Unfortunately, this pseudo-sophistication about hypocrisy and ineffectiveness, so typical of our students, is widespread in the youth ministry community, as well. It's usually expressed in hyperbole: "All youth ministry is a waste of time." "We're not really accomplishing anything." It typically overstates the case: "(Fill in the blank) doesn't work anymore with postmodern students. They've got kids coming, but nobody's growing deeper in Christ."

The flaw in these observations is two-fold:

1. They state the apparent as if it's universal. Most of us who work with kids are used to statements that come out in extremes: I hated that. I loved that. It was totally boring. It was totally awesome. Seldom is opinion expressed in degrees. Everything's either totally good or totally bad. What I've discovered in speaking to teenagers and youth workers all over the country and throughout much of the world is that as soon as someone writes, "Kids aren't this way anymore," you discover kids who are acting precisely that way. As soon as someone says, "Oh, that won't work anymore with kids," you discover someone who's using precisely that method and is wonderfully effective with his or her students.

Guess what? Nobody has the corner on the youth ministry market. There's no one right way to bring kids closer to Jesus: not small groups, not candles and contemplation, not big-group outreaches, not student-led cell groups, not intense Bible study, not service projects. As our youth ministry experience is broadened by space and time, we learn that nothing works all of the time for everybody; but most of it works part of the time for somebody.

2. They state the obvious. There's no youth ministry paradigm that fits every student, every problem and works effectively every time. Churches are not all they ought to be. Even the best ideas fall short of full effectiveness most of the time. Why? Because sin makes a mess of things. Because ministry is difficult. Because people are people. Because, ultimately, those who enter by the narrow gate will be few (Matt. 7:13-14). To state this with a sense of concern and hopefulness is nothing less than a prayer request. To state it as an expression of cynicism and frustration is nothing more than whining.

Exulting in the Naughty

Teenagers are pretty good at righteous indignation. They are often quick to sniff out the hypocrisy in others. Unfortunately, like the rest of us, they're not too quick to see it in themselves.

That's too bad, because righteous indignation is a poor substitute for righteousness. When we confront a student about the disconnect between faith and life, there's usually the appeal to authenticity: "Hey, I never said I had it all together. I can't be somebody I'm not. Look, that's just who I am, and what right do you have to judge me?"

In our current youth ministry culture, there seems to be a similar adolescent approach to holiness—we often mistake freedom for license. Like teenagers who are "as bad as they wanna be," we've come to embrace the notion that a grace that sets us free from the law allows us the freedom to do whatever we wish. Why is this so important for those of us in youth ministry? Because water—even living water—that flows through contaminated pipes could inflict serious damage to those who depend on the pipes for refreshment.