Write Your Life Story

           

In 1995 I stood with 51 other youth confirming my faith.  We had written faith papers to declare our faith.  I remember I wrote one with a key line in my head: If you are going to remember anything tonight remember this . . ..  I couldn’t tell you what I wrote after that, but I remember one thing--that line was crossed out by my pastor.  It was disappointing when it happened, but I was beginning to realize the humble, intense walk of a Christian.  But there is something to be said about boldness of faith.   Already at that age I was sure I was going to be a pastor, and I also felt like I wanted to share my faith with everyone.  I was prepared to sum up what they needed to know in one line.

            The world has changed, and unfortunately the majority of my confirmation classmates do not find themselves in pews today; and honestly, good portions of them were rarely seen again in our church after they were confirmed.  The Lutheran Church, as well as the Church at Large, is trying to address this problem.  How do we keep our kids in church?  How do we teach them why faith is important?  During my work as a youth pastor, I have seen an ongoing trend in this direction, and I continue to watch the Church address this.

            This weekend I stopped in to talk to our Confirmands during their class, which is led by two great guys who teach in our seminary throughout the week.  One of them pointed out how far they had gotten through the book.  This year we took a new approach.  We read this really cool action Bible for youth.  It is formatted like a comic, along with the words of Scripture.  As the Confirmands read the action Bible, they could connect how the catechism helps to interpret the theology which is found in Scripture.  This helps our kids to understand that we are not just memorizing this other book (the catechism), but this procedure allows us to see the depth and power of Scripture.  And standing in the Lutheran Church we confirm our faith and make this our confession.  I was thrilled during a time of questioning with our Confirmands to find their depth in understanding Scripture.  I think they both have a boldness of faith that is refreshing, and my prayer for them is to remain in that.

            As a five-year youth pastor, this question bothered me:  What is the one thing they need to hear?  Now I would say I am not sure there is only one thing to remember tonight.  Each story is different and each youth is different.  The important role of the Church is to help our youth see the power of the Scriptures, and that our theology helps us understand who and what Jesus came to do in our lives.  Each person in the Bible had a story.  When we look into the biblical narratives, we discover people like you and me working to understand how sin affected their lives and how Jesus (the promise) was the only answer and the cure.  I believe it is so important for our youth to realize that they are a key part of our Church.  They have a voice and a story that is important, and like them, the adults are writing their own stories.  We all are walking through life seeing the pains of sin in our lives, and praying for the forgiveness of God to guide and direct our stories.  Our youth may only be 14 and 15, but their lives are beginning to be defined.  And like Scripture, their narrative is unfolding. They may not be building an Ark, leading people out of Egypt, or sitting in prison writing letters about their faith, but in a world with all kinds of new technology they are the ones who are charged to carry out the Great Commission in their circles and in this world.

            Mt. Calvary comes together this weekend to celebrate with Sam and Angela as they confirm the very Sacrament that happened at their Baptism.  They want to follow Jesus and write their life story with Him in it.  As fellow believers we stand by as encouragers of the stories they are writing, and prayerfully we ask God to help them write their Life Story rooted in Jesus.