Youth Update: A Call to Prayer

“These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men.”  This verse from Isaiah 29 is aclear depiction of a danger that many people fall victim to, the danger of a false assurance of salvation. It is possible to attend church, understand the Gospel, and read the Bible but still fail to have a heart truly regenerated by Christ. This danger can be especially acute for youth growing up in the church.

At New Life we are committed to providing a strong Christian education for our children. We have Sunday School classes, Children’s Worship, AWANA, and Youth Group.

However, as important as all of these programs are it is still possible for our children to grow up in our church and develop a false assurance of salvation. One of the ways we are trying to combat this is by teaching our youth to ask questions and not just memorize answers. It is true of both youth and adults if we are asking the questions we are 75% more likely to pay attention to the answer. The Youth Group is currently working through three books that encourage the kids to take ownership of their relationship with God.

The Girls’ Bible Study is discussing a book called Lies Young Women Believe and the Truth that Sets them Free. This book discusses the nature of lies and various lies propagated by our culture about God, Satan, relationships, and faith. The purpose of the book is to attack the lies young women are confronted with but also cause them to ask questions about their faith and identity as a follower of God.

The Guys’ Bible Study is discussing a book called Growing up Christian. This book is designed to help youth recognize the many blessings and dangers of growing up in the church. It encourages the youth to produce godly fruit as a result of their salvation rather than the source of it.

Sunday nights at Youth Group meetings we are discussing a third book called Awesome on the Inside. This book teaches the importance of having a heart consumed by Christ. It encourages spiritualdisciplines like prayer, devotions, and witnessing but stresses the importance of these things coming from your heart rather than your background.

Charles Spurgeon asked the youth of his congregation this question “Is your soul resting on the Gospel or have years of tears, prayers, and sermons been wasted on your barren heart?” That may sound a bit harsh, but he was making a charge not only to the youth of his church but also his congregation. Our youth have the responsibility of responding to the “years of tears, prayers, and sermons” afforded them by their Christian upbringing, but this also assumes that tears, prayers, and sermons are being offered up for our youth.

On behalf of the youth at New Life I urgently seek that you would be daily lifting up our children to God in prayer. Pray for our Sunday School and Children’s Worship, pray for AWANA, and pray for our Youth Ministry. Pray that God would be working in the hearts of our children and drawing them to Himself. Pray that our youth would be filled with questions about God and how to truly take ownership of their faith. Pray that they would be drawn into the Word for answers and direction.

It is only through God’s grace and effectual calling that these children will develop a true assurance of salvation; please partner with us in this by offering up your prayers on their behalf.

In Him,

Adam