’t a certain amount of drama and other pitfalls involving Facebook. You get that in whatever forum teenagers are communicating. But how do you shepherd them through all that without being familiar with the medium? So, get yourself a Facebook profile, and then use it to the benefit of your ministry. If you need help setting it up, ask one of the kids in your group.

Now, here is an important tip: do not send friend requests to your kids. It backs them into a corner because they have to either accept or deny the request. Instead, you can send them a message–maybe just a reminder about the next meeting. Then, they know you’re on Facebook and they can send you a friend request if they want to.

Set up a Facebook group for your ministry. Your kids can attach their profiles to the group and then you can take advantage of the “message all members” button on the group page. It’s like sending a bulk Email, but on a more effective platform. And remember how I mentioned all the other kids in town? Leverage Facebook to tap into them. The next time you have an event, create an event page on Facebook and encourage your kids to invite their friends via Facebook. We had a concert last year that more than 1200 kids knew about via Facebook.

Don’t disable your Email account, though. You’ll still need that to communicate with their parents.

BONUS:

If you’re working with middle schoolers, you’ll probably find that they aren’t quite as into Facebook as the high school kids are. Their thing is instant messenger. You can sign up for a free IM account at www.aim.com. Don’t download their software, though–you don’t need it.

Check out www.meebo.com. Register for an account and install their free Meebo Notifier software. Meebo runs in the background of your computer and can automatically log you into your IM account whenever your computer is turned on. (I’m guilty of forgetting to log in most of the time.)

Meebo is pretty sweet because you can also set it to log into your Facebook account, so you can use AIM and Facebook Chat all from one application.

I have just sealed a deal with our local pizza shop to allow us to print a coupon on the back of our youth group T-shirts. Anytime one of our members shows up wearing the shirt, he or she can get a free fountain soda. T-shirts done right are great pieces of mobile evangelism and can be effective advertising for your ministry. This makes them even more likely to be worn in a crowded public place where several other teens hang out. Fountain soda is dirt cheap for the pizza shop, so it’s a great deal in exchange for their logo being flashed around town. Meanwhile, the shirts make an awesome handout after a lesson on redemption.

Where/How does your group go about transporting kids to off site youth events?  According to my research, many churches are stepping away from using 15 passenger church vans citing safety concerns, in favor of smaller vehicles or buses.  Oh wouldn’t a million dollar budget be a wonderful thing

You’re right…the 15-passenger vans have pretty much been blacklisted. They have proven themselves to be a particularly unsafe mode of transportation. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration warns against using them. And I understand that churches who have them are finding it more and more difficult to insure them.

We had one at Jesse Lee when I first arrived, but I convinced the Trustees to get rid of it. The design of most models puts a seat and cargo space behind the rear wheels, causing them to handle much differently in quick-turn or skid situations, while the passenger weight increases the center of gravity, making them more susceptible to rollover accidents.

When we go somewhere, we ask our regular adult volunteers to drive their personal vehicles. We have some parents who volunteer to drive, too. I like to keep about a 1:5 chaperon to kid ratio on trips, so this works out anyway.

We have a walkie-talkie for each vehicle to help make sure we’re all together. It does the job well, but you always have this one driver who grew up in the 70’s watching BJ and the Bear and Dukes of Hazzard and always wanted a cool CB of his own. Everything is “10, 4″ or “Rodger” or my personal favorite, “got your ears on?” Or you have the woman who wants to be the tour guide for the whole caravan, pointing out every landmark and giving a play-by-play of the other drivers’ driving. Frankly, if I’m not the lead or the rear vehicle, I turn mine off. That is, until it’s time to call for a bathroom stop.

Don’t forget to background-check your drivers. It’s imperative for an overnight trip. One other thing we do here is always ask the kids before asking their parents to drive. And always offer to reimburse for gas.

Speaking of that…you mean you don’t have a million-dollar budget?

I used this story as part of the sermon, and I thought perhaps you would enjoy it…

One afternoon, a few years ago, I was working at home. Young Dackerie was playing quietly by herself…or so I thought. Today, with a little more parenting experience under my belt, I have come to understand that silence, as it pertains to unsupervised toddlers, is not to be relished, but rather feared. That day, however, I was enjoying the calm, and taking advantage of the quiet as I worked feverishly on an overdue manuscript for the United Methodist Publishing House. The only stray thought: that I am such a good parent to have instilled in my daughter the ability to entertain herself from time to time.

It was in that very position, hunched over the keyboard, staring intently at the screen that my wife found me on her arrival home from work. I said, “Hi hon, I’m almost done,” as Dackerie raced across the room to greet her mother. I became aware that something was amiss only when I heard the shrill questioning of “What did you do?”

Now to begin to have an appreciation for the volume and tenor of that exclamation, I would ask that you consider for a moment undergoing an extensive dental procedure without the benefit of novocaine.

You see, Dackerie had been playing “barber.” Her bangs were all hacked up, including one quadrant where no bangs remained at all. This, on its own, would certainly garner wrath from any mother, but you see, the following Saturday, Dackerie was to be the flower girl in my wife’s cousin’s wedding.

In a single motion, I swung around in my office chair, came to my feet, and struck the “standard disapproving parent” pose. My wife continued her rant, supported by my pose.

Timing is such a funny thing. It makes or breaks a joke, or a stock trade, or a tense situation. I bring this up because, it’s odd how, just about the time Angela paused in her scolding of Dackerie, the dog walked by, with a big chunk of fur missing.

At that point, Angela said nothing more. She just turned and looked at me. You see, I had been in charge.

Be angry…but don’t let the sun go down on your anger. I think we were up pretty late that particular night.

Kids are awesome, but they sure can make you angry. Perhaps you have some stories to share?