I’m looking forward to school starting again in August. I anticipate my return to the position I accepted last year as Spiritual Life Director at Rockford Christian School, overseeing weekly chapels and spiritual growth activities for our students. I’ve learned some important lessons from my students this year.
1. Teens are confused about the gospel.
Despite how often I’ve shared and explained the gospel, confusion remains. My open door policy leads students to casually walk in throughout the day and chat. Many of their questions are about heaven.
One high schooler I had gotten to know over several months walked in and asked, “If I wanted to, how would I actually become a Christian?”
Despite all the times he had heard it in school, chapel, and elsewhere, he still wasn’t totally clear on how to take the first step of faith. Since then, we’ve seen him say yes to Jesus and baptism, and we talk regularly about being a new creation in Christ.
Another day was suddenly interrupted by a group of middle schoolers. A couple took chairs and the rest sat on the floor as they began peppering me with questions from Revelation. A student expressed the common misconception of Christians becoming angels which allowed me to walk them through the 3 Circles plan for sharing the gospel. They returned to class, but several weeks later one of those students returned to say she was ready to say yes to Christ.
Whether in a Christian school or a church, we keep expressing the gospel with simplicity and clarity. We can’t presume everyone understands.
2. Value every conversation.
The school where I work is a missional school, meaning we don’t require students to be in a place of personal faith to attend. Knowing this, I ended the first few chapels roughly the same way: “I’m absolutely convinced who Jesus is and have placed my faith in him. You may not believe like I do, but I hope you know that your questions are welcomed. I will never cut you down because of your doubts.”
Those opening weeks revealed many students willing to share their doubts, and others who didn’t want to engage with faith at all. One day, a high schooler asked me about my favorite music. He was surprised to hear that I had non-Christian bands among my favorites. This led to weekly music swaps. I’d share a band with him, and he’d share a band with me. We’d comment honestly on what we liked and disliked. I made sure to sprinkle some good Christian bands into the rotation, which allowed me to bring up faith.
He was clear that he didn’t believe in Jesus, but said it with no malice or anger. I thanked him for his honesty, told him that his opinion was welcomed, and that I would pray he sees the truth of the gospel. While he hasn’t placed his faith in Jesus, he hasn’t stopped talking to me either.
3. Quietness doesn’t equal disinterest.
We’ve all had teenagers who are unwilling to engage in conversation. Their silence can fill any adult with doubt and lead us to end the attempt and slip off. I tell you, don’t quit!
Each day after teaching my freshman Bible class, I would walk into the library. It had nearly the exact same students each time, several of them who had never talked to me. I’d wander over and say hi, take what I could get, and move on. After investing many weeks, these students began smiling as I walked in. They’d show me what they were working on and our chats grew longer.
One afternoon a group of these students seemed a little down.“It seems like something is bothering you,” I said. “If you don’t want to talk about it, I’ll leave you be. But if I can be a help, I’m here.”
One student began to tearfully share a challenge she was facing as I simply listened. She and her friends asked if I had any thoughts, which I shared. Then I prayed for all of them before I left. Our relationship totally opened up after that, and a couple of those students found me at the end of the year to share how much they appreciated I took that time with them.
They were quiet. They didn’t show much interest, but it was definitely there.
Today’s teenagers have grown up different from previous generations. Yet they are capable of the most honest conversations on faith we’ve ever had. We can share the gospel clearly when we get to know the whole student, and earn the opportunities.
Heath Tibbetts is a teacher and Spiritual Life Director at Rockford Christian School.