HS Small Group 6/9/09

So I am here at the Orchard with my high school small group.  I’ve tapped into their free wi-fi so I am actually going to post live updates as my teens are out having spiritual conversations and sharing the Gospel.  We have 6 of our normal crew of 10 teens out tonight but they are super pumped.  Andrea, one of my rising evangelists, is really finding a groove on Tuesday nights.

When we started a few months ago she was the most nervous, not even sure how to share her faith.  As she has engaged people in conversations she has realized this can be exciting and quite the thrill.  Tonight, she actually brought a friend with her and let me know that he is shy and quiet but she is going to coach him along the way tonight and get him to the place where he’ll step up and have conversations tonight.  Her goal with him is simply to get him talking…kinda reminds me of where she started a few months ago.

So the plan for tonight: 2 groups of 3 teens, armed with a few copies of Greg’s book Venti Jesus Please. 

• 7:32pm Andrea’s group just came back and got done talking to a boyfriend/girlfriend couple.  The girlfriend is a Christian but the boyfriend is not.  They chatted for a few and gave them a copy of VJP to read together in hopes that the book would be a tool for the girlfriend to talk to her boyfriend.
• 7:37pm Marissa’s group went up to a group of 5 teens waiting for a movie and got shut down right out of the gates.  It happens like that sometimes, where people don’t even want to start the conversation.  We earn our stripes and keep on going.
• 7:45pm Just saw the boyfriend/girlfriend couple walk by.  The boyfriend had the VJP book in his hand meaning it didn’t hit the trash…there’s still hope! 
• 7:57pm 2 of my younger guys just came up to concerned because the older teens have engaged in a spiritual conversation with 6 pretty intimidating characters.  How did I respond?  Gave them a few extra Venti Jesus Please books and told them to offer each of them a book and see if they could jump into the conversation with them.
• 8:04pm Andrea’s and Marissa’s group came back and told me about the encouter with the 6 teens…3 Catholics, 2 church goers, and 1 girls who would only volunteer that God is awesome (but wouldn’t answer who God is).  They gave out 4 VJP’s and hopefully “Cole” will come to church on Sunday.
• 8:10pm just saw the “intimidating kids” reading Venti Jesus Please to each other.  They are leaving the Orchard with books in hand.  God use that book to speak to their heart!

HS Small Group 5/26/09

I realized it has been a while since I posted something regarding what’s been up with my High School small group, so I figured this was as good of an opportunity as any.

For the past several weeks our group has continued to go to the Orchard, a local outdoor mall, to seek out people to have spiritual conversations with. Our goal in those conversations is to share the Gospel, but we aren’t shouting on street corners, blairing through bull horns, or showering the streets with tracts. Our goal is authentic conversations and we see it happen week after week. Several of the teens are able to engage in 20 minute conversations with ease.

They aren’t just going through the motions either. They look at every Tuesday night and every conversation as a learning opportunity. How can they be more relational? How do they bring the Gospel up without throwing up? What is the best way to start a conversation? There hearts are breaking for those who reject them and choose not to hear the good news. The learnings are endless each week.

I love Tuesday nights and the experience these teens are getting by sharing their faith. My goal is that what they do this summer will prepare them for sharing their faith on their middle school and high school campuses this fall. But more on that vision and strategy coming later this summer…

HS Small Group 4/21/09

I am so blown away by my teens tonight!

I had told them about a month ago that we would begin going out to different hang-out spots to start spiritual conversations and share our faith.  So tonight was the night that we would get after it.  When I told the kids they were stoked!  Then after the euphoria wore off, a few of them had moments of holy crap, what are we gonna say?  Before we left we reviewed the GOSPEL acronym they learned at the Dare 2 Share conference to get it fresh in everyone’s mind.    Then we headed to the Orchard (a local shopping mall).

I broke the 10 teens into 3 teams making sure there was at least 1 strong evangelist in each group, prayed for them, and then we set out.  Here are a few observations about what happened:

1. Each group engaged in at least 3 spiritual conversations with an individual or a group of people (teens and adults alike).
2. To open the conversation they would tell these strangers (a few kids got to share with people they knew from school) they were hanging out with their Bible study group and wanted to ask a few questions.
3. None of the groups got shut down.  Everyone they approached was willing to share, talk, and listen.  It was amazing!
4. We had conversations with a variety of different people: a 30 something agnostic man, an 18 year old Zehn Buddhist, a couple of Catholic high schoolers, a few families, a few teens who hadn’t quite figured out what they believed, and a few believers as well.
5. In some instances, because authentic conversations and relationships were started, cell #s were exchanged and promises to continue the conversations were made.
6. My teens walked away impressed with themselves because they realized how easy it was to have spiritual conversations and share their faith.
7. No one was led to Christ tonight, and I’m honestly not too surprised by that.  However, after tonight’s experience these teens are poised and ready to share their faith with their friends at school.

I’m stoked right now.  God literally filled my heart with joy watching these teens share their faith and seeing the difference that they could make and what they are capable of.

I can’t wait to do it again…I can’t wait to hear the stories of how they shared their faith with their friends in school later this week…I can’t wait to see what God will continue to do with the rest of their lives…

HS Small Group 4/7/09

It was so good to be back with my high school small group this week.  One week we were off due to Spring Break and last week I was out of town for Dare 2 Share as Greg was speaking at Jeanne Mayo’s Epicenter event in Dallas.  I have missed my kids and it was great to get together with them tonight.  We wrapped up Gospel Journey Maui a few weeks ago and are now looking ahead to something new.  To kick things off tonight we watched clips for the new Blaze Promo DVD.  After that, I had a few ideas I was going to lay on them, but as God would have it they actually had a better idea. 

One of my 12th grade girls actually led a night of our Gospel Journey Maui study and the teens loved it.  She loved it.  I loved it.  What I learned tonight is that just about all of them want the opportunity to teach a night of study before the school year is over.  As we discussed this possibility, it also came up that not everyone in our group feels super tight with each other.  So, I combined the ideas and paired everyone up with someone they may not have opportunity to spend much time with during the week and it will be their responsibility to lead the group’s discussion for the week.  Here are some of the guidelines that we agreed upon:

1. The pairs are made up of 1 guy and 1 girl.
2. They will check in with me at least twice the week they lead to go over their lesson.
3. Our small group is driven by discussion, so they must use the ALT-ernative teaching style.
4. Each member of the teaching pair must present the GOSPEL during group.
5. Every point they make or that is discussed needs to be supported by scripture.

Here’s the cool thing – none of the balked at the assignment or guidelines.  They embraced them.  In addition to that, they are looking forward to the weeks that I throw them a curve ball and we cancel study and go to the mall or an afterschool hang out to share their faith with their friends.  They are actually looking forward to all of these opportunities.  All I can say is that God is amazing and is doing something special through this group of teens.  I can’t wait to share what happens over the next several weeks as these teens continue to relationally and relentlessly share the Gospel with their peers and dive deeper into their relationship with Jesus…

HS Small Group 3/17/09

Well, we aren’t entirely finished with the Gospel Journey Maui as we are extending our conversation into next week, but we did watch the final episode tonight as we viewed and discussed, “What was Jesus’ message?”  We had 17 teens tonight including a few visitors and the discussion we did squeeze in was great.  I have thoroughly enjoyed this group and the way we have grown together.  My perception at this point is that Gospel Journey Maui will serve as an incredible foundation as we continue on this journey together and discuss other questions and topics.   When I think back over the past several weeks, it is amazing to see what God has done.  You can follow the journey by checking out my previous “HS Small Group” posts.

The big question I have to wrestle through now is what’s next for our group.  I’m considering a few different options and would love any feedback or thoughts on what next:

1. Study through a book of the Bible.  My goal with this wouldn’t be to read it and lecture the teens as to what the text means, but rather have a discussion about what we’re reading and learn together.
2. Find another curriculum to go through.  Dare 2 Share has other options to consider but I am open to whatever other curriculum are out there.  Any ideas?
3. Have the teens in our group write down a few questions they have about God, religion, life, etc. (nothings off limits) and spend the next several months answering their questions.

In addition to these three, if you have other ideas please share.  I want to be intentional as the group continues to grow but I also want to make sure I make a well thought through decision.

Thanks for the input!