his becomes a time to invite young people into circles characterized by unconditional trust and confidentiality, circles where listening occurs with understanding and acceptance; circles where truth and authenticity are tantamount; circles whose primary function is mutual accountability. The balanced and focused practice of Christian discipleship through the use of ovenants could prove a strange yet powerful attractor.
The remarkable ministry team of the Rev. Cecil Williams and his wife, Janice Marikitani, came and shared with the General Board of Discipleship Board members and General Agency staff during its annual meeting March 1998. Their comments centered on the extraordinary urban ministry of Glide Memorial United Methodist Church, in the Tenderloin Area of downtown San Francisco, CA, where 3500+ meals are served daily and 40+ discipleship, recovery, and social service ministries are thriving! Williams challenged this gathering in Nashville to remember that (1) we (the people) are the Church, (2) the Church is home, and (3) all of God’s children should “have a home” in the Church. These remarks reminded me of the distinction I have often made between the Church —the fellowship of gathered believers, and the church house—the building.
Williams shared an account of a particular relationship his congregation has experienced with a young man named Maurice. Maurice, a “child of the streets,” entered the Glide family through its feeding program. Eventually, by age 16, Maurice joined ranks with countless volunteers to be in service with the hungry and the homeless. The folks at Glide came to understand this young man’s serious intentions for constructive living, and Williams spoke of the Glide family “wrapping themselves around Maurice” to ensure his survival and success. As a result of this relationship, Maurice is now in college and well on the pathway of constructive, disciplined living. This powerful image and reference to the Glide family’s relationship with Maurice prompted a vision that I continue to hold for The United Methodist Church.
Young Adult Ministry
As I transition into the area of Ministry with Young Adults, I struggle with the challenge to encourage and support our congregations in involvement with young people. Involvement seems incomplete! The charge to “wrap ourselves around young people” calls us to connect with what one writer calls “these beautiful acts of nature” and to grow with them spiritually. Such gestures move us toward the biblical directives in Galatians: “through love, serve one another” (5:13) and “you shall love your neighbor as yourself” (5:14).
The various life stages and life issues that characterize this segment of the lifespan offer congregations many opportunities to relate to and to connect this audience to Christian discipleship. The young adult audience comprises more than college-age or single younger adults; it includes young marrieds with children, young marrieds without children, young people building constructive lives both without and with the college experience, young professionals just beyond the collegiate experience, and the ever-expanding number of young workers/professionals who are delaying the choice of both marriage and children—the thirtysomethings!
Dale Robinson’s Intersecting Lives: Road Maps for Ministry with Young Adults outlines the distinctions and complexities most often noted for post-moderns—their dress, their language, and a worldview distinctly different from that of the two preceding generations. Regarding relationships, however, Robinson specifically emphasizes the extraordinary relational needs of young adults and their intense desire to be in relationship with “other older adults.” His short list of expressed desires of young people includes: connections, the “unvarnished” truth, mentors, and responsibility with accountability. Should this be so, then we the church have a wonderful ministry opportunity in our midst—especially within the Covenant Discipleship Group Network.
This becomes a time to invite young people into circles characterized by unconditional trust and confidentiality, where listening occurs with understanding and acceptance, where truth and authenticity are tantamount, where the primary function is mutual accountability. The balanced, focused practice of Christian discipleship through the use of covenants could prove a strange yet powerful attractor.
I want to issue the following challenge to covenant discipleship (CD) groups and congregational leaders throughout the connection. Over the next six months, when CD groups are looking to expand or enfold new members, or rewrite their covenants, or even start new groups in and beyond the congregation: Invite two young people (under 35 who may be early in their spiritual awakening) to join your group’s discipleship journey for a period of six months! Should your group or groups decide to accept the challenge, please contact my office at the General Board of Discipleship and we will forward a “kit of materials” to ensure your success:
Office of Young-Adult Ministries
General Board of Discipleship PO Box 340003
Nashville, TN 37203-0003
(615) 340-7005
Toll-free (877) 899-2780, ext. 7005
Email: bcrenshaw@gbod.orgThe Challenge
Yes, we will continue to form and grow covenant discipleship groups in campus ministries, in seminaries, and in settings where young people gather. We are yet challenged to intersect the lives of young people—anywhere and everywhere, accept them as they are, experience their energy and enthusiasm, join them on their spiritual journeys, and involve them significantly in the life and leadership of the church. Should we accept the challenge of these special relationships, we will enhance the missional efforts of The United Methodist Church and, indeed, move its people toward “a higher order—of discipleship!”
We congratulate Bill Crenshaw, former director of Covenant Discipleship, on his new position as Director of Young Adult Ministry.
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Plant a Seed for Literacy | Called to be a Miracle
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