Evangelism is joyously unpredictable! For instance, take my experience with Joel. (Names have been changed.) We had just concluded a large high school conference, and near the end of it Joel asked to make an appointment to see me. I was sure that Joel was deeply affected by the conference and wanted to see me so that he might know how to give his life to Christ. I reviewed the basic gospel and brushed up on those special "evangelism" verses. When we got together, what was on his heart was his parents' divorce, and since he knew my parents were divorced, he needed a listener who understood. I put away my evangelism outline and listened. About five days later he called me and asked to get together again. I assumed it was to continue our dialogue about our parents. When we met he poured out from his heart his desire to know God, and then and there, after a brief review of some Scripture, he became a Christian. Surprising, unpredictable --- God at work!

Then there was the time in youth group during our emphasis on teaching the basics of the gospel. One young girl named Jill had just started coming to our meetings. She was new in town and was struggling with drugs and loneliness. We were hoping and praying that the presentation of the gospel would bring her to a place of hopeful response. After a Wednesday night meeting she pulled me aside, looked me square in the eyes, and said, "Do you leaders really love each other as much as it seems?" Three weeks later she became a Christian. Surprising, unpredictable! It was not our intentional teaching of the gospel that attracted Jill but an unconscious quality of life within the community of faith that caught her.

Principles

I share these stories because they are illustrations of two major principles of outreach that I want to develop. The first is this: God is the one who brings people to faith. God is constantly at work calling and wooing humans into a relationship in ways that surprise us.

The heartbeat of the Old and New Testaments is the story of God longing to be in a relationship with creation, especially human beings. The Scriptures are the story of God's pursuit of us and the great lengths God has gone to in order to be known by us. Indeed, the major thrust of the Scriptures is that God has and is and shall be continually and consistently at work to bring humans back into relationship with God.

Three C's

For those of us who work with young people this is a tremendous comfort. It gives us a context for our ministry. God has been at work for a long time in the lives of "our kids," and after we are gone God will still be at work. This principle also develops confidence. When we feel that we are getting nowhere, we can be sure that Yahweh is actively working. We can act with conviction because God has lavished love upon all of us in the incarnation, death, and resurrection of Jesus. If God would do that for us, we can be sure that God is ready to welcome all who believe that Jesus is the Savior.

So the fact that God is actively seeking and longing to be in relationship with youth gives us a foundation upon which to build our outreach. Indeed, is there any other foundation?

The second principle that the two stories illustrate is that God chooses to express God's love, character, and longings through people. We are a major expression of the love of God to those who do not know God. And the primary context for that expression is found in and through the relationships we have with young people.

God is at work building relationships with those who don't know God, and God "gives us" the ministry of reconciliation. Even stronger, God entrusts us with a message of reconciliation. We participate with God in seeking others out.

Ambassadors

Third, we have been made ambassadors for Christ. We have become the primary agents in God's reconciling plea to those who don't know God. The use of the word "ambassadors" is very helpful. In politics, governments cannot communicate to one another without ambassadors. They are not needed to convey information, but they are useful because they speak the language, know the culture, develop friendships, and can more accurately and fully convey the desires of the government they represent to a people they understand and know. So it is with us. God does not desire simply the convenience of transmitting information, but through our relationships God is seeking to express loving-kindness in terms that people can understand and see. That is why our relationships with young people are so vital. It is primarily within the framework of their relationships that they can begin to experience, clarify, and relate to the information of the gospel.

Ideas

With these principles in mind, let me share with you a few suggestions for reaching out with your youth group to invite young people into the community of faith.

1. A youth ministry seeking to reach out will place primary importance on building relationships as the central method of sharing the good news.

2. It is crucial that the adult leaders in the group be women and men who are deeply committed to Jesus Christ and are continually growing in fait

3. Ambassadors know the culture they are sent to and care greatly for the people. In youth ministry, the adult leaders must be people who love young people and want to be with them.

4. Adults must be committed and available to spend time with young people. Building relationships takes time. Young people want to be around adults who want to be around young people and are available to spend time. Here are a few suggestions of ways you can spend time with young people:

• Take the initiative and enter their world by visiting their home, seeing their room, pets, family, etc.
• If the school allows, stop by and have lunch with a few young people in their cafeteria or take them out to lunch.
• Be sure to get to athletic events as well as some of the social events. Offer to a sponsor for a dance or a trip.
• Invite young people to be part of your world. Have them in your home for dinner, for parties, as baby-sitters, or just to drop by.
• Take young people on special trips and events. The goal is to create a space and time where relationships can flourish.
• Share together in ministry projects such as vacation Bible school, a mission project, or nursing home visitation.

The more you demonstrate an interest in their world, the more potential there is that they will be interested in your world of faith

5. Young people need to experience Jesus Christ at times to understand the gospel. Mission projects, and social action in your own community are hands-on ways of learning about the gospel. Young people who participate in these experiences are changed by the people they meet and the work they do.

6. Young people need to learn that the community of faith is different from other communities. It is a community of forgiveness, a place to lower masks and be able to celebrate who God created us to be. As adult leaders, we must be persistent in demonstrating that the group is a small community that is part of a larger community. Modeling that larger community with young people can help them see how being faithful really is different.

7. Encourage young people to care for those others who are not part of the group. They are already in a myriad of relationships, and they know the youth culture. So train and encourage them to be ambassadors for Christ, to care for their friends, and to share the very best news they know. Work together to create a youth group atmosphere that is warm, inviting, and hospitable to newcomers.

8. Finally, develop a persistent and consistent habit of indvidiual and corporate prayer for each other and for young people who are not involved in the group. Pray with confidence because God deeply desires to be known by young people. Our prayers become another vehicle for God's love.

At the heart of outreach is the person of Jesus, sharing with us, caring for us, and communicating a love and a longing that is lavish. So as adult leaders with a desire to work with young people, let us share our faith and love of Jesus with young people so that they can learn what it means to be loved by God. And they will find ways to express this love so that other people, old and young, can experience God's love. If this occurs, the unpredictable will happen regularly in your group, and you will often be surprised with joy!