3 Things Youth Pastors Need to Focus on During COVID-19 by kevin yi
Let me get straight to the point. The things that our students have been hard at work preparing for - it’s all getting canceled and postponed indefinitely. And the disappointment of losing so many academic and social markers of growing up is going to be crushing for our students. Some of the highlights of my life are things like high school graduation, prom, spring performances, sports championships, and the like. But for current students, all the anticipation and hard work now lead to a trail of disappointment. SATs & ACTs are canceled, and the likelihood of Advanced Placement testing getting canceled or postponed is very real as well. This is going to have an impact on the future of our students’ lives, and they know it. On top of that, many students are beginning to worry about their livelihoods as they begin to see their parents starting to get stressed out and worried about their income and their jobs. This is going to get very real, very fast. We as youth pastors and youth workers have to get ahead of it. We have to proclaim that Christ is enough when everything we want to do is getting canceled. We have to proclaim 12
that what we see in the light is still true when the lights go out; God is good in the midst of a global pandemic and an economic meltdown. But how do we minister well when we can’t be with our students physically? We have to use the available tools to meet with them, even if it’s virtual. We have to hear their voices and see their faces. We have to pray with them and listen to them as they share their disappointments and their worries. Too many youth pastors are focused on how they can lead online games with their youth groups to pass the time -- what a tragic misuse of the opportunity that lies ahead. Many Generation Z students will see their idols crumble before their eyes. Financial stability, living your best life, and personal success -- all of these idols will topple over by the time this is over, and we must be there to help them see that these worthless gods cannot hold a candle to Jesus Christ. But not only are they not worthy, but these idols were also chains that held them back from embracing eternal life by knowing the Father and therefore the Son. (John 17:3) So here are three things youth workers need to teach and remind their students during the COVID-19 pandemic.
