A couple of weeks ago, our high school
students, during Northbound, were asked to think of questions they were always
afraid to ask in church. Many of our students wonder and often hesitant to ask
difficult questions because they are not sure how adults would respond. They do
not want to be judged so they keep the questions to themselves. What we desire
for our students is that our homes and our church are safe places where they
can ask questions.
Andrew Zirschky at the Center for Youth
Ministry Training says, “If we are going to respond adequately to the doubting
experiences of youth, we need to ensure that young people … have patient, understanding companions who can
guide and care for them through the twists and turns of the journey of doubt.”
Our parents and adult leaders at church are the companions Zirschky describes.
As parents and adult leaders, we often do not
have answers to the difficult questions our teenagers sometimes ask. Brad
Griffin of Fuller Youth Institute suggests we have four words in our back
pocket for those moments: “I don’t know, but…” It’s ok to admit that we do not
know but together, we can seek out the answers. To help develop the spiritual
growth in our students, we have to be open for doubt-filled questions and
respond with patient and loving responses. May the Lord place us in these
moments as we walk with our teenagers through their spiritual journey.
