When it comes to their trust in Jesus, how can teenagers grow?
It has been widely documented that church attendance among young people has been on the decline for decades. Teenagers who identify as Christians benefit greatly from being part of a supportive peer group. Without it, a downward spiral of fewer young people attending church may develop. A deep faith in God may, without a doubt, disprove of such reasoning. However, many of us may discover that our sole connection to God is the religion of our parents.
Like many others, my parents were the first in my family to become Christians, so I grew up in the faith. Even though I was baptized at the age of 10 and regularly attended both the Sunday and Saturday services at my family church, I did not fully understand the gospel until much later in life.
For a week of discipleship via teaching, worship, small group time, and other activities, I participated in OM’s inaugural TeenStreet UK (TeenStreet) event this year at the age of seventeen. It was here that I felt God’s presence for the first time in a deeper, more personal sense.
Taking some time for God
I came to TeenStreet anxious about the future and the obligations that awaited me at home, school, and in the office. There aren’t many times I can devote to God because of my busy schedule with job, school, and taking care of my brother, but I still try to make time to listen to Christian music whenever I can. I was most looking forward to the time I would have with Jesus while at TeenStreet.
I needed to get away from the strains of my daily life, and being away from home allowed me to do just that. I was able to pray more earnestly to God when my mind was free of distracting domestic concerns. It was great to spend a week at a place that emphasizes individual discipleship by providing many opportunities for quiet reflection and prayer. Throughout the week, I was able to de-stress by talking to and praying with a group of volunteers who had received special training to minister to teenagers like me.
Reimagined acts of adoration and devotion
I felt like I had a whole fresh experience during the worship services. The meeting lasted longer than any other I can remember, and that helped me concentrate on God.
We rise to sing a few songs in my native church and then sit down. At TeenStreet, I encountered God in a fresh form, even though I had sensed His presence in similar contexts previously. In a normal situation, I wouldn’t shut my eyes and my arms wouldn’t be folded. But when I came to this camp, I was able to shut my eyes and experience the Holy Spirit, even while the old fear prevented me from extending my hands in an outward display of worship. It seemed like a beam of light was emanating from inside my chest.
Exactly how I feel about the church
The last several years, I’ve been unable to attend church due to commitments in other areas of my life. My devotion to God has decreased since I started working half time and no longer have time to attend worship sessions on a weekly basis. At TeenStreet, I was able to learn from the insights of others who had been exactly where I was.
Gloria, who coached my NET group, testified about her struggles with distractions and discussed how she overcame them during our weekly Bible study. There were several folks in my group who I recognized from my local church, but had not seen in a while due of my job schedule. Getting to know them and listen to their life experiences was a wonderful experience.
Now that I have developed my own religion apart from my parents’, I wish I had been baptized earlier in life. Since joining TeenStreet UK, my relationship with God and other young Christians has grown immensely, and I feel much more confident in sharing my religion with others.
Even though my job, school, and babysitting for my younger brother are all very important to me, I must not put them before of my quiet time with God. I didn’t want to leave TeenStreet, but I know that God has called me to go out and spread his love.
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