SaturateColorado.com

By Trevor Christian

Sterling -- How many times have these words been spoken by youth pastors come Monday morning? I've been in ministry for seven years and I admit that I am guilty of uttering these words on more than one occasion.

My goal as a youth pastor is to challenge students to give up their positions as lovers of the world, but often I find that adolescents and teenagers choose to quit on God -- and their youth group -- instead.  This is one of the most frustrating aspects of youth ministry.

Unfortunately, as some of them have walked away, I found myself saying, "Lord, I quit! I must not have what it takes to lead this group."

I realized quickly however, that ministry is not about me, or the students who choose to leave, it is about the kids who choose to stay and what God can do through them.

I once read that Bo Schembechler, former head football coach of the University of Michigan Wolverines, worked his players especially hard during spring practice. This was how he found out what kind of men he had on the team, winners or quitters.

He made a sign with the slogan: "Those who stay will be champions" and hung it above the locker room door. Sure he had some quitters, but those who stuck it out were committed to becoming champions.

An important fact I've learned from this story is that it wasn't the coach who quit; it was the players who weren't ready to commit to becoming a champion.

One of the toughest lessons I've learned in my short tenure in ministry is that not everyone is ready to commit to Jesus, a changed life or a youth group.

I am put at ease about this predicament when I read in Matthew 19 the story of the rich young man.

In verse 16, this young man comes to Jesus to inquire about being a follower. Jesus asks him to walk away from his earthly treasures and Scripture says the young man went away sad. He just couldn't quit desiring the things of this world.

I know I have lost some youth along the way, for whatever reason, but I rest assured that those who stay are, and will become, spiritual champions.

It's not about anything I can do to entice, bribe or convince them to stay. It's all about God's sovereignty in drawing them to Him, and it's up to them to quit being lovers of this world.

If you find yourself in the same situation I once did, just remember who the real winner is if you choose to quit. It's not the students, and it certainly isn't God. Instead, it's the adversary, Satan.

Trevor Christian is associate pastor of youth and children at Emmanuel Baptist Church in Sterling.