Justin’s middle school ministry is wellknown on the island of Kauai for providingunique outreach events for young people inthe area. He pulls off events that might getyou fired at your church. Toilet Night. StickyNight. Pig Night. Glow-In-The-Dark Night.You get the idea. (Good thing his dad is aseasoned and respected youth minister aswell as the Pastor there.) So, we askedJustin for his thoughts on evangelism.Read on!

You have your evangelistic event all figured out.You know the youth in your town will have theirlives changed. You gave it a cool name; somethinglike “2010 Jammin’ For Jesus.” You have a sloganthat you feel will build interest such as, “2,010 kids!2,010 hotdogs! 2,010 ways to have fun!” You’vetransformed your church building into a “youthzone” with decorations that can be pulled downbefore the grayhairs see them on Sunday morning.You have thought of every little detail—the hipChristian band, the crazy activities, the ex-almost-pro sports figure willing to give his testimony, andthe altar call.

It is the night of the event. The flood of kids youhad imagined is more like a trickle. One of yourhelpful volunteers makes the famed comment,“Even if just one kid meets Jesus, it will all beworth it.” You hold on to that thought as the speak-er goes into the altar call. You watch as a handfulof kids stand. What you know, and the speakerdoes not, is that those kids stand for every altarcall at every event. To make matters worse, youhave 1,985 hot dogs going bad.

What went wrong?

Let’s start with what went RIGHT: your desire toshare with kids the saving message of Jesus. Afterthat – well, it pretty much went wrong. Youth min-istry is full of well-meaning people who get thewhole concept of an evangelistic event the wrongway ’round. Their thinking goes something like this:“If I can just get the lost kids here, I can get toknow them and tell them about Christ.” Let me

help flip you over and put you on your feet. If youget to know the lost kids, they will come. Your lifewill tell them more about Christ while you walkbeside them. When you do have an event, allthe youth you have invested in will follow you tothat event.

The ability you have to speak into the life of ayoung person is directly related to the investmentyou have in that kid’s life. You earn the right tobe heard.

Long before you even consider an event, plan ondoing the tough time outside the church to BE withkids. Be where they are, not invite them to bewhere you are. Where are wild kids? Here in Hawaiimost of them are at the beach. For you it may befootball games, soccer games, or hoops down theroad. It might be at a skatepark or popular diner. Ifyou can be on school campus as a volunteercoach, water boy, or whatever, GO to where thekids are. Then remember not to teach, but play.Play with them, be consistent, and earn the right tobe heard. By your very honest presence you willteach them about Christ long before you evenmention His name.

After you have spent months doing the relationalgroundwork, let’s talk event strategy. A simple wayto look at an evangelistic event is to view every-thing as a tool. The music, location, speaker, food,games, message, and even the event itself are alljust tools to be used. Used for what? The Christianauto-answer is to get kids saved. The strategicyouth-workers answer is to continue sharing Jesuswith kids and hoping that they will love Him as theysee you loving Him.

I am in the never-ending process of remodeling myhouse. I have learned two things in the process.My house is a sucking money pit, and I need tohave the right tools for the job. What is true forhome repair is true for your event. You NEED theright tools for the job, and they may cost you. Beforewarned that if you have your sights set onreaching wild kids for Christ and use your toolscarefully you might just fill your church with wild

EVANGELISMOUTRAGEOUS

kids. If you can’t convince the powers that be atyour church that cigarettes in planters andSharpies™ on the bathroom walls are your idea ofgood problems to have, you may lose your job.

Know whom you are aiming for and set your paceaccordingly. I suggest that your primary targetsshould be the Alpha Males – invent ways to attractand keep macho boys. When you reach the machoboys, you also get the girls who think the boys arecute – and the not-so-macho boys who wish theywere. If you go at it the other way around, you mayfind you have a room full of kids who stare at theirbellybuttons and collect stamps. Although Christianmusic moves Christians, wild kids are not thereyet, don’t torture them. Because their attentionspans are short, speakers should be kept short.More ministry happens in the relationship you havewith the kid than can ever be thrown at a kid bysome speaker.

Learn to patch holes and ask for forgiveness. If youare doing it right, things will get broken. (We had toput ! inch plywood over the drywall in our youthroom because wild kids go wild.) Create an army ofvolunteers who share the vision to reach machoalpha males. Instruct them to have your back. Theywill be able to combat the inevitable flaming arrowsthat will be shot at you by people who don’t sharethat vision.

Remember that your most effective tool is Jesus.He is irresistible. Everything you do to love kids willhelp them to eventually understand the scope ofHis love. The invitation is to believe in that love.

Do the time; it’s a long haul. You will see lights goon in a kid’s head when that Love becomes real.The response to His Love is love. That’s whatchanges lives.

ByJustin BundschuhKauai Christian FellowshipKoloa, Hawaiijustinbundschuh@mac.com

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