23 and unprepared

I read this post yesterday and I've been giving the whole idea of youth ministry leadership and age a bit of thought.

I hate to admit it, but this guy is right. Giving 23 year olds, or those even younger, leadership of an important, emotionally amped (you are dealing with people kids and the stuff they go through) part of church can be a recipe for disaster. Even if you're church is great, you know the lay of the land and have supportive staff and lay input structure, you're probably not adequately prepared to deal with a whole bunch of stuff that youth ministry throws at you.

I wasn't when i started out.

I didn't think anywhere near responsibly enough or plan enough. You learn that over time and experience.

I didn't relate overly well with kids parents and, absolute truth being told, i still feel weird about it. Over time, you gain understanding about what their concerns are and the questions they need answered.

I was occasionally out of my depth in meetings since i hadn't been on councils for decades. I would "go in with my gun slinging boot on" when i didn't need to or tread less carefully than i could have. With age this rash need for input decreases. You learn to listen more.

I totally agree with the blogger that, despite any of their youthful indiscretions, God can and does work through young youth ministers. They relate you the teens amazingly, engage them at their level and are a great example.

Maybe they just shouldn't be running the whole show.