The Importance of Mentoring Youth

Here is another awesome blog I would like to recommend. It’s Jarrett McNeely’s weblog, and its main purpose is to share a passion for reaching kids and youth for Christ. McNeely is a veteran youth minister who’s been in the business for almost 15 years in an age where the average youth minister in an SBC church can’t last a year.

On his blog, which can be found here, Rev. McNeely advertises a method of youth ministry called “mentoring.” In a postmodern age where the emergent church is gaining a foothold on the faith, mentoring might sound like a foreign and even threatening form of ministry. But actually, it is an authentic New Testament form of ministering to youths.

Mentoring involves the formation of intentional relationships with lay adults and churched youths. These relationships exist for the purposes of fellowship, prayer, encouragement, and pushing both parties closer to Christ. In a sense, this is the best form of youth ministry. God calls for His church to be full of young and old, interacting and sanctifying each other in love. Far too often, our youth are stuck in youth groups and never get a chance to grow in grace with other church members. As a matter of fact, it’s very likely that we would not have the formal institution of a youth ministry if the lay leaders of the church took enough time to mentor, disciple, and invest in youths. Jarrett’s blog is worth the read: http://jarrettmcneely.blogspot.com