Youth ministers and leaders across Sydney will be encouraged to be ‘mission minded’ in reaching out to young people across the city at Anglican Youthworks’ 2003 Youth Ministry Conference next month.
The ‘Youth Mission Minded’ Conference, to be held at Moore College in Newtown on December 2-3, is for people of all denominations who are involved or interested in youth ministry, either paid or as volunteers.
Archbishop Peter Jensen will lead a Bible study and speak on ‘Youth Ministry and the Mission’ to open the conference. Other speakers will include the Rev Alan Stewart, CEO of Youthworks, Archie Poulos, Director of the Australian Institute of Ministry, and the Rev Graham Stanton, Dean of Youthworks College at Loftus.
Alan Stewart highlighted recent NCLS figures showing that 71 per cent of Sydney Anglicans became believers by the age of 20, saying that this demonstrated the importance of youth ministry.
“Youth ministry provides unique opportunities to present the gospel to young people at a time of life when they are con-sidering big questions,” he said.
“However, youth ministry also carries its own pressures and demands that come not just from working with kids but with pressures and expectations from parents and senior ministers. People involved in youth ministry, paid or unpaid, are often young themselves and need to be looked after.
“I understand the pressure that youth ministry brings, having done quite a lot of it as a young man myself. Now, having three teenagers and an 11-year-old, I understand the anxiety of being a parent. I am very keen to support people in youth ministry in any way I can.”
Speakers will address the place of youth ministry in reaching Sydney with the gospel, as well as focusing on issues such as evangelism, discipleship, working with other denominations and the spiritual life of the youth minister.
The conference will also include short talks on child protection, high school ministry, small group dynamics and classroom discipline. A panel of experts will look at youth strategies and training, recruiting and placing the next generation of youth ministers.
Mr Stewart said the Youthworks ministry team was ‘keen to get on the front foot’ in training and caring for youth leaders across the Diocese. “We see this conference as being one of the key elements in that strategy.”
The conference will conclude with a free ‘Youth Ministry Muster’ from 7pm on December 3. Featuring talks and music from Nathan Tasker, the evening will aim to encourage and motivate those in youth ministry.
For more information contact Jodie McNeill on 0425 222 338.
