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think of them and we are here Youth for Christ
when paying have been involved with the organization for
about twenty years as a full-time missionary
before that I was a volunteer my name's Kyle Martens
I'm Ethan issue for them here province live been
interning at YFZ for the last year
I'm Steve Elias I'm the director of youth relations at the
drop in center in the drop zone and Ron Paul youth for Christ is
an interdenominational
youth outreach
organization our mission is basically to
share the Gospel message with you with teenagers and
disable them into the church as much as possible and
we're a diverse group of missionary staff from a variety of denominational
backgrounds
but all of us share the same passion
for reaching the unsaved
on church teenagers with the message of Christ
Lot of people thing we're youth for Christ were actually I
drop and said it was started by the church's in the town 1997
I've been here for three years now. The age group that's who we target here's
from 12 to 19 but typically we get
from great sevens about 12 to 15 thats our
biggest on population of kids that come here
but I Wednesday's we doing actual out ten-year-olds cuz you want to get them
young sewing
getting on before the turned 12 by
specifically would be iron 13 to 18
around that age arm and a lot of them
they are what we focus on would be
more at risk youth on kids at me
not have that church influence maybe come from
a single parent or even foster parent homes column
so italy has a lot more of the the use kind of
bad dart directly involved with the church on
they come because they have they have i sat
on adults to interact with them to care for them where they may not get that at
home
our target group age wise basically is
junior high and high school so grades seven through 12
and as far as
being more specific we have
developed over the years a variety of programs
that we feel do a really good job I'll
ministering to different I'm
interest groups have you so the keys are skateboard park and you start dance
studios and use our gymnasium and use our fitness center
and that is a number of different environments that we've created in order
to attract cute that might be interested in no specific environments
and doesn't mean that are what we offer is limited to those
kinds of things were created within that stuff and and do other things
around in those areas so something we offer
here obviously were dropped and so we're open
four nights a week Monday Tuesday
Wednesday and Friday and those nights yeah
rope and kids come here hang out we've play different games ago
outside play sports are we did a music program with my the churches in town and
with
Providence College on call elevates
on that was yeah we taught just kids music and
how to teach how to play their insurance better and
someone do you know how to play as well as a good program on
in winter it gets kinda boring in here were cooped up so we're at the jam
with do something it's a gym night and we play different sports I also give a
got talk about event so it's time for our each for winter
iron another program word
just gonna start probably in May is a 3-under
to access the community more so you're gonna start a family
ministry family night Starwood just inviting families here my change into
something out by and starring
kids can bring their parents and we'll have a barbecue are and place
volleyball outsider yeah just ignore them a family there
and we also have a prayer meeting I have answered Tuesday mornings
so yeah quite a bit going on know there are
programs right now
I sounds like a pat answer but really it's the spirit got that
I'm that place is a passion in
Manning he places passion for something in all of us
and the people that were conserved at Youth for Christ
are passionate about sharing Jesus with teenagers
that would be number one I'm one of the things you to grace is able to do is
create
ministry environment around people's passion
so as a good example I have I soccer league director
who mass guy who loves to play soccer
and he loves you and want to reach out
generous poet kids who haven't heard the gospel so he gets to come to this
environment and
bill the Ministry around the thing one of the things he loves to do
and use it as a tool to reach out to teenagers
I'm and that passion comes from God it comes from
the Holy Spirit work in us so really got
and nine Tests and give this passion to do what we do and
you know I I hope that that is in an ongoing wave really want to continue to
drive us
yes all want to support the potential
but teens have in everything they do no matter where they come from their
background yeah kids need to be supported
on and after we build those
those relationships where
we can actually talk about life in we wanna share Christ with them
and bring price into their lives are the into the crisis whatever they're at
they need to know Christ thats the main motivation for all with you
this place is open this place is open four nights a week
and throughout the year policy
eighties 60 to 80 different faces that come through here
that I'm Knoll personally arm
is often some visitors so it say about close to 100 kids that we
provide this place for an give support to
are involved in a life at four times the year are in
July when summer just starting everyone goes through all is turned on
July Empire part of august but and then
two picks up and beginning a schools always the busiest right in September
around the back so anything's
and thats busy in September part 2 winter slower
but near the end it's busy and so time fluctuates a
yeah and fluctuates on what I think you have to i mean
as far as like they will have discipline problems you have to set
the lines arm and then follow that we can't you can take am going to do this
if if you if you keep going
I'm going to do this and he say okay that's not so bad maybe I won't do this
I me after you have to be
strict enough to to keep to where you can you say you're gonna do
um and then but but do it in love
we do understand that there are you to require more
I intentional care and/or
support in different ways than others and so that definition up troubled youth
i think is just
you know it's a little bit it's hard to define
I would say it again I would say every year his troubled
to some degree rather and I would say for us the important thing is that we
we meet them we minister to them at whatever level they are out of work it
has more difficult one cares more challenges than another
well then we adjust can we do that kids
I we do kids who are very now some of them are mentally
challengers in different ways like not that they would be considered handicap
but they would
you know just how difficult these emotionally or in other ways and so
you know we understand that it's important for as to not be
taking advantage of as well and we just had a staff meeting and talked about
this what you've got
one kid who is very high needs
and want all the attention in the world
so we let that people who love these kids
and so all the sudden you've got three paid
missionary workers spending time with one kid who is really high needs and
demanding right
it's not that they need three people to care for them necessarily but they're
just lapping it up because there's people here who
who are showing love to them and caring concern genuinely for them right
and so we just have to be careful to that we're not letting our
people being taken advantage of that way if we're dealing with a young person who
just has issues that
I that our staff and our volunteers probably more importantly are having a
difficulty
a dealing with their working through issues with them
then there's the opportunity or we can say to our counseling ministry program
you know and you have the opportunity for this young person to connect with
the counselor
and a hopefully help them deal with some others more major issues in their lives
and I think its most helpful and beneficial when
that happened in conjunction with
a continuation of their involvement in whatever kind a program that they're
involved the
so not just you know saying them aside could be
Council than the all that sort of it but they can still participate in
the other program area the recruiting process
happens in a few different ways were on obviously there's quite a few churches
in town so
a couple few times a year we have we going to the church's
give a little report and we after on tears
down that's one way to do it only
gone to local by the college's
Providence and standout Bible College
on we've had a few volunteers from there
often once again word-of-mouth someone else volunteers here
get another person volunteer and sometimes people come through the drop
in they grew up
coming here and they wanna get back to what they
grew up doing again the kinda goes back to the
the relational thing Tom then and is getting the word out there
home I love the one of the ladies
at the drop in has has started working out with our
before the teens om in the mornings
and it spans actually really interesting cuz I mean she's
14 I think column then she is getting up
i wake 6 6:30 in the morning
and driving in like she lives out in the country will be more
and driving in to work out at seven o'clock in the morning
before school and so that she can that she can have this relationship with this
with this lady so it's played I mean even even know what I was that young I
had
football practice maybe once or twice a week in the mornings
and at Gap for that but it with this is like every
but three days a week she's doing this
by urself just did hang out with this this older lady that
that is kinda just are speaking to a relation
helping you note in just just lemme being being a mom for almost because
she she's from our split family in Solan she doesn't get to see among very often
so
make a commitment to that is just incredible at that age
it's huge and you know I would say they're too depending on how are your
defining discipleship
you know the different ways you can look at that won the things that I
am convinced we need more of both within and outside the church
is whether you call it discipleship or mentoring I think there's a lot of
similarities are a lot of crossover with that
and I would say that discipleship slash
mentoring happens on so many different levels
and so many different ways and it's not it's not always
maybe what we thought it was discipleship in the past where
you know somebody decides they want to follow God and then there in a
discipleship
program I would say that we approach
evangelism and discipleship really is one
and it's more about communicating about a message with them
a at the same time helping them understand what that means for
day-to-day life
we start by building a relationship then it
often no once we build a relationship it turns into
a mentor relationship of they are sometimes you get to know a kid
and turns into a mentorship role are you actually mentoring them in your
giving them advice for sure and I'm free in the world with some
and after wire mention a mere evangelizing to them
and we now you 10
bring relationships to apply where we can have analyze and share Christ
and that but the outcome love that
we've call ourselves a bridge ministry for the church
in this town there's quite a few churches knows quite a few kids that
come here there are church so it's easy to access
church in this town so can the outcome of these relationships once there they
get snow crisis
connect them to the church and that's kind of motivation for the whole thing
my
the one the step-by-step process of I can get to know Christ get connected
Inslee commits libeled
the most important thing is walking with them
down modeling challenging I am
you have an accountability but
you know it just just the ongoing relational
connecting that is necessary for anybody to developing girl
in their face so I would say that that peace is huge
and I would say that I'm you know even within the church
that that is a piece that's really lacking a lot of times
I think first of all it's really important that
that the the young people we work with if if that's what you're referring to a
teenager in that regard because
I would say that happens at multiple levels
and if our leadership fr if our leaders at every level
our missionary staff or volunteers if they aren't all being
I'm growing and developing in their face I'm
that it's not gonna reach the youth effectively I'm
but first of all it's important for them to understand its it's an invitation
them and we make it available
there's no all strings attached
you know you can come and participate in our programs as long as you want you are
going to hear
about God here gonna be learning about what the Bible has to say about life and
and those kinds of things but it's an invitation and
that's how we really approach evangelism
and that's how we approach opportunities to learn and grow like
I'm would you be interested in coming to supper club in learning more about God
and actually sitting around a table and talking with other people and regards to
questions you might have about God or
having a small group conversation in that way 10 from there
you know would you be interested in going to church with me on that Friday
reach her son they are attending a youth group activity at my church or
or this other church that has a really good program going on
Tom knows all be opportunities to
really take next steps and then from there
I if a teenager connects well in a church environment
then we can also partner with that church youth pastor the people that are
involved in leadership in that environment and help them get connected
in
and a growing become more plugged into that comment kinda environment as well
want things that I also think missing in so many
Chris forward lives is they are doing anything with their faith soul
come to encourage young person to
get involved in some kinda for some kinda way to use their gifts and
abilities to serve making them
and that might be back in one of our ministry program errors that might be in
the church
might be in some totally different environment
where they can use to get some abilities and passions got
given them I'm to serve and to
to minister to others getting kids to come out to events can be tricky
I but we
have a few different way that we try to do that obviously informing number
what's happening
um by 100 we found is
finding kinda the key kids the leaders in that drop in
if you can get them to come often they'll bring
their friends cuz cuts for the party is
are less is what's going on there so with that kind of
keying in on the kids that are here often and getting them to bring their
friends
that's has been a pretty big thing for us
yeah and word of mouth and we actually
just hired bout I get that the year now
and not just tired body year ago we up till then the board
and the one director that was here would do the fundraising
calm but a year though we hired someone to you
focus just on fundraising arm
so that's been a real really a real big help with that
on we have to fund raiser happen every year
too big fundraisers 11 happens
and beginning on February and then we have one
later in the fall when we go to church is way out for monthly support
we have monthly supporters that also give I myself
director is have my support so that also
is to the drop zone so they can pay my salary and yeah
I think the easiest definition for that is
someone who is sent to proclaim the Gospel
and I'm I think in our environment
me cuz we rely on other people too
a to pray and support financially what we do
there's a very easy connection to say that it's pretty evident that people are
sending us
there brain they're providing financial resources
so that we can take the gospel message to teenagers who need to hear about God
and
and Jesus and I'm the opportunity to live
in relationship with him soul as a
as a missionary you know I'm sent by
a team of people who have chosen willingly
to get on board with me and and praying contribute so that I can
accomplish that mission carry out that mission and make the gospel available
to K
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