by Leah Stewart
Youth Group (Ignition) for 6th through 12th grade students continues to meet every Wednesday night from 6:30-8:30pm. Students and volunteer leaders engage in creative activities, thoughtful discussion of the Word, and intentional application of the things God is teaching them to their daily lives. Each week at Ignition, students engage in small group discussions following a similar format to Hope’s Discipleship Groups. The volunteer leaders guide students in dissecting each topic and helping them to apply it to their Head (what they know), to their Heart (how it transforms them internally), and to their Hands (how they will live it out).
It has been a blessing to see the students involved in Ignition react positively to this format of discipleship. Each small group starts with a time of welcome, prayer, discussion of vision for the group, and reminders of guidelines for a safe environment. Recently, we had a conversation about “Why are you here?” beginning broadly with thinking about why they were born and getting more specific about why each person comes to youth group. One young woman shared with the group that she keeps coming back because “it feels very accepting and open.” She continued to explain that she felt like she could make friends easily and felt very safe in group discussions.
Additionally, Youth leaders continue to build discipling relationships with students outside youth group time. Each leader is committed to praying for students, connecting with students through fun outside activities, and encouraging them throughout the week. All this is done with the hope that students in Ignition would feel connected to their God, to each other and to their leaders in a powerful way. The hope is that discipling each student intentionally will result in greater spiritual growth, personal engagement with the Gospel, and a strong youth group community. We, as leaders, ask for continued prayer that we would follow God’s call in our lives to disciple our youth effectively and thoughtfully.
John 8:12 “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”