I’ve been involved in YFC for 48 years, and appreciate what you have written about YFC and the juvenilization of American Christianity. I have not read your book but read your article in Christianity Today just yesterday. I agree in general with what you have said about YFC, but, like Dave, I would like to point out some distinguishing differences.

I don’t believe that YFC has ever fit into the category of causing kids to become “Moralistic Therapeutic Deists.” From the gitgo in the 40′s we got kids into the Word of God – soon after they gave their lives to Christ. Of course, not all the new believers came to the “Insight” meetings or got involved in a local church, but many did. And many learned whole chunks of the Word through the 15-20 years that we emphasized quizzing.

Obviously the youth culture is different today than it was in the 40′s and 50′s, but we still find unchurched teenagers hungry for the love and acceptance and peace that comes through knowing Jesus Christ as Savior. In the last 10+ years since the introduction of 3Story Evangelism we’ve trained our kids in the Bible and to be authentic in sharing their faith. There has been a greater emphasis on discipleship and student leadership. We are involved in many juvenile institutions across the country and in many of them we conduct Bible studies – even on a weekly basis.

The juvenilization in the church comes in with seeker-friendly churches who use the same “light” methods to get adults involved that YFC and Young Life use to get youth involved initially. But many churches are not like that and constantly preach and teach the Word and try to disciple people into a deeper relationship with the Lord. My church here in the Denver area is one of those.

Yes, many churches today have gone to contemporary worship services with songs that often have a “lighter” theology than many of the old hymns. Singing these songs with a “rock beat” can be upsetting to some of the older crowd, but overall, I’ve seen people in churches and YFC camps and conferences today get more into worship than ever before.

You’re right – YFC is trying to do a better job, not only of evangelism but of discipleship. We truly desire, and for the most part, we have taken our youth beyond “narcissistic spiritual immaturity.” Thanks for reminding us in YFC and in the church that we truly need to “grow-up” and continually mature in our relationship with the King.

It’s great to hear about new things happening in YFC. One of the things I admire about YFC is the relentless drive to keep improving and to be faithful to the call from God to share the Good News with young people. One of my concerns in writing the book and especially the Christianity Today article was that people would think that I see no value in YFC or other Christian youth ministries. Here are two excerpts from the book that people might miss:

The dedication page:

“To my students at Huntington University who remind me every day of the value of youth ministry.”

From the acknowledgements:

“I would also like to thank the members and leaders of the Methodist Youth Fellowship, Youth for Christ, the Catholic Youth Organization, and Baptist Young People’s Union, most of whom I have never met. . . . I respect each of these organizations for seeking to help young people come into a full experience of the life of Jesus Christ.”

I believe Youth for Christ and many other youth ministries have done great good. My hope is that I can contribute some guidance as we move forward so that some of the unintended side effects can be addressed.

Suffice it to say, I think we’re pushing toward a culture permeated by prayer, love, teaching and living Biblical truth, unity of God’s people and empowering others to faithfully use their gifts for God. Not only is that a far different description than the programmatic/methodological forms you describe, it’s something with a 30 year shelf life that would benefit the Church…especially if we stay in our sweet spot of working with kids who aren’t yet on the radar screen of community churches.

Enjoy your summer break!

Kent

Finally, I think that too many youth ministers operate out of the model of cultural engagement pioneered in YFC in the 1950s. Too many church leaders think of cultural forms as neutral and pay little attention to the way that adapting to youth culture subtly changes the Gospel message itself. So, for example, it’s probably fine to sing pop style worship music, but we should be concerned when our worship services look more and more like rock concerts.

1. Adults overestimate the number and influence of youthful political activists. This happened in the 1930s and in the 1960s and is still happening today. During the 2008 presidential election, news reports claimed that young people were more engaged than they had been in some time. The Occupy Wall Street and Arab Spring movements have also heightened this perception. But in their recent book Lost in Transition: The Dark Side of Emerging Adulthood, Christian Smith and his co-authors found that American 18 – 23 year olds are not in fact very politically engaged. Only about 4% of their interviewees cared much about politics. And these interviews were conducted during the 2008 presidential campaign! When adults overestimate youthful political influence they either blame youth or rely on them to accomplish change. Neither approach is politically constructive.

2. The minority of young people who are politically active overestimate what can be achieved by protests, sit ins, etc…This minority group may not do the hard work that would be required to create lasting political change. Meanwhile, the majority group senses that the politics of protest will not bring deep change. They are confirmed in their cynicism about any political involvement. Like other kinds of immaturity, political immaturity undermines patient work toward long term goals.