Raising the Bar In Competition

This weekend we kicked off the new series Impact and it was great to see the teens again. The last time we had program it had just snowed 18 inches and this week was a Raven’s playoff game, which causes for some shifts in attendance. On top of all of that the first week back from the Christmas break can feel like coming back from the summer because you don’t know what’s happened in people lives from the last time you saw them.
As I mentioned yesterday it seems that people are settling in; even though we do need to make a better effort of giving them vision, but as each season changes so do the faces that attend our program. Soccer, football, field hockey and other fall commitments have come to an end and now kids are involved with indoor sports, theatrics, etc. So you lose some of your regulars but you meet new teens at the same time. This is especially apparent in high school because the program runs on Thursday nights (last year it was Sunday) and what we’ve done is introduced a new problem for the high school students to figure out. “Do I go to _____ practice or do I go to Uprising?” It’s a good question, a question we have to let them ask and let them answer. Of course if they ask me I’ll tell them that I want them at Uprising, but more importantly I want them to make a commitment to something and go all out. I want them to know the importance of prioritization and if that means sacrificing Thursday nights, I’ll understand (I don’t know if I’ll agree). As long as they aren’t sacrificing their faith, as long as they attend Mass and stay connected to a church community if they have to drop Uprising, (even though it’ll be hard), I’ll understand.
But, this also raises the bar on my end. If I’m competing in a student’s schedule, I’ve got to make sure what we do is at the highest level possible. I know we can’t be perfect; however, if we live out our mission of being authentic, consistent and irresistible ministry then we really can’t lose. Because the purpose of having authentic, consistent and irresistible ministry is to love God, love others and make disciples and when you are doing that God is with you.
I think we are going to start showing that with this new series because the action steps, what we have planned is going to motivate them to more forward with where they need to go in their faith.