I've been watching Cobra Kai with my kids lately (we use VidAngel to eliminate swear words and other unnecessary stuff) and every time I watch it I think there are lessons for youth ministry there. Of course, there are a lot of "what not to do" examples in the show but one thing is for sure - Johnny Lawrence, Daniel LaRusso, and even John Kreese are definitely discipling their students. For good or for bad, those kids are becoming followers of their respective senseis.
Throughout the series, Johnny Lawrence continually says to his students that you have to keep "moving forward". I love that because I think all of us want to see students growing deeper and going further in their walk with Christ. What does it look like for youth ministry in America to keep moving forward in the 3rd decade of this century?
We've been through Covid and all of its aftermath. We've seen political and social turmoil hit us like a flying tornado kick. We now have AI coming out in an unprecedented way. In view of these things, NNYM believes that youth ministry needs to move forward in five ways.
YOUTH MINISTRY NEEDS TO...
1. GO DEEPER (disciplemaking)
Most youth workers want to disciple their students, but we must make sure that we have been and are being well discipled! Jesus took time to focus on the one (the individual) - who is our one? Who is our Paul? Who is our Timothy?
2. GET STRONGER (networking)
A healthy youth worker must be a strong youth worker but not the kind of strength we muster up as an individual. Youth workers need the strength they gain from being connected to a team - there is strength in numbers. For example, think about draft horses one draft horse can pull on the average 8000lbs. Two draft horses together can pull more than double what they can each pull on their own (20,000lbs). Jesus built a team (the 12, the 72). Who is our team? We need a team in our churches but also outside of our churches so that we are not isolated.
3. CONNECT WIDER (community mapping)
As you connect with others outside of your church you begin to realize that your community/city is bigger than you thought it was. God is doing much more than you knew. The needs are much greater than you imagined. There are resources you didn't know about. There are opportunities for your church to meet needs you were unaware of. There are students hidden in parts of our cities/communities that no one will reach until someone realizes they are there. Jesus not only built a team but he also cared about the crowds and multitudes. And he went after people he was "not supposed" to care about - the Samaritan Woman, the demon-possessed man, the gentile woman. He reached across barriers that normally separated people. We must do the same. What is God calling you to do in your community?
4. REACH HIGHER (widespread prayer)
As we connect with others and as we see what is happening in our communities we should become overwhelmed by the needs. We must realize that no one person, church, or ministry can reach a whole city on their own. Not only do we need each other, but we must desperately cry out to God for our community/city and rely on his Holy Spirit. The needs of our city should drive us to our knees. What issues/needs/people are we praying for? Are we raising up people to pray for the students, schools, and juvenile detention centers in our city?
5. GO FURTHER (gospel advancing)
The inevitable result of praying for people is caring about them, caring enough to meet their needs as God provides, but praying and caring drives us to share the Gospel with them. When it comes to our youth ministries no one is better suited to share the Gospel with other students than the students in our ministries. Who are we training to share the Gospel? Who are they sharing the Gospel with? AND do you even know how many students in your community or city need Jesus. We encourage to find out how many teenagers there are within reach of your church or ministry. That is your mission field.
Cobra Kai Discepleship
In Cobra Kai, both Johnny Lawrence and Daniel LaRusso realize that they have a lot to learn about teaching karate to their students. They find themselves learning from each other and working together to face a common enemy. Those of us in youth ministry must realize that we need each other - there's so much we can learn from our fellow youth workers and there's so much we can do to rescue kids from our great enemy who is confusing, corrupting, and crushing their souls.