Feel The Love - January 2008

     Imagine this scene: Youth pastors from all over the nation gathering on the Teen Mania campus for an entire weekend to discuss the latest trends in youth ministry: What's working? What's not working? How can we help our young people feel the love of God and show that love to others? Those were just a few of the topics discussed during an insightful three-hour panel discussion.

     Afterward I talked with three different youth pastors who had started with groups of less than ten, but now have groups of over 100 young people every Sunday & Wednesday night. As I asked them to identify the primary factors that contributed to their ministry success, they gave the typical Sunday school answers: Jesus… prayer… the Holy Spirit. Granted, those are all great and accurate answers, but digging a little deeper, I asked, “So as you prayed to Jesus, what did the Holy Spirit prompt you to do differently to boost the group's attendance and energy level?”

     Each had dedicated a significant amount of time, energy, and resources into remodeling their youth room, creating a warm and wonderful space where young people would naturally want to hang out with their friends. One senior pastor explained, “We stood back and looked at what our youth room said to visitors. Unfortunately, it said, 'Our church doesn't really care about you.'” He went on to explain, “We were sticking them in a run-down room, giving them garage sale leftovers to sit on, and expecting them to somehow 'feel the love.' Our actions weren't lining up with our true feelings, so we decided to create a space that truly reflected the love we have for them.”

     Within a year of the remodel, this group more than doubled. Today, they minister to ten times as many young people as before.

     I candidly asked, “Were you 'sheep stealing?' Did these newcomers just gravitate from other churches?” The pastor responded that over 90% of their rapid growth is a result of youth inviting their unsaved, un-churched friends, and that these teens often wind up bringing their entire family into the church as a result of their involvement. Now THAT got my attention.

     Think about a room's ambience and what it communicates to people. The typically red-and-yellow décor of a fast food restaurant says, “Hurry up, eat that hamburger, and free that seat for the next customer.” However, the wood-laden, down-home décor of Cracker Barrel says, “Kick back, relax, and soak up some quality time with family and friends while you all strap on the feedbag.” And why are some travelers willing to pay twice the price to stay at an Embassy Suites over a Motel 6 when both provide hot showers and clean sheets? Ambiance. Grocery stores, department stores, hospitals, schools, malls, etc. utilize the psychology of ambience. Everything from the furniture and floor coverings to the wall colors and window treatments say something about a space and what you're supposed to feel while you're in it.

     So if commercial establishments can use ambience to attract a certain kind of patronage, why can't a church? I believe creating inviting spaces is a vital key to drawing new people our direction, especially young people who are used to gravitating toward colorful, cozy places such as Starbuck's, Rockwell's & Aly's. While carpet, chairs and paint can never replace the importance of teaching when it comes to growing young people in their faith, the right ambience does create a better atmosphere for receiving the teaching.

     That's why we're committing the next three months to an Extreme Youth Room Makeover project! Our goal is to raise enough funds within the first six weeks of 2008 to completely remodel the Jr. High, Sr. High & College classrooms. Then we'll spend the following six weeks creating a more spiritually intimate & intellectually stimulating environment for each of these three groups. So far youth leaders have consulted with each Sunday school classroom about their needs and desires, assembled an intergenerational, co-ed design team, and are gathering bids for new furniture, flooring, paint, lighting, etc. You'll be contacted by a member of the fundraising team at some point during our campaign, so please prayerfully consider how you might be able to help the young people of Garden Valley Bible “feel the love” each time they come into our church!