Many times within our churches, youth are seldom given an opportunity or platform to speak freely. The Youth Department personnel of the Alberta Conference recently traveled across Alberta and the Northwest Territories (Yellowknife area) to hear from the youth. They called it a “Listening Tour” because they actively listened to the needs and desires of the youth. The young people had an opportunity to share their ideas about the church and what they would like to see in youth ministry.
The concept came about when the Alberta Conference Youth Department leaders sat down to plan for the next five years. Alberta Conference Youth Director, Lyle Notice, states, “We thought instead of us just planning programs, let’s get some context from our youth and then start planning. As David Benjamin and I traveled across Edmonton, Medicine Hat, Red Deer, Calgary, Lethbridge, Fort McMurray on our listening tour, we found that all youth wanted the same thing, to be heard.”
By visiting with the youth and meeting them on their turf, Notice and Benjamin focused on creating a safe place for the young people to share what was on their hearts.
Several topics were consistently shared at each location. The youth want to know how to share their faith with unbelievers, they want to do more community outreach and they want to learn how to better lead out in worship at their local churches.
Oh yeah, and I can’t forget, they love teen youth rally and would like to see more teen youth rallies in the near future.
Thanks for your support of Youth Ministries throughout the Alberta Conference.
