Every August as we prepare for new students to join the student ministry, a memory comes to mind. At my church, I was the oldest in my class by a few years and was about to move up to the student ministry. However, my main concern was not moving up. It was not because I was afraid of the older kids or nervous to grow up. Rather, it was the goldfish. My mind was set on the snacks that I’d be leaving behind. Those goldfish were life.
The transition from children’s ministry to the student ministry marks a significant step for many students. Many become nervous, scared, or hesitant. Yet, this transition should be celebrated as a milestone for both teenagers and parents. Let’s explore how you and your family can navigate this new and exciting transition for your teenager.
1. Understanding the Transition
For everyone involved, there is a lot of change happening at one time. For parents, this transition involves not only a change from children’s ministry for your students, but this also includes a major change from elementary school to middle school. This means having to navigate school supplies, transportation, sports, dinner, sleep schedules, and much more. For students, they are having to navigate how to be a middle schoolers. This involves transitions in organization, relationships, emotions, freedoms, and more.
At the very least, there is much more happening as August rears its ugly head with its dump truck worth of change. Therefore, at the church, we try to provide a clear and planned out transition for students. The children’s ministry and the student ministry work closely together to create opportunities for upcoming 6th and 7th graders to “wet their feet” with the student ministry. We do this to avoid the vast amount of change that parents and students face.
2. Challenges During the Transition
For me, the biggest challenge was the snacks. In my mind, I felt like I was losing something valuable. Little did I know that I would be gaining so much more. I traded the goldfish for donuts, simple bible studies for deeper doctrine, and crafts for meaningful community. Looking back on my time as a student, I am very proud that I was able to experience meaningful community and bible studies with deep conversations.
3. Importance of Student Ministry
One of the greatest strengths of the student ministry is the invaluable devotion to going deeper into the Christian faith. Over the past 4 years, The Ridge: Students have walked through the entire book of Acts, Systematically walked through the foundations of the Christian faith, and the book of Habakkuk. We have learned the practical application of evangelism and the great commission, spent countless hours exploring the doctrines that make up the Christian faith, and thoroughly studied the Word of Scripture.
The student ministry does this because we believe that Scripture is our only rule of faith. We believe that the Bible is inspired and is the very word of God. It is the inerrant, clear, sufficient, and infallible Word of God. It provides everything we need to know about how to be saved. Therefore, because of this, the student ministry takes its time to study God’s word faithfully and when we do this it will develop and foster spiritual growth, leadership skills, and a deeper understanding of the Christian faith.
4. Key Goals of Student Ministry
This strategy for our student ministry provides us an opportunity to set specific goals within the student ministry. Because we believe that the Gospel transforms lives, we see the student ministry as an opportunity to invest in students to apply Scripture to their hearts and lives. But, also to apply it to other's lives as well. It is because of this that the student ministry creates opportunities for discipleship, serving others, and faithfully participating in the life of the church. We accomplish this through the faithful preaching and teaching of God’s Word. But we cannot do this alone.
5. Role of Parents and Church Leaders
In more modern history, there has been a negative trend that has falsely created the church as the primary discipler of their children, and the parents have been pushed to being secondary. However, this was never the plan. Rather, parents have always been the primary disciples of their families. We see this in Deuteronomy 6. Here we see Moses informing Israel of various “statues and the rules—that the Lord your God commanded [him] to teach you [Israel]…” (6:1). Among these statues and rules, Moses pays specific attention to the parents’ responsibility to teach and exemplify the Law of God to their children. He says, “And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise” (Deuteronomy 6:6-7). This verse addresses the primary role of parents in the lives of their children. Parents are to regularly teach and disciple their children in God’s Law.
Because of this, our goals are not disconnected from parents. Our goal is to train and equip parents to fulfill the role of primary disciplers of their families. Part of how we do this is through participation in small groups. Through the various ministries of our small groups, Pleasant Ridge dedicates itself to the teaching and application of God’s Word.
6. Role of Parents and Church Leaders
Because of this view of parents and the church, the student ministry relies on the presence of parents in the spiritual development and maturity of the students. We find, train, and equip our leaders, and volunteer with this in mind. These adults provide a consistent, faithful, and meaningful relationship to students AND parents. As we faithful train, equip, and disciple students our goal is for that not to be the final end. Rather, the student ministry functions with the reality that parents will play a part in their lives.
Call to Action
But what is all this without a practical application? What can you do as parents to plan and prepare for this transition for your student(s)? Below are a few ideas that you can do with your family to prepare for this time of transition:
Find Moments to Slow Down: Change is difficult for everyone. Therefore, find moments for you and your family to slow down. The reality of change that terrifies everyone is the stress it brings to life. Finding moments to slow down and rest is incredible.
Prioritize Family Worship: Try planning a time that your family can sit down, worship, and study the bible together. Creating an informal time to study the bible together minimizes the stress associated with change.
Pray For Your Student(s): This may seem obvious, but consistently pray for your students as they take on the mountain of change that they are trying to hike through.
Ask Students Questions: Asking good questions can help in this transition. At the dinner table ask your students about what passage or topic they study at church. Or ask them questions about what they are experiencing at school. Asking questions is a great opportunity to bridge the gap between teenagers and parents.
Be Present: One of the greatest things that you can do in your student(s) life is to be actively present in their lives. Listening to their interests or even learning their hobbies. Simply being present goes a long way in the mind of a teenager.
Conclusion
We all know that August is coming and that means a lot is about to change. As your student(s) begin to enter this sea of change, we want to walk alongside you and your family to help make your student(s) transition into the student ministry memorable. We want this to be a time that you both enjoy, embrace, and celebrate. We want you to be encouraged and trust that your student is being trained, equipped, and discipled with a biblical worldview. We want them to be excited to leave their “goldfish” and find joy in the community they are about to be a part of in the student ministry.
Additional Resources
Family Ministry/Discipleship
Adams, Isaac. Training: How Do I Grow as Christian? Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2018.
Dever, Mark. Discipling: How to Help Others Follow Jesus. Wheaton: Crossway, 2016.
Hellerman, Joseph H. When the Church Was a Family: Recapturing Jesus' Vision for Authentic Christian Community. Nashville: B&H Academic, 2009.
Jones, Timothy Paul. Family Ministry Field Guide: How Your Church Can Equip Parents to Make Disciples. Indianapolis: Wesleyan Publishing House, 2011.
Stinson, Randy. Trained in the Fear of God: Family Ministry in Theological, Historical, and Practical Perspective. Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 2012.
Student Ministry
Newton, Ed, and R. Scott Pace. Student Ministry by the Book. Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 2013.
Bible Study Tools/Theology
Fee, Gordon D., and Douglas Stuart. How to Read the Bible Book by Book: A Guided Tour. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2002.
Horton, Michael. Core Christianity: Finding Yourself in God's Story. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2016.
Sproul, R.C. Everyone's a Theologian. Sanford: Reformation Trust Publishing, 2014.
Wellum, Stephen. Systematic Theology: From Canon to Concept. Wheaton: Crossway, 2020.
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