Kingdom Living

So, this year for Lent, our church decided to have Wednesday night soup supper and small groups. This was a break from routine for our Sr. High youth group, as they were willing to give up their normal time to include adults. The adults, however, came to the community center, where we normally hold youth group, and joined us for dinner. After dinner, we split into cross-generational small groups where our teens served as small group leaders. We shared highs & lows, watched a video, had a Bible Study/discussion, sang together, and prayed for one another. The small groups ended at 8:00 each night and our youth continued with youth group until 9:00. Through it all, I believe that we got a taste of the Kingdom! Our culture naturally leads us to separate ourselves. We separate by age, gender, race, interests, etc. Churches, in many ways, are no different. Too often, our young people and older people don't know each other. We may sit near each other on Sunday morning, but we are not sharing lives. Through intentionality our Wednesday small groups did just that. For 5 weeks, we shared our lives together, as youth and adults took time and entered into meaningful faith conversations. I call this "Kingdom Living" because I believe this is what God had in mind when He was thinking about his Kingdom. I believe our churches must create space where people of all ages are sharing faith together, reading scripture, praying together, and building relationships that are rooted in Jesus. Our youth were sacrificing their normal youth group night, and could have had a skeptical attitude. To their credit, they participated with optimism and were not disappointed. Many of them felt affirmed, accepted, and listened to. They even asked if we could do this more often! Our adults who participated were also pleased with their experiences. Many were very impressed with our youth and were pleased they were able to interact with them. Multiple adults told me that they didn't really know our youth at church, but now feel like they can interact with them more and hopefully build on the relationships that were formed.
As I consider what builds faith in young people, and what keeps them connected to church, I am convinced that more cross-generational/"Kingdom Living" experiences will go a long way to growing faith that lasts and building healthy congregations. I am thrilled that our church got a taste of the Kingdom. I am looking forward to more! Amen.