PRELIMINARY YOUTH PLAN FOR 2008 – 2009

After visiting with our youth kids, parents, my wife and pastor, I have come up with a plan for the upcoming school year for our youth group at Our Savior's Lutheran Church.  This plan is meant to implement what we do well, maintain our Lutheran heritage, build on our current strengths and strengthen some of our current weaknesses. 

I fully believe we need to do fewer things and do them much better.  One of our weaknesses has been the lack of consistency in our programs.  By planning now for the next year and communicating this with our parents, teens and congregants, we will be able to rebuild our “Crosseyed” youth group.  Here it is:

     Change Youth Night from Sunday evening to Wednesday evening

     Keep Confirmation on Sunday morning

     No Sunday school on Sunday morning (see below for details)

     Add one event per month on Sunday evening including families

     Do two retreats – one in winter (see dates below) and one during the spring (see dates below)

     As need and staffing grow implement programs as needed (e.g. Bible studies, small groups, etc. . . )

WEDNESDAY NIGHT YOUTH GROUP

This is our “Youth Group” program which included, games, messages, groups interaction, food and fun.  We will move this to Wednesday evening from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm.  This will allow Sunday to be a family night, along with allowing us to add a once a month event for families and teens. 

We will continue with some of the same things we are doing, but also try some new things and incorporate some of our church calendar events (advent, lent) into our schedule.  By not changing our meeting night, even during the holiday seasons, we maintain consistency so that question of, “Do we have youth group tonight”? is always answered with a YES!

Typical nightly schedule:

6:00 pm – 6:30 pm – gathering, greeting, game time

6:30 pm – 7:15 pm – lesson, discussion, activity

7:15 pm – 7:30 pm – prayer and closure

7:30 pm – 8:00 pm - food and fellowship

CONFIRMATION

Confirmation is a traditional Lutheran program and is done at OSLC in a non-traditional way as it includes the following:

     Learning Events

     Servant Events

     Fellowship Events

     Leadership Huddles

By incorporating these activities into our program we add one year to the overall time, but gain deeper relationships.  The students begin attending in seventh grade and continue through their ninth grade year.  Their experience culminates with being confirmed contingent upon the following criteria being met:

     80 percent of events attended over the three years

     Requisite number of sermon notes completed

     Oral exam passed with Pastor

     Statement of faith prepared and presented

The schedule could be as follows provided our current Sunday morning structure stays intact:

10:30 am – 10:45 am – opening and announcements

10:45 am – 11:30 am     - teaching time

11:30 am – 12:00 pm – small group time

12:00 pm – 12: 15 pm – prayer time

SUNDAY SCHOOL

Sunday school would be eliminated as we know it.  The older students (those who have been confirmed) would help facilitate our Confirmation program by helping with creative interruptions, teaching, small group coaching and other items.  Those students who wish to help with younger Sunday School could also do that. 

Visitors would be invited to sit in on our first hour of Confirmation as this is taught in a student-centered way. 

SPECIAL EVENTS

     Sunday night socials – this is a chance to meet once a month on Sundays.  We would include families in a variety of events including, but not limited to: BBQ’s, concerts, movies, sporting events, servant events and other events as they occur.

     Retreats – two planned, one winter and one spring

     Special Advent Events

     New Year’s Eve Party

     Lent Services

     End of year party

     Rock the Desert

     Camp

     Fun Trip

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE FOR 2008-09 YEAR

August

8 – 9                             Rock the Desert

10, 11 and 12                Tentative trip to Schlitterbahn

27                                 Confirmation Orientation

??                                 Lock In??

SEPTEMBER

7, 14, 21, 28                  Confirmation (See Schedule)

3, 10, 17, 24                  Youth Group (6:00 pm – 8:00 pm)

28                                 Special Event – Sunday Evening - TBA

OCTOBER

5, 12, 19, 26                  Confirmation (See Schedule)

1, 8, 15, 22, 29  Youth Group (6:00 pm – 8:00 pm)

26                                 Special Event – Sunday Evening - TBA

NOVEMBER

2, 9, 16, 23, 30  Confirmation (See Schedule)

5, 12, 19                       Youth Group (6:00 pm – 8:00 pm)

NO YOUTH ON THE 26TH – THANKSGIVING EVE SERVICE

30                                 Special Event – Sunday Evening - TBA

DECEMBER

7, 14, 21                       Confirmation (See Schedule)

3, 10, 17                       Youth Group (6:00 pm – 8:00 pm) ADVENT THEME

19                                 Christmas Party

31                                 New Year’s Eve Party?? (This will be our Special Event for December)

?????                           Retreat during the break??

JANUARY

11, 18, 25                      Confirmation (See Schedule)

7, 14, 21, 28                  Youth Group (6:00 pm – 8:00 pm)           

25                                 Special Event – Sunday Evening – TBA

FEBRUARY

1, 8, 15, 22                    Confirmation (See Schedule)

4, 11, 18                       Youth Group (6:00 pm – 8:00 pm)           

25                                 Ash Wednesday

23                                 Special Event – Sunday Evening – TBA

MARCH

1, 8, 22, 29                    Confirmation (See Schedule)

4, 11, 18                       Youth Group (6:00 pm – 8:00 pm)

15                                 No Youth – Spring Break

29                                 Special Event – Sunday Evening – TBA

?????                           Spring Retreat ???

APRIL

5, 19, 26                       Confirmation (See Schedule)

1, 15, 22, 29                  Youth Group (6:00 pm – 8:00 pm)

8                                  Holy Week – Special Event

26                                 Special Event – Sunday Evening – TBA

MAY

3, 10, 17, 24                  Confirmation (See Schedule)

6, 13, 20, 27                  Youth Group (6:00 pm – 8:00 pm)

24                                 Special Event – Sunday Evening – TBA

JUNE, JULY & AUGUST

Summer plans to be published by April 12 - Easter

I am a big believer in vision and purpose. Our Bibles tell us “Where there is no vision, the people perish” and I fully agree with that! A little background if I may. A little over two years ago, I ventured back onto familiar territory here at OSLC. I had served here for several years before taking a call to a church in the Omaha, Nebraska area. I left that church after one year there moving back to Phoenix, Arizona. I spent a year and a half as a youth probation officer in a detention center in Maricopa County. It was an interesting experience and has served me well as I was able to learn a great deal about the human heart in an unusual setting.

While I enjoyed that job a great deal, my heart was drawn back to Our Savior’s and I returned here and began serving as the Associate Pastor. I had planned to serve here for as long as the church would have me. However, I left after only a year a half. Our senior pastor, Robert Walter, left to pursue other interests quicker than I anticipated and as a result, I felt the need to look elsewhere for employment. I was surprised by the swiftness of Robert’s departure and looked elsewhere for a secure position. I found a place as a teacher at San Jacinto Junior High school here in Midland.

I was not a certified teacher at the time I was hired, so I was required to finish the certification process, which meant I had to take four classes during the year. I was also coaching three sports and trying to learn how to teach in the public schools while still serving as our youth pastor, I failed miserably at the latter. As a result, I asked for some help in the form of Benjamin and Hilary Blackketter, they were a Godsend and served our youth beautifully, a great debt of thanks goes to them.

However, the momentum we had built in a year and a half was halted and we stopped our growth and began a different direction in the momentum arena, we began to shrink. I have been greatly distressed at the lack of growth in our youth group, however, I was unable to put the time into the ministry it required to remain healthy and growing. Add to that the fact that our church is without a senior pastor and frankly, without a senior pastor it is difficult to have that vision and purpose I spoke about earlier. I have been extremely frustrated personally and professionally with where we are as a church and consequently as a youth group. However, as they say it is what it is and we need to go forward and build with the tools God has given us.

So why am I telling you all this? Simply because I know you are like me in many respects, you want a healthy youth ministry and of course a healthy church. I wish I could tell you when we will call a senior pastor, I cannot. However, I can tell you that we need to go forward with vigor and gusto as far as our youth ministry goes. I have a stake in this ministry beyond a “job,” I have two kids fully involved with one a year away from becoming involved. My prayer for them is that they have a vibrant group where they can learn and grow about God, the church, each other and how they can make this faith their own while calling OSLC home.

I do not know where this church is headed as we search for a leader, but I do know that our students, your kids, need to know where they are going and how we plan to get there. This summer has seen our attendance at the few events we do drop off significantly. I have queried the students and they tell me we are “dead” and it is not fun anymore. I do not blame them, I would not to come to something that did not offer anything. As a result, I am totally revamping the way we will be doing our youth ministry this summer, and next year. I honestly do not know what it will look like, I have an idea, but rest assured we cannot continue to do what we are doing, there is too much at stake to keep the status quo.

Our summer events are being revamped and rescheduled to allow for more of our students to attend. I have created a new website for you to gather information from and contribute to, both you and your teens. I encourage you to use it. We are living in the new age of technology and just like Luther did, we need to take advantage of it whenever we can. I intend to lean on these new methods more heavily, while at the same time falling back on the old, that is building of relationships.

Please go to this website for more complete information and links to pertinent information: www.toddbfreese.com/oslcyouth.

Thanks for taking the time to read this letter, more information can be found at the site above. God’s blessings to you and your family.