Entertained to Death: The Case Against Entertainment in Youth Ministry
By Ken Moser Posted on October 07 2009
I became a Christian in August of 1980 because of a girl named Linda and her youth group.
Linda was in one of my university classes, and she was different from anyone I'd ever met. She radiated purity and seemed to be on good terms with God. I was perplexed and intrigued. As we became friends, she kept telling me about her relationship with Jesus. In addition, she backed her words up with a lifestyle that reflected her walk.
After a few months, I decided to give her youth group a shot. I went on a camping trip and was completely blown away by this group of people who loved each other and took God and the Bible very seriously. Seeing them love each other and living lives of faith had an immediate and eternal impact on me. This group was certainly "salt" and "light" (Matt. 5:13-16). In fact, they were so bright and so salty that they changed my life forever.
Soon afterwards, the Lord moved me to Sydney, Australia, where I've spent the last 23 years trying to help others discover the great things about being a Christian. Throughout these years I've run five youth groups, lectured in seminaries and Bible Colleges, and trained other youth leaders to be more effective in changing this world for Christ. As I examine the youth ministry scene, I tend to see very few groups like the one in which I became a Christian.
Bought the Lie
Most groups have bought the lie that, to be an effective youth group, you must put on a night of entertainment so that the local young people will come, have a truckload of fun, hear a short message from the Bible, and then maybe come back next week for more. For many people, the local youth group is nothing more than a glorified coffee shop—a place to hang around, have a fun time, come back next week, and start all over. That is, until you move on to better, more fulfilling entertainment.
When many youth workers (or their senior ministers, key adults in the church, or even the kids, themselves) think about success in youth ministry, what's the picture that comes to mind? For many, it's a crowd of sweaty, smiling young people running around the church hall, playing a rowdy, mindless game, and trying to have fun.
Recently, we were trying to raise awareness (and money) about youth ministry, and some of the leaders decided to go to one of the larger churches to video what was happening. This video went out to over 250 churches. What did it show? Young people praying? No way. Kids reading the Bible? Nope. The video showed groups of kids in a relay race spitting water into a bucket.
This image of youth group as an entertaining place and safe environment is so etched in our collective thinking that it's almost impossible to shake. It's why most of our youth groups spend the majority of their time playing silly games or running around in mindless races. It's also the reason why many of our Christian youth groups have names that rarely reflect the good things of Christ. In Australia it isn't unusual to find youth groups named Rampage, Rage, Bomb Squad, Collision Course, Holocaust, Chaos, or even Stink and Spew. The leaders think these names are trendy or attractive to the non-Christian young person. They aren't, and personally I'd rather not name my group after a bodily function or an activity associated with terrorists.
Basing your group on entertainment is a very rocky road to travel in youth ministry. In my experience, it's deeply flawed, quite possibly anti-Christian, and, in the end, nonproductive.
Why have I completely rejected using entertainment to reach the non-Christian? Here are a few reasons:
It's Deceptive.
If we base our programs on entertainment (be it games or rock bands), we are using deception instead of the power of the gospel. The front door or entry level to the Christian faith mustn't be an enjoyable time or a safe social environment. Rather, it must be built on the call to follow Jesus and a call to join the people of God (2 Cor. 4:1-5, 10:4-5 and 1 Thess. 2:3-6). All of us who are reading this journal are committed to bringing young people into a relationship with God. We don't need deceptive entertainment to do this. Rather, we must show them Jesus, clearly and truthfully (Rom. 1:16-17).
It Hides the Real Source.
The message of Jesus can be distilled down to a message of "Come to Me." He's the bread of the world, the living water, the resurrection and life, the gate, the good shepherd, the light, etc. The Bible tells us that Jesus is attractive enough without fancy programming. We must offer him to the world on his terms, not through clever nights out or flashy entertainment. Trying to entertain hides the true source of attraction—Jesus.
It Hides Christian Community.
We're to be a place of love, salt, and light. Our attraction lies in this, not in activities or entertainment. It's the changed life and the loving Christian community that must attract the outsider. We are to live "honorably among the Gentiles, so that, though they may malign you as evildoers, they may see your honorable deeds and glorify God when he comes to judge." (1 Peter 2:12). Reflect on Acts 2:42-47. Here we see how the early church lived, which reflected Jesus and was deeply attractive. Note the end of the chapter, "And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved."
It Distorts the Call.
The words of Jesus are straightforward and clear. If any man is to come after him, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow him (Mark 8:34). In fact, when you read about Jesus, you find that at almost every turn he asks people to make the hard choice. He thinks nothing of telling someone to sell everything and give the proceeds to the poor. He tells another that if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. Literally. He tells a young man to let the dead take care of the dead. Jesus never portrays the Christian life as the easy road or a life of entertainment. Our youth groups must reflect the fact that we walk the narrow road. We're here to challenge and change the world, not to entertain it.
It's Hard to Keep Up.
If you've ever tried to run a youth group along these lines, you'll find that it can be very difficult to keep at it. The average shelf life of a leader these days appears to be under 18 months. In my opinion, this is because the desperate need to provide entertainment becomes too much. Most youth leaders lose momentum and burn out along the way.
It Takes Resources.
Most churches are stretched to the limit, and most youth groups don't have a lot of resources, so we end up making poor choices. We rarely have the resources to both entertain and disciple our kids.
It Produces a False Dichotomy.
Fun or serious? Most youth leaders are deeply convinced that they're unable to run a program that's thoroughly Christian and attractive at the same time. This is an unhelpful pattern because it teaches young people that church is either entertainment or boredom. We need to run programs that are thoroughly Christian and enjoyable at the same time.
The Way Forward
Quite simply, the way ahead is to run Christian youth groups which are simply that—Christian.
We must come to see the local youth group as a place for building strong Christians and then using what's built to reach out to the non-Christian. We must run groups that are unashamedly Christian and characterized by Christian disciplines such as prayer, Bible study, love, holy living, and the fruits of the Holy Spirit. This group will help young people to follow Jesus, live for him, pray to him, and make a difference for him in their local community. As the group does this, they'll try to live in harmony as God's people. Their time together will reflect that they are a community that seeks to live for Creator. The group will seek to have an enjoyable time as they do these things, not instead of them.
The group will encourage the members to reach out. Each member of the group is actively being equipped to reach out to those with whom they're in regular contact by going out to bring the message of Christ to the non-Christian and by living differently in their communities. Tell them that as one lives differently, one may be asked to make a "defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you…" (1 Peter 3:15).
Or is that not fun enough?
Comments
From Phil on May 01, 2010
We play a lot of games in our youth group. And we will continue to play a lot of games. I don’t think games are the problem.
Where I see kids really come alive is on the Spring break mission trips. We do a week of homeless ministry (this year it was a preaching mission in Las Vegas) or we do a week of cross-cultural ministry in Mexico.
The problem I see is with our teaching. I see a lot of preaching at kids, lecturing at kids or teaching *about* the Bible. I’m not sure how much of this reaches kids’ hearts and lives.
How did Jesus teach? We know that he taught in synagogues. But he also taught along the way. He taught in a boat, in a cornfield and in people’s houses. He taught at parties. His lesson materials included fish, dirt, alcohol, prostitutes and loose women.
This year I’m looking at new ways to create, or at least simulate “teachable moments” where kids can connect with Jesus at the deepest level.
I don’t think this has to be done with games, but I also don’t see where games get in the way.
From Bradley McCarty on May 26, 2010
Way to go Phill. You were the first one brave enough to comment. Ken, you sort of set this up as you had it all figured out and there was no other possibility. What with all your experiance and credentials and all. What if good, clean, appropriate, games that help illustrate a point (a story or parable, if you will) are actually a part of that salty attractiveness that draws people to the Gospel? I guess Jesus probably never had any fun (with all the teaching and praying and serious stuff he probably didnt have time) and that’s what we want the lost to believe. Let’s not show them that being a Christian is fun!!! Maybe I’m fooling my self into lazy youth ministry. But I hope I’m doing a good job of balancing fun with a challenging, life changing message. As always, with the error on the side of (scale healthily tipped towards ) the message.
From Jon on October 06, 2010
The games which have the best function in a youth group ae those that strengthen the bonds of the community. I appreciate the sensitivity to avoiding game that can humiliate a young person, and striving for games that require a team spirit.
Phil commented that Jesus taught in a cornfield, and I would only point out that corn is a new world crop. Jesus taught in a wheat field and the KJV uses the word “corn” as a synonym for grain.
Good points all.
Jon
From John on October 10, 2011
As I read this article, I am reminded of some comments professors have made, youth ministry books have made, and I have made, all supporting the idea that ministry should be about Christ first. To the writer of this article (Ken?), I support your longing for more depth in our ministries. I have allowed my ministry here to become a safe social gathering. And I have done this with a specific theology of presence in mind, which I think was good, but I have let it get so far into presence that I have forgotten that Jesus, while present among the people, was still Jesus.
To Bradley, I don’t think this article is condemning those who utilize a lot of games nor even saying games are bad, so in my opinion your sarcasm was a bit over the top. I do see that care deeply about young people, as I think this article’s author does as well. I think the point was not that games are bad, but that sometimes we let the games take over for anything specifically Christian. Games that teach are excellent, but in my own context, I have let my youth turn teaching-games into games that are just fun. There is nothing wrong with fun, certainly, but there is something wrong when our fun is at the expense of an real encounter with Christ.
Phil, I think you hit the nail on the head. For one, fun things need to be teaching or involving or ministering to others, not “just” games. Also, as you said, Jesus taught in a variety of contexts. When I have a teachable moment outside of a specifically church setting, I often let it slip by, and I use the excuse that I will teach them about it later, whether in class or by creating a moment. Unfortunately, the one time/place I am timid is in bringing up Christ in conversation in settings that are not specifically designed to be Christian. The one place I disagree with you is that I DO see how games have gotten in the way in my setting. It is not that games are bad, but I have not been intentional about making the games useful, so I have let them become useless, which then wasted my valuable occasions with my students.
On the note about community, I have tried to say that I do not have to talk about Jesus EVERY time I see my students. I believe we can have opportunities to build community without a designated teaching time. While I still think there is merit to this idea, I have allowed my youth group meetings to become all about games, with very, very little mention of Christ at all. And to make it worse, we didn’t build community! Not really! I have larger attendance, but only when I say we can play one specific game that many of the youth in our small town, even outside our church, really enjoy. But I am not any closer to most of group. We meet to have fun, then we go on to look somewhere else for our kinds of fun after church times. What I hoped would build community only built shallow, entertainment based community, not Christian community. And while our students might need Christian examples, what they need most is not a friend who is 10 years older than them. What they need most is direction towards, instruction in, and encounter with - Christ.
Thanks to all for the great discussion, and thank you all for spurring me on toward more loving, passionate, intentional youth ministry
From Chandler on October 10, 2011
First off I would like to define my terms. We hold services three days a week, we have church on Sunday mornings, wednesday nights, and on Friday we have youth group. When I say ‘youth group’ I am not referring to Sunday morning youth service, or Wednesday night, I am referring to youth group on Friday nights. There is a huge difference and I will talk about this later.
It is true that many youth groups have become nothing more than a source of entertainment, and such a youth group is the devils playground. this erroneous outcome stems from an ungodly goal. A youth group becomes nothing but a source of entertainment when the pastors goal is to attract more kids. a pastors goal should be to feed the kids already in his youth group the word of God, andd the kids lives in turn will steady more kids to the youth group. Youth group it’s self is not an outreach, but an in reach.
I mentioned in the beginning that I only include Friday nights in the term youth group. This is not because of the day itself but because that is the only day that our youth group meets when there is no adult service. This is a huge deal. On Sunday mornings we get a myriad of kids, maby kids who are there because their parents made them come, maby kids and parents who just want to get the religious check in the block, maybe parents that really want to learn more about the bible but their kid does not, and maybe their are kids that really care. On a sunday morning everybody who will go to church at all will go. On Wednesday nights, however, the number shrinks. Parents that just want a check in the block will not come on Wednesday nights so neither will their kids. Then we get to Friday which is like the final weed out. The only kids you we get on a Friday night are the kids that want to be there and want to learn more about God and the bible. How do we know? Because there is no adult service there are no parents to make the kids come, they come on their own free will.
When we first started youth group on Friday nights we had a whole five or six people. That was a year ago, now our youth group has grown to about 25 or 30 regulars. Is it then the youth pastors job to steady more kids? Certainly not! His job is to take the five or six kids that he has and teach them as much as possible. Those kids, in turn, will mature in their walk with the Lord and their vary lives will atract more people. The youth pastor did not personally invite any of the kids or bribe any of them with entertainment. He simply says every Sunday, ’ we hold youth group every Friday to kern more about God, come if you are interested’.
1 Timothy 3:4 says a leader in the church must be ’ one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence’. Of course this refers to a youth pastors family, but his youth group is like his second family. A youth pastor must make sure his kids know God personally, and they know what to say when the kids at school are asking them why they believe. In my opinion, this is the number one goal of a youth pastor.
In the name of Jesus…
Chandler
Age 16
From Chandler on October 10, 2011
Please excuse the typos and weird spelling…I am working from an iPad.
Chandler
From John on October 20, 2011
sorry, I commented above, I just forgot to check the box to email me about other responses, so I am posting again so I can
