Jungschar contributes to the community

Jungschar contributes to the community

Let's imagine the church in our minds. A house with many rooms and many builders at work. Because the church is God's building site. As builders, we youth leaders also contribute a lot to the construction of the "church". We are appointed by God. Let's take a look around this building site. Where and how do we help?

The youth leader

1. On the building site
   
   You use your time and gifts specifically for God. Young adult work in particular is a unique field of activity for you. Your gifts are encouraged and new ones are discovered. You become a useful instrument of God. Use this time as a construction worker and discover your abilities. The wide range of training courses on offer is an opportunity for you. The training and further education is a personal help for your work.
   
   
   
   You can try out the ideas and suggestions in practice in the JS work. It doesn't matter if something doesn't go according to plan. Young adult work is a training ground. Don't be discouraged. Learn from your mistakes. Training and further education can also be a stepping stone for the church for many youth leaders. It's not just the Jungschar that benefits, but also the community.
   
2. As a foreman
   
   How you behave on the "church" building site is not unimportant. Your trainees imitate and copy you. What you do, the young children can do too, of course. That's why you are a foreman, a role model for the children.
   
   
   
   It is crucial for the growing construction workers (Jungschärler) that they are integrated into the Jungschar from an early age. If they are given appropriate responsibility at an early age, they will learn from you how to cooperate, which will also help them later on.
   
   
   
   Your example is of great strength and importance!
   
3. As a fitter
   
   If young trainees are to take on responsibility at an early age, they need to be instructed. You are the one who instructs the young construction workers in the craft of church building. You pass on the tools so that they also learn how to handle the Bible. You are the sponsor who enables them to get to know the whole building site, who motivates them to take part in training and further education, e.g. in the pioneer week, mini leaders' course or basic course. Inform them about what is on offer.
   
4. In the field of tension
   
   A lot is expected of the many good and motivated youth leaders today. They can be deployed everywhere because they are well trained. There are the wishes and concerns of the church leadership, on the other hand there is the time-consuming commitment to the Jungschar. Somewhere in between is free time. Even hobbies need time. I'm sure you're familiar with this tension. As a leader, where are you supposed to find the time to do everything justice?
   
   
   
   You have to set priorities!
   
   
   
   Rethink your priorities in life. This doesn't mean that you only have to work for the church. For some, this may be the right thing to do. For others, it is also important to be able to be a teenager, to pursue their hobbies and needs (be it football, going to the movies, going out with friends, riding a motorcycle, etc.). Young people often need this variety. It is important that your motives are right. However, it is also not good if you only pursue your hobbies and neglect your work on the community site.
   
   
   
   Consciously rethink your priorities and motives. This looks different for every leader. There is no standardized scheme.
   
   
   
   Dear youth club leader! Next time you are asked to help, try to put yourself in the shoes of the church leadership. It is not always easy for them to know what is happening on the building site. By asking, they are showing you that they trust you.
   
   
   
   In your personal preparation
   
   
   
   As a youth leader, you bring a lot of strength, time and energy to the youth work. It is therefore extremely important that you can also be strengthened and encouraged. The church, the church service, is the place where you can be strengthened anew by God. Here you can recharge your batteries, breathe spiritually and be equipped for your diverse tasks.
   
   
   
   A leader without a church connection is like a room without a window!
   
   
   
   That's a lot of mail, you may think. But think about it in silence. Nothing should be more important to a leader than the church service. Attending Bible evenings and prayer meetings are also a great help in preparing for the youth group work.

The young people

Winning over the community

With an attractive, exciting, age-appropriate program, you will quickly gain access to children from outside the community. Isn't it also your wish that these and the "church's own" children find access to the church?

The primary importance of prayer is not the issue here and is probably well known. But how do the children actually come into contact with the church? Here are a few ideas:

Threshold anxiety

Many young children simply don't make the step into a more advanced group (see also "Jungschar and church youth work", topic of transition). It is therefore particularly important to create contact points with other groups. Here is an additional example:

1. The Göttisystem:
   
   At a transition party, each former JS participant is given a godfather or godmother from the youth group. This youth group member takes special care of their godchild. They pick them up and accompany them for the first few months. This allows new relationships to develop and the youngsters soon feel at home.
   
2. The community
   
   To create points of contact with the community, 1 - 2 events per year are necessary. In this way, the Jungschärler can experience the community. Here are some suggestions:

• Do the young children know the church leader? They could tell a story, e.g. a Christmas story, a motivational story or part of an ongoing story... .
• Visit old and elderly people in the community with the Jungschar. Sing them a serenade, give them a handicraft as a gift, carry out simple tasks ... .
• Organize and conduct the introduction to the church service.
• Participate in the Christmas party for the elderly.
• Rehearse and perform a Christmas party (Zällerwiehnacht) with the whole congregation.
• Participate in community events such as the bazaar, soup day, making Advent wreaths, car wash, flea market ... .
• Acting in church services, e.g. for Thanksgiving.
• Rehearse a musical, play, spoken word motet.
• Organize a church picnic.
• Open afternoon for the youth group: The youth group invites the congregation. Show slides
• of the Pfila, Sola, etc. Members of the congregation also enjoy the JS technique... .
• Integrating the congregation into the summer camp. Hold a joint church service and fun tournament, organize a visiting day.
• Parents' evening with young school children. Outside parents come into contact with parents from the community.
• Bring in or visit specialists from the community: carpenter, baker, kindergarten teacher, handicraft aunt for handicraft programs, farmer, hunter, forester for nature study, Samaritan for first aid, doctor for emergency exercise ...
• Open movie afternoon
• Orienteering afternoon: offer different categories
• Organize a family church service followed by lunch together.

Humanly speaking, it doesn't depend on anyone as much as it does on you as a youth leader whether the youngsters will ever make the step into the church. It's not the amount of activities, but you who are decisive.

The young people who are most likely to make the step into the church are those who have a youth leader with a strong connection to the church.

Therefore, the leader should be particularly concerned about the church.

The parents

Community-oriented Jungschar work is family-oriented Jungschar work!

The attitude of some parents towards the church may not be positive. This is where thorough information is needed to break down prejudices and skepticism. The Good News is worth passing on without wanting to take an exaggerated view of the church. But don't we want to win unbelieving parents (the whole family) for God? A positive attitude towards the church also has a strong effect here. The inner missionary attitude drives us to the outsiders. Here are some additional ideas:

• Parent visits (not always just the main leader). Just getting to know a leader can become a bridge of trust.
• Good and thorough information letters.
• Motivate parents to help out (transporting luggage for the Pfila, Sola, WE, accompanying someone on a hike or bike tour, pick-up service ...).
• Integrate parents into camps.

Prayer

The most important task, however, is prayer. Are parents also part of your prayer requests? God can work to open doors and paths.

The importance of prayer has been mentioned several times. Finally, here are a few ideas on how prayer requests can be brought to the congregation in a targeted way:

• At least one leader attends the congregation's prayer meeting and shares the requests. The leaders can take turns.
• Contact person for the prayer meetings who passes on the YS requests. This person is not a youth group leader.
• Prayer cards with personal details and photos of the leaders (and any youth leaders).
• Prayer walk: you walk together and pray silently on the same section of the path for the same concern.

Practical steps

How is the cooperation on the church building site? The church leadership and the Jungschar team consider how warm or cool the relationship between the Jungschar and the church is. The warmer, the better! Perhaps certain areas are undercooled ... or you might even burn your fingers. Talk openly with each other!

References:

Contents: Annual focus 1993 "Community", Peter Blaser, Siegfried Nüesch, Martin Bihr, Hansruedi Tanner, Ueli Obrist, Johannes Wallmeroth, Peter Schulthess

Copyright: www.besj.ch

Cover picture: Clipart courtesy of the publishing house buch+musik ejw-service gmbh, Stuttgart - www.ejw-buch.de