Real Youth Workers are Better Than Perfect Youth Workers

Youth workers who pretend that they have the Christian life all figured out are boring! Let’s face it, none of us want to follow someone who thinks they have anything all figured out – we want to learn from people who are on the same journey we’re on, a journey of messiness and incompleteness, of bumps and turns and twists and surprises. In short, we want to learn from people who live with veracity – people who live out the truth of their own journey in front of us.For you to be a youth worker who lives with veracity, and for me to be a youth worker who lives with veracity, we have to live, speak and act boldly – whether that means a boldness of knowing or a boldness of unknowing. See, veracity and passion are closely linked. And when I live in truth (the truth of my real story with God), I live a passionate life, and veracity naturally leaks out in my interactions with students. When I do this, I become more “attractive” to real students (unfortunately, not more physically attractive!) The truth of Jesus alive in my life is attractive.