youth group
5:30 - 7:15 am | wednesday nights | 6-12 grade
5:30 - 6:00 am | food & fellowship
6:00 - 7:15 am | music, games & connective Bible study
Welcome to the brand new youth program. My name is Pastor Andy, and I have just recently moved to The Village. Part of my ministry is to work with the Teens (6-12 grade). I am looking forward to seeing what God is going to do in the next few years as we embark on building a lasting ministry.
We have started a Wednesday night youth program where we have a lot of fun with music, games, food and a connective Bible study. We aim to be relational, understanding that being a teenager is very tough in today’s world with lots of peer pressure and temptations. We want to provide a safe place for kids to hang out, share, and grow in Christ.
Watch this site in for more content - calendars, forms, pictures, etc. This will be a one stop shopping site for teens.
Email me or give me a call anytime if you have any questions.
Pastor Andy
andrewdarrell@mac.com | 501 276 9905
youth philosophy
I believe youth ministry is an essential aspect of any church that seeks to fulfill the call of the Lord and impact the world for Christ. The students of today will be tomorrows leaders of the church and the world. Any investment made into the life of a student today is, in essence, an investment in the future. With statistics concluding that 85% of believers will accept Christ before the age of 18, we cannot afford to ignore the youth of our churches and communities.
A healthy youth ministry is grounded in the Word of God. The Scriptures are the written word of God (2 Tim 3:16) revealed to man without error. The Word is living and active (Heb 4:12) and able to teach, correct, rebuke, and train mankind for righteous living. The Word of God is the primary teaching tool and the most valuable resource of any youth leader. The Word of God, together with His Spirit have ways of working that surpass even the most eloquent of youth pastors. They are capable of showing the reality of Christ to a student living apart from Him, as well as equipping a growing student for life.
A healthy youth ministry is purposeful. I firmly believe that a youth ministry should be centered around five purposes. These five purposes are evangelism, worship, fellowship, discipleship, and service. I believe everything, has a purpose, instead of just creating lots of programs with no clear reason for their existence. Therefore, every program that is created or event that is planned will clearly be a tool to fulfill one of these purposes. I don’t believe our students need to be busier, rather, I believe they’re activities should be purposeful.
A healthy youth ministry is relational. The success of a youth ministry is largely reflective of how relational its leaders are. Since God has made us relational beings, it is only expected that we operate a youth ministry with this fact in mind. There is a level of trust that is gained when a leader takes the time to be a part of a student’s life. It is much easier and more permanent to influence a student from the inside than to try and throw things at them from the outside and hope they stick. All the leaders should be encouraged to attend games, go to school lunches, play a pick-up football game or to get involved in a student’s life in other ways.
A healthy youth ministry requires a team approach. I am the first to admit that my own personal influence is very limited, and that a healthy youth ministry requires a team of leaders. This said, the youth pastor is responsible for constantly training and equipping the leaders, who in turn will train and equip students to have a broader impact. The youth pastor is responsible for the well being of his team. I also believe strongly in coming along side of parents and encouraging and equipping them in their role as the primary spiritual instructor to their kids. I don’t believe it is the responsibility of the youth pastor to replace parents, but rather work as a team, when possible. Youth leader- parent relationships are valuable ones, especially when they are working together toward a common goal of Christlikeness in their students.
A healthy youth ministry plans to meet students at different points along the spiritual journey. The ultimate goal of youth ministry is for students to know Jesus and to make Him known. However, all students are not coming in at the same place in their spiritual journeys, and therefore must be ministered to differently. I believe the youth ministry has a place for the non-Christian seeker as well as the sold-out student. Our vision is very limited if we choose to make the student ministries a Christian “club” with certain requirements for membership instead of a place that meets students where they are.
And finally, a healthy youth ministry operates through the power of God. “Unless the Lord builds a house, its workers labor in vain (Psa 127:1).” The power for student ministry is not found in a position or a program, but rather it is found in God. No matter how well a person plans or how eloquently a person speaks, without the Lord in it, it is worthless. Fueled by the power of God, the potential impact of a ministry is unfathomable.
100 Ponderosa Way, Hot Springs Village, AR, 71909 | 501 922 0404 | vbcchurch@sbcglobal.net | webmaster