Disgust for "Church Youth" groups

[RoRoberto]

Some little background:
I was born and grew up in a Christian family, and while we did have some testing and difficulties at some point, just like in any family, I never stopped wishing to become a true Christian man, with strong feelings of love and commitment for God and country.

Outside the Church, I've never liked telling people "I'm a christian", because I want my behavior and temperance to be enough proof and testimony, not just words.
Inside the Church, I strongly prefer to surround myself by the elderly, mainly because I dislike the whole dynamic and bounding inside the "Youth Group".

The reason I dislike these Youth Groups is mostly due to it's lack of Christian principles. Yes, they participate and promote Bible lecture, Artistic activities involving Christian passages, etc. but that's about it, an empty shell, colorfully painted in the outside, but lacking anything meaningful in the inside.

The gossiping, the secret promiscuity, the "I fight my battles on my knees" and the constant "search for the one" which involves plenty of dating, are part and parcel of these groups. What disgust me the most is that these are the """christian""" youth, and won't hesitate to proclaim it everywhere they go.

For those who will say "Lol no it's only in your Church" or "Lol not all Churches are the same" or even "Lol ur not God to judge", Yes I agree that not all Youth Groups might be the same, but when you take the time to interact and familiarize yourself with different groups, you'll find a similar pattern. And while I'm not judging the way some persons experience their faith, I can't help but feel disgust at such immorality while waving a Christian Banner.

 

[HopefulHepatica]

Youth groups are prone to the influences of being a young human being in this world, vulnerable to the same temptations and peer pressures we all deal with, but specifically being in that age-range AND being part of the world, it's harder for them to understand what it means to bring God in and make Him first. Thus these groups should focus on guiding them away from the behaviors & desires of the world, and using those examples to steer them back to God.

It's my understanding that Youth Groups are to provide a place for Christian Youth to gather and be introduced the Word of God, and the things you're seeing are probably the actions of the youths themselves, but HOPEFULLY not encouraged by these groups. I feel as humans we get a bit carried away with wanting to please the groups we're leading, we forget to focus on pleasing GOD or making Him first. He should be the message, and we need to trust that God will deliver that to the Youth through us, not us obsessing on getting the Youth to hear us. That may be another issue some of these groups are facing, but I don't believe this represents all of them.

I find the Word of God to be so powerful that even speaking it out to a group of non-believers has power. Whether they receive it or not, there's might in the living Word that it has the tendency to stand out and stick to a person's mind. I believe they're necessary tools to provide youth with the knowledge of God and His word. It's just something you find so rampant in the human community as a whole, that the influences of the world are going to seep in, it's inevitable. The youth are harder to understand because they lack the same kind of experience and discipline that we have as we get older, so they appear worse off and unruly.

I understand the disgust with the more modernized approach to Christianity and that there are communities that have begun bending God's Word to appease the world, but that is wrong and should have no place in any church groups, but especially youth groups. They definitely need to have a strong, spirit-led focus because the youth I find are most vulnerable.

However you may be judging a little too strongly on the actions of people, versus the groups designed to provide an opening for God. Trust that God's word will intercede.

 

[E.C.]

So why not lead the nearby Youth Group to volunteer at a soup kitchen or homeless shelter? You complain about how superficial their activities are, so why not show them something more?

Christ said many times in many ways to care for the poor. He even spelled it out saying that when you cared for the least of His people, you cared for Him. The early deacons of the Church cared for widows. I'm sure there are widows and shut-ins in your church who could use some help. There's probably elderly folks whose yards are overgrown because they can't maintain it themselves, don't have family nearby, or don't have the money to pay someone. Or disabled folks in similar situations.

These are just a few things I remember the youth group at my old church doing. There was one lady who's husband left her after she was diagnosed with cancer and she lived in a mobile park that required maintenance on the small yards. A few of us went there to trim down the brush until she was able to move into assisted living.

In the words of a misattributed Francis of Assisi, "Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words".