Evangelism: Walking With God.
My first time in a church was an education and bore much fruit. I began going to church around 1980 or around that time. I had made a deal with the Lord that still stands today. I had many friends from around the world, although mostly teens around 17 and 18. After leading 14 of my friends to the Lord through friendship evangelism, they began to come to church after 4 months of me joining that congregation. Many of them came from dysfunctional families, some having children young and single. Unfortunately, the youth leader, who was an adult, was unable to bridge the gap between those who were in his youth group who had been brought up in believing households and those who were not. He himself was not able to sustain anything that worked in the areas of their group discussions and fun nights, which the young people from the world thought was childish. They also found themselves without the knowledge of the games this youth group had that related to finding scriptures, since none of them had read the Bible yet. There didn’t seem to be any kind of accommodation for them to merge into this Christian culture, and at that time, no new believers group.
So these young people slowly left, feeling unable to relate or to find some kind of common ground for friendship with the young people of similar age. Three teenagers from an unsaved family, explained to me and the pastor of that church that they had to leave because their parents did not like the idea of them getting to know the Lord because it made them feel bad because they smoked drugs and came from an alternative lifestyle.
It was accepted by the pastor with the hope that they would come back some day, and most of them did return years afterward.
Today, after many decades of changes in leadership and adjustments to their outreach, their programs have bridged the gap in a more sustainable way. The church youth group has grown with a diversity of young people from Christian and non-Christian homes. There's still a way to go, particularly with creating a solid foundation in Christ with the youth coming in, rather than catering to entertainment.
The gaps are noticeable still, and one example was when a young family member wanted me to come and help deliver a young person in their youth group who was manifesting demons. I was not surprised by that at all but suggested they need to deal with it with their leaders and pastor since I was not a member of that church. In my opinion, churches with young people coming from the world need teams that deal specifically in counseling and deliverance and also in areas of community connection with their families…more to come.
Angelina 26/06/2025
