“Lord, if you want us to do this, you’ll have to show us how to
lead these kids,” they prayed.
Then God gave Andy and Jenni his formula for working with the
youth: “Let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone
who loves has been born of God and knows God” (1 John 4:7). They
decided that this was the best education they could have: to be born
of him and to know him.
“Don’t worry about exactly how you’ll do it,” God seemed to be
saying. “Just trust me. As long as you let them know that you love
them and I love them, you’ll be fulfilling my commission and I will
work through you.”
So Andy and Jenni accepted the job and began to decorate the big
empty room that the church designated as the youths’. They
scrubbed floors and painted in wild colors. They brought in cast-off
sofas and chairs. They spread out worn rugs and put down big com-
fortable cushions. They gathered a mismatched conglomeration of
tables and lamps, and stocked a couple of secondhand refrigerators
with Cokes and Dr Peppers and pitchers of iced tea.
When the work was done, they looked around at what God had
given them to work with. It didn’t seem like much. But they knew it
would be more than enough.
And regardless of what they taught or did every Sunday night,
they would hug the kids when they arrived and when they were
leaving. “I love you,” they would say, “and God loves you.”
That was the good news that turned the tide for the youth of
Christ Church. Many of them accepted Christ for the first time that
year. Others recommited their lives. Still others who had been luke-
warm about their faith got fired up. The kids began to pray for each
other. One young man even led his parents to the Lord. The group
ministered on mission trips both in the States and in foreign coun-
tries.
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