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About Me
- Pastor Steve
- I am currently the senior pastor at St. Mark's Lutheran Church in North St. Paul, MN. My great passions are preaching and worship, helping churches discover their God-given vision, and working with people of all ages. For fun, I ride my motorcycle, follow sports (especially baseball) and hang out with my kids.
What do the young people who "drop out of church" have to say? Has anyone asked them?
ReplyDeleteI know that most of the time, it’s a real task to get my two teen boys up early on Sunday morning to get to church. But, every Sunday they get there, they’re glad they went. Both boys are still active in the church with music and usher duties. I see five of the six kids I had for confirmation a couple of years ago, still active in the church, and three of my current six are finding ways to help at church.
ReplyDeleteFrom my experience, when the kids feel that they are working and helping in the church without fear of judgment, being productive and seeing the [daily] results of their work – that seems to be more motivational and spirit moving than the entertainment of the kids. Kids can be entertained by movies, TV, games, plays, sports…but when kids are given church tasks and understand the ‘whys’ to what they need to accomplish, they take ownership of that part of the church. For most of the kids I’ve worked with, that’s much more rewarding than being entertained. And you have to agree – if your spirit isn’t being moved at church, we {kids and adults] can easily find much more entertaining venues. – {that’s not a critique of Pastor Steve’s sermons either!}
Mark Peterson