Interview/Podcast: “Eighth Grade Film Roundtable Discussion” (Youth Culture Matters)

Recently had an opportunity to sit down with a few other youth leader in my area and Youth Ministry Legend, Walt Mueller from the Center for Parent and Youth Understanding to discuss the recent film “Eighth Grade”.  It was a follow up to the previous day’s viewing of the film with our Lancaster Area Youth Workers Network 

Here is our roundtable discussion...
 (CLICK HERE) 

News U Can Use: “12 Year Old Leads Holiday Donation Drive for 5 Years”

Top 10: Proofs That Santa Was a Middle Years Pastor!

10. He Worked with A Bunch of Little Short People! 

9. His Tummy Jiggles Like a "Bowl Full of...Pizza!” 

8. Sports an Amazing Hipster Beard! 

7. Loves Giving RandomToys and Prizes Away! 

6. On a Regular Basis People Leave Him Cookies to Thank Him for His Job! 

5. Knows When You Have Been Naughty or Nice...Yeah, I See You in the Back Row!

4. Always Carrying Around a Big Satchel Full of Stuff! 

3. Christmas is His Busiest Time of the Year! 

2. You May Find Him at Macy’s Working His Other Job? 

1. A Grown Man with an Office Full of Toys...Hello! 

The WHOLE in the Middle of 5th-9th Grade Ministry?

“He answered, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ “  (Luke 10:27)

We obviously work to minister to the spiritual side of our 5^th-9^thgrader students. We even make efforts to build into their emotional and mental sides, but are we still missing a large “hole in the whole”?

This is not asking you to take on more responsibility, but rather challenging you to be more aware of the whole of a 5^th-9^thgrade student you are ministering too. What once was normal for a 5th-9th graders to know, understand and even behave like, is somehow often a gaping missing hole culturally? 

Especially in the current inter-generational and parent-inclusive approach to ministry, this not for us to do alone.  We DO need to also to empower parents. Parents, also,  need to see the connection between the spiritual and physical life in their children. 

Here are three areas that you may be missing as you minister to the WHOLE student…

SOCIAL SKILLS

We desire for our students to go on missions trips, share faith, and serve but do they have the basic social skills to succeed?

I have discovered in order to help my 5th-8th students succeed in the areas of ministry that I want to them serve in, I have to introduce them to simple social skills that like…

• How to talk to an adult. You want your students to share their faith with someone or even serve them a meal, but do they know how to interact with an adult other than their parents and their youth leaders?

• How to be polite.  Do your students know what is and is not considered polite in certain settings?

• Appropriate personal space and touch.  Outside of your youth ministry and their circle of friends, do students know what is and is not appropriate personal body space and personal contact?

• Listening/hearing others. If it is not something they are interested can they pay attention to someone speaking and actually listen to what they are say? 

LIFE SKILLS

We talk about the “Christian life” and how to “live as a Christian”, but do our students have basic life skills?

You teach foundations for living healthy spiritually. You also can teach your students basic life skills. Even things that may already be being taught at home or in school, can be connected and seen through a spiritual lens as well…

• Respect. Do your students understand how to show respect? Respect for God? Respect for others and authority? Even respect for themselves?

• Safety. Have your students been taught basic safety? What is and is not safe based on where they are? Inner-city mission trip vs. rural retreat for an example...

• Money. You teach stewardship, but do you teach basic money skills? If you gave your 6th students the money you spend on them for a week of a trip, would it last the week or would they spend it all at the first fast food place or corner market they visited.  

PERSONAL SKILLS
We want middle years students to begin to discover who God has created them to be as a person but do they know how to take care of that physical person?

The physical is only temporary, but it still part of our earthly stewardship. You can teach how taking care of the physical life can help them take care of thier spiritual life by teaching…

• Personal Hygiene. Can you add on a little more to your “Temple of the Holy Spirit” talk? How often does your average student take a shower...brush their teeth...or even wash their hands? 

• Dressing for Body Type. You lecture about modesty, but have you ever had a talk or even have a fashion show that allowed girls (and maybe their moms) to understand how to dress for their body type?

• Sleep, Rest, and Body Needs. In the midst of your marathon lock-in events or late night chats, do you ever take time to encourage healthy rest and sleep? Do your students understand basic body need, like eating healthy?

• Self-Control/Body Control.  Can your student stand still and control their bodies for more than 30 seconds without breaking into a FortNite dance or “fidgeting”?  

Over the many years of doing ministry with middle years students, I have continued to be challenged that what I do is far more than just being a “spiritual life” specialist only. I also want to take every opportunity to also speaking into the other areas of the lives of my young students. I seek to tie together all of who they into a WHOLE life package using the rope of God’s word. 

What are the things you are teaching in your ministry that are beyond what would be considered the “normal” youth group topics and life lessons? How are those things connecting and shaping the whole of your middle years students?