Faith-based Venturing

I've been around youth ministry since I was a freshman in high school. It has changed over the years, and one of the best ways it has changed is the shift to a more mission/service focus. I saw this begin around 1990 when students arrived at the college where I was chaplain. They came with the desire and expectation to do service projects. Their primary service had been soup kitchens, homeless shelters and Habitat projects.  This was before youth group mission trips began to flourish.

A dozen years ago I became involved with another youth program that helped me see a very different approach to working with kids. That program is Boy Scouts.

Both of my sons went through scouts, and both earned the highest rank in scouting, the Eagle rank. What I saw in the process of working with them and numerous other boys was an approach that developed leadership skills. In fact, as a person who has spent a quarter century engaged in leadership development work, the Boy Scout leadership development program is the best I have ever encountered. The emphasis on scout troops being boy-led means that the kids learn how to work as a team, make decisions and manage organizational details. Most youth organizations provide a program of activities for kids. The programs may be personally and culturally broadening, but they don't teach leadership like scouting does.

Since I first came into contact with scouting, I have wished that there was a way for scouting and church youth ministries to work together.  Many churches charter scouting units, but don't treat them as ministries.  If we could help our young people learn to lead within the context of their faith development, we could then see them grow into being people who make a tremendous difference in the families, churches and communities.  I believe the answer to this need has now been met.

Recently, I met a scouter named Stan Belyeu. He is an IBM engineer has developed a program that incorporates the Boy Scout Venturing program into a church's youth ministry.

Venturing is a youth development program of the Boy Scouts of America for young men and women who are 14 (and have completed the eighth grade) through 20 years of age. Venturing's purpose is to provide positive experiences to help young people mature and to prepare them to become responsible and caring adults.

What I like about Stan's program is that all the strengths of scouting that are truly compatible with a traditional youth ministry are there.  Here's how he describes the approach.

• The Venturing method is used as an additional, complementary resource for a church’s youth ministry.
• The youth group retains its primary identity as a “youth ministry.”
• The new or existing youth group is registered as a Venturing crew.
• A faith-based Venturing crew can either standalone in a church or coexist with a conventional Venturing crew.

Faith-based Venturing improves the health of a church. It will encourage and empower youth to dig deeper into their faith and to be more effective leaders. It brings an added level of excitement and interest to a church youth group.

Stan is not just talking about borrowing some activity ideas from scouting. He is recommending that youth ministry register as Venture crews. It is up to the leadership of the ministry to incorporate the appropriate aspects of the scouting program into their church's ministry. Along with the program activities come, Boy Scout insurance, access to scout camps and the best training program for adult youth leaders that exists.  Scouting's Youth Protection guidelines are the best there is anywhere. Check them out.

Stan Belyeu's approach is ideal for small to medium size churches where there may be inadequate local support for the church's youth ministry. The local scouting council provides all sorts of resources that can assist the church in the development of its program for youth.  He has written an excellent introduction that can be downloaded here.  His contact info is contained in the paper.

From my perspective the best aspect of this partnership is that young and adults in churches will be exposed to the Boy Scout leadership system. It really is the best I've seen at enabling young people to learn how to handle the wide range of responsibilities involved in organizational leadership.

If you can provide kids the opportunity for leadership and faith development in the context of service/mission experiences, then your church is doing what it needs to do for its youth.  Take a look. Talk with local scouters and the professional staff at your local council office. It could be just the thing to strengthen your church's work with kids.

Comments

[Bible Quiz]

Have you been able to put this into practice? It would be interesting to hear of your own experience with it.