How to Help Young People Live Their Faith Beyond Your Programs

It didn’t keep me up at night, but the thought always lingered: Are the teens who grew up in my ministry still practicing the faith? It’s an impossible question to answer fully. People have agency, life gets complicated, and we can’t track every young adult who ever walked into our programs.

But we can ease the anxiety by equipping them long before they leave.

What helped me most was seeing the shift when we began building commissioning directly into our ministry rhythms. We wanted teens not only to learn about faith but to practice talking about it, living it, and sharing it—even in small, imperfect ways.

In our small groups, leaders gave weekly challenges. These weren’t homework assignments; they were invitations to act. One week the challenge might be to pray with a friend. Another week it might be to bring a question about faith to a parent or teacher. Another week it was blessing someone quietly and anonymously.

Every challenge required them to report back.

Successes were celebrated, and “failures” weren’t failures at all—they were learning moments. Teens began to see that part of being a disciple was going and sharing, not just absorbing. Over time, their confidence grew. And as our parish leaned harder into witnessing—through testimonies, faith-sharing conversations, hospitality, and simple invitation—we noticed something surprising.

New people started coming.

Friends of teens. Parents we hadn’t seen before. A coworker someone finally invited.

We were growing a culture of “invest and invite.”

And it all started with showing people what it actually means to be sent.

If we want lifelong formation, we can’t stop at the end of Mass. We have to model and practice the commission in daily life.

Here’s how:

1. Use small groups as practice fields.

Give people (teens or adults) space to share stories, pray aloud, and articulate what God is doing. That repetition builds confidence.

2. Turn retreats and worship nights into commissioning moments.

Don’t let them end on an emotional high—end them with a clear invitation to act, speak, or serve. Help people put words to their faith in front of a safe, supportive crowd.

3. Provide simple, low-pressure evangelization tools.

Parish merch. Invitation cards. Seasonal events. Prayer prompts. These aren’t gimmicks—they’re bridges for people who want to express their faith without fear.

People don’t grow confident in sharing their faith by accident.
They grow because someone gave them chances to practice, encouraged them when they stumbled, and celebrated every moment they said “yes” to the mission.

If you want your parish to develop resilient, joyful, missionary disciples, don’t just teach the commission—clarify it. Model it. Practice it.

Then send them with confidence.