Raising Up The Next Generation

Author: Jimi Williams

In all the worship teachings, ponderings, and musings that I read, I don't hear much about worship mentoring. I have never been a part of a church that does this intentionally. The reason for this may be that in the Nashville area there is such an abundance of good musicians that there is not a need to recruit young people to help. While it's great to have good players, I believe we are missing the blessing and a mandate of raising up the next generation of lead worshipers.

I think there are several reasons why worship leaders avoid working with young people:

1. There's not an immediate payoff

Most worship leaders I know are more concerned with this Sunday than 5 years from now. It's easy to fall into this way of thinking. We want instant results and Lord knows, working with teenagers is 2 steps forward and 1 step back! Many times in ministry leadership we have the mindset of "What can this person do to help me and my ministry?" We must change this to "What I can do to develop this person?"

2. We fall for flash instead of fulfillment.

When selecting players, everyone wants the guitar player who can mimic all the tasty licks from the recording, versus the teen who plays everything with hi-gain distortion :). At the end of the day, nobody's going to remember the great guitar riff in "Let God Arise", but a you
may direct a young person's destiny by giving them the opportunity to serve along side you.

3. Nobody wants extra baggage.

Beware! Integrating young people into your band will cost you. There is a certain amount of hand-holding that must happen, especially at first. My son Christian, who plays guitar and is 12, has started helping me when I lead. The first few times he helped out I had to double check that he packed all his gear, set up his guitar rig, and help calm his nerves. Now that he's been doing it awhile, he knows what gear to bring, sets up his own rig, and is getting more confident with the band.

4. We believe the lie that teens don't want to be involved with adults.

This is so bogus. I hear this argument against older youth pastors or adults who work with students. I turned 40 this year and my wife and I both have incredible relationships with a bunch of teens. Nobody cares that we are old enough to be their parents or that we are not cool. All they care about is that we care about them enough to invest into their
lives.

5. We feel pressure from the pastor and/or congregation to have a professional sounding band.

Okay, I'm going to try and stay off my soap box, but... I sometimes think that the church has forgotten why it exists. In visiting some churches, I get the feeling that the most important thing is how good their music is. We relegate our young people's service to the youth service or the once a year "youth Sunday". That sends the message "this is big church and there's no place for you to help here". If we want more young people in our church services, how about giving them a place to serve?

The seed we sow now will yield an abundant harvest in time if we are faithful to plant and water. So get that spiky haired kid with the Flying V involved in your ministry. You will change his life and he will change yours.

Release the Cry by Loni McIntosh

I read this article today on Jesus Culture, and it really spoke to me. I hope it speaks to you as well.


Isaiah 40:3-5
A voice of one calling: in the desert prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

It is pretty safe to say that we, as a church, as the Body of Christ, want very much to see God’s glory cover the earth to the extent that “all mankind together will see it.” Losing yourself in that desire is quite possibly one of the most exciting adventures in Christianity. When God shows up on even a very personal and private level it is one of the most exciting and awe-inspiring events in life. We are called to prepare the earth to be covered by the glory of the Lord by making “straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.” And that is accomplished by “calling out.” We are called to prepare the way of the Lord. We are in the middle of seeing that desire awakened on the earth, but the cry has only been taken up by a few. God has released a cry. He is calling us to “call out.” Isaiah recognized this in the next verse:

Isaiah 40:6
A voice says, “cry out.” And I said, “what shall I cry?”

God is calling His church to open her mouth and cry out with the cry of the Lord. He is releasing what is on His heart. He is declaring what He wants to see happen on the earth. If we are going to prepare the earth for Him, we must be asking Him “what shall I cry?”

God is revealing His cry to people all over the nation – to people all around the world. But if we do not hear the call to cry out and position ourselves to ask “what shall I cry?” then the world may pass unchanged in our generation. Are you hungering after the heart of the Lord? Do you know what He desires to see change in the next several months? Is your cry aligned with His?

Your cry is not for you alone. This call to cry out is a global call with generational ramifications. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said it this way, “History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people.” The earth is groaning for a moment in time when the people cry out with the cry of God to release what changes the face of the planet to effectively receive it’s King. It is not enough to have a good personal walk with God. Your cry was meant to change the landscape.

Isaiah goes on to say in verse 9: “You who bring good tidings to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout, lift it up, do not be afraid; say to the towns of Judah, “Here is your God!”
He makes it apparent that this cry is not meant to be private! God is releasing a cry that sparks societal reformation and brings His kingdom to earth. He has made us to be loud, influential, dissatisfied people.

You will not be satisfied with anything in life that falls short of changing the world. Jesus was like that. He still is. And you were made to look like Him. Jesus spent thirty years of His life in preparation, but when He opened His mouth, it became fairly obvious that He was declaring the cry of His Father. His release of that cry changed the world. It changed the course of human history. It changed a nation in a day. What was the key to the authority on His words? What made people listen? “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” (John 5:19)

Jesus was continually listening to the cry of the Father. He demonstrated to us how life was meant to be lived. Jesus alone saved the world. He is the Head. But He’s coming back for a Body that is in proportion with Him, the Head. He designed us to want to change the world. If my cry is going to change the world, it has to be straight out of the heart of God. Our hearts must be continually listening to the cry of the Father.

“A voice says, “cry out.” And I said, “what shall I cry?””

We have the opportunity to rise up and change the world. Do you know what is on God’s heart? Are you crying out? In the Old Testament, God always did enough on His own to save His people. Every time they cried out He raised up someone who would get them out of the mess they were in. But anytime Israel entered a time of overwhelming prosperity and doing-well-ness it was because someone stood up and declared to the nation and lived in a way that agreed with what was on God’s heart. God will always raise someone up to keep us off of the brink of disaster due to His promises to our fore-fathers. But if we want to see the world change in a way that makes the glory of the Lord visible to “all mankind together,” then we must be willing to stand up and cry out.

God, release the cry!