How to start a youth ministry from scratch

So you have NO young people that you have regular meaningful contact with, but you know God has called his church to reach all people including those scary 'hoodies' that hang around the street corner eating bags of chips!  There are possibly three things for you to think/do:

Whats the theology behind this?


Why?  Why do you want to do what you think you should do?  Your theology will determine much about your approach to youth ministry.  If its mission (missiocentric) focused, that will determine how your youth work will look compared to your theology being more church focused (ecclesiocentric).  Do you want them to come into your church, or the church going outside to meet them...or the church happening with them on the street corner?

Hirsch and Frost in The Shaping of Things to Come: Innovation and Mission for the 21st Century Churchsuggest something like this...

• Christological question: What is the Gospel?...that will form your...
• Missiological question: What is the purpose of God and his people? What has God called you to do/be with the young people?...that will form your...
• Ecclesiological question: What is the form and function of God’s church? What is the best way to do/be church?

Start to Dream Dreams

Once you have started to get your head around your theology of youth ministry, I think you can start to dream big dreams, yet always taking theology into account (above):

1. Ask What would success look like for the youth ministry (in 1 year, 3 years, 5)
2. Do a SWOT analysis of that success.
3. Do a N.A.O.M.I.E ( Needs, Aims, Objectives, Methods, Implementation, Evaluation, More about this here) to help put some flesh on the bones
4. Always bring it back to theology of gospel/mission/church

What Approach is best


If you have done SWOT and N.A.O.M.I.E you may already have got this sorted.  However, we also need to think about what approach to meeting and working with young people we take.  Richard Passmore who is a youth worker and thinker I greatly enjoy arguing with (he wins) put me on to 3 approaches for youth ministry ( I think he nicked it of Pete Ward) :

Outside in

Working with the young people in your local community for example through an open youth club to draw them into the church.

Inside Out
Starting with the young people in your church, for example a church youth group and working with their friendship circles to draw young people into the group and church.

In-front
Working with the young people in your local community for example through detached youth work to grow church with these young people, in their context.

What one of these approaches if reflected in Jesus' ministry?, I think it has to In-front...would you agree?  Also, if you don't currently have contact with young people, In-front if really the only viable option.  Regarding In-front, Passmore asks:

'In a post Christendom and post modern culture where there is a distrust of institutions and church no longer holds a central position, inside out and outside in models are increasingly obsolete. As mentioned in this post modern culture we have become or need to become missionaries with young people. Do we need to return to the model that sees church happening as the result of mission rather than the other way around?  Developed from our revelation of God as missionary God and follow this through in our approach.'

Do It

So my suggestion, for what its worth, is to get a group of other people with a mission vision, who have a heart to see young people experience God, pray, dream and go on the street, week after week, rain or shine and meet young people where they are at.

Get hold of a copy of Richard Passmores book, Meet Them Where They're At (Detached youth work and how to do it) , have a look at the Street Space project.