Back to school season is here. As a youth minister at Maynard Baptist Church in Forsyth and the campus minister for the Baptist Collegiate Ministry at Gordon State College, I am well aware of what comes with this time of year.
As students return to their school schedules, responsibilities begin to pick up. There is homework and studying that needs to be done on top of practices and rehearsals. This on top of jobs and other obligations some high school students have.
College students are buying books, applying for internships, and if they are in their last year, trying to figure out what comes after graduation. Yes, there is a lot to do.
But while all these obligations are important and should be done well for the glory of God, there is one obligation Christian students have that we don’t talk enough about.
Jesus says in Matthew 5:14-16
You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
Matthew 5:14-16 (ESV)
So often when we think of how our churches can reach young people we think we must have a strong youth leader, certain styles of worship or maybe other things that come down to preference. Those things help, but they are not the most important.
The best resource we have for reaching students with the gospel is students who are already believers. If we want to reach students with the gospel, the best way to do that is to help christian students live out the words of Jesus in the aforementioned verses.
As a youth pastor, I see my students two or three times a week. Unless their nonchristian friends come to church with my students, I see them even less.
But my students see their friends every time they go to school or show up at work, practice or rehearsal. They hang out together on the weekends.
The best use of our time is to teach Christian students how to go and reach their peers for Christ. They have access and credibility most adults can’t earn. That gives them the opportunity.
Think of what it would look like to have students who are comfortable doing evangelism with their classmates because they already have experience doing evangelism. Think of students who have been taught how to lead a Bible study, so they lead one with peers.
When Jesus says in verse 15, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven,” He is not just giving a command to believers over the age of 18.
This is a command for anyone who has placed his or her faith in Jesus. May we be faithful in teaching Christian students to shine their light among men, so that we can see their peers give glory to God.
Bee-Attitude
Blessed are those who train the next generation to reach the next generation.
Gabe Thomas is the Campus Minister for the Baptist Collegiate Ministry at Gordon State College. He also serves as the student pastor at Maynard Baptist Church in Forsyth. He is married to his wife Morgan and together they have two daughters, Amelia and Piper.
