First Blog

I'm new to this. I rarely even read other people's blogs. I look at my dad's about once a month or so, and read the reviews and critiques, but other than that, this is a whole new world. I hope somehow people will find this, read it, and even reply. Everyone has a blog, therefore a lot of people must be interested in them. My name is Daniel Kirkendall and I am the full-time youth minister at Broad Street Church of Christ. I have about 14 teenagers who regularly attend, but my wednesday class usually has between 16 and 20. Right now, we are in the third week of a series entitled "God's Plan for You and Me." The first week, we focused on the fact that God indeed does have a plan for each one of us, if we use our faith to follow where he leads us. The second week dealt with our passion for things that benefit the Kingdom of Heaven, and how individually we can make some kind of difference, based on our "core values." It amazed me how skeptical some of the teenagers were when they heard that they can have an impact on behalf of God and his Kingdom. It was somewhat disheartening to hear this, and to see how a large percentage of Christian teenagers have settled with the fact that they can and will float through life without committing completely to anything, and as long as they are "good people" God will accept them, and that will suffice. This is the whole idea behind what we are learning, and I feel at this time it is my job (not just as a YM, but as a soldier for Christ) to inform these kids that God has wired values, gifts, and passions inside each heart and to pursue and commit to these inspirations so that great work may be done. I asked them what they believe their gifts and values are, and although they lack maturity and inspiration in most cases, they were honest, and answered "I don't know!" There are exceptions...One girl said she wanted to devote her life to overseas missions and focus on children. I applaud her. But typically, it seems, these kids suffer from the effects of an evil and broken world, and accept situations the way they fall as opposed to fighting evil and hatred to proclaim what God has done and can do in their life here on earth. I hope and pray for each one of these kids and I humbly ask that whoever reads this will do the same. I believe my job is difficult, stressful, and very important. I don't know how to measure success as a youth minister, but I know that God does and I hope He is happy with me and the teenagers of the Broad Street Church of Christ!