Riots

Browsing the news headlines again today I came across this article. It caught my attention because the reported incident took place not far from my home town. Admittedly I don't know much about the St Marys Kenmure Centre and had to to a little further research. As with my previous entry this article threw me more questions than answers. My first question would perhaps be why the young people were so keen to hurt and destroy the facilities which are supposed to offer them a better, more secure way of life and the people who are volunteering to help and support them? I understand that the young people who are placed in the centre have emotional and behavioural issues which will be the main factor playing a part in such incidents - these are not just your average teenagers. Personally, I can't imagine what life must be like for them. It saddens me to think of young people living their life in such detention - no matter how good the facilities it's still not a 'normal' life however much the centre claims to provide. What makes me even more curious is that those involved in the riot have been sentenced to four years detention. For young people already living in care centres, how will detention contribute to the progress they are supposed to be making? Will it strengthen or destroy the work already done by volunteers there? I can't make too much comment on the issue as my own experiences are different I know very little about the children's panel and related systems but I would like to know more about it.

However, apart from calling out for my compassion articles of this nature also present a real challenge to the church. What are we doing to help young people like this in our area? One of our own church ministries, FNL, takes in a lot of kids from the local area each with their own history and certainly some of them are challenging. I love being involved in this ministry because we provide safety, security, activity and a certain inclusiveness to our local young people. I do think that such an outreach can be extended. Does our local council know the kind of support that we provide? If they did would they make better use of it? Can we extend our ministry from bringing young people in, to taking our volunteers out and extending our mission to places like St Marys? Could the local church make better links between themselves and council projects across the country?

I know great work is already being done - I always like to challenge us to do more.

The Great Commission is the greatest challenge to Christians to show the love of Jesus Christ in this world. If we fail to reach out beyond our own doors are we rising to that challenge?

Embracing Our Culture for 21st Century Ministry

Bet you took one look at the title and thought, 'Ooft - sounds heavy. Not reading that!' but perhaps if I say the words 'Bebo' and 'Forums' you might change your mind? If so, read on!

Very recently a young girl in our church died, age 16, after a two year battle with cancer. It was a devastating occasion for all those who knew her. On the day she died I got a phone call in the early afternoon to let me know. By the time I got home from university at 4pm and checked my bebo (there it is again!) I saw that many of the young people who knew EJ had set up a bebo page in her honour. It was a beautiful thing to see. To some it might seem inappropriate or unkind to create such a site but as I thought about it I began to see a different side to that story. This is 21st Century youth culture. It is how young people communicate, keep in touch, let others know what is going and how we show our common interests and appreciations. What better way to celebrate someone's life than to bring them in to this culture? Our minister kindly acknowledged the Bebo page during the remembrance service. It seemed surprising that such a thing should be mentioned in a church on such an occasion but I realised that it was a validation and an acknowledgment that the young people had expressed their love for EJ in the way that they knew best.

When we seek to engage in mission and ministry, as with teaching, it is so important that we learn to embrace the culture of our mission field and understand the way it works. This is a vital way of showing people how relevant the Christian faith is to every aspect of life and makes the church, in a sense, more accessible. If we wish to meet with the unchurched community around us we must, where appropriate, acknowledge and validate their surrounding culture and seek to engage with them in a time and place where they will understand the relevance of the Christian faith in their lives. As a good friend once said, "There is no aspect of your life that God is not interested or involved in." Where our kids are passionate about sports and skating, let's bring the gospel to the skate parks. Where our young people struggle with the morality of conversations held on msn or by texting, let's talk about it in bible classes and house groups. What ever their culture let's acknowledge it, respect, talk about it and use it.

Our church has recently opened a discussion forum online for the worship teams to discuss any aspect of worship, the music, the services etc. and to engage in the sharing of thoughts and ideas. It has only been running for a short time but has proved itself to be a productive and valid way of communicating. We don't have time to come to meetings every week and discuss all our current thinking and ideas. We tend to share them with close friends who perhaps pass these conversations on to others, but rarely have time to sit down as a whole team and talk about it. Opening the online forum has provided an easy and accessible way for us to do this and to formalise our discussion. Of course, every online venture has it's dangers but where there is a genuine desire for productivity and meaningful discussion, such forums can be a valuable tool for the ministry of our church and the mission in our community. Naturally, all the outcomes will be brought to meetings and face to face discussion in due time - it is essential that we do so - but until then let me be thankful that we are moving forward with the times and culture of today and using it to further our thinking and effectiveness as a team.