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I have noticed now as an adult that we all look back to those years some time ago when we were kids. Whether our childhood was wonderful or difficult, it is those moments that shape how we see the world, and what we value in life. We don’t think about it much when we are that age. Especially for those of us growing up in a home of believing parents who know how to guide and direct us. We don’t realize how much of our world is being shaped, but it is. 

When I was in middle school, God turned on the light in my heart and uncovered a truth about His character through His Word that I had never quite understood before - His unconditional love. It did not matter how much of a mess I was and still am, He loves me. What got me, however, was not the fact that He loved me, but the fact that He cared about what I cared about. What mattered to me, mattered to Him. 

What I cared about began to change as well. Jesus says to store up our treasures in heaven, not in this world. That verse changed my perspective. It wasn’t about being a good person, doing good deeds, living a good life, obeying all the laws, or any of those things that had previously made me feel good about myself. It was about the people who are coming with me to heaven someday.

I looked around and watched my peers, friends, and younger cousins. They were going to church because they had to. They were praying and reading God’s Word because they were asked to. It also appeared to me several of their teachers or Bible study leaders seemed to walk into church, speak words into the room and checkmark a box that recorded their “good deed for the week”. It bothered me some. I cared about my peers but didn’t have the platform to speak truth. It seemed to me that some of these teachers didn’t value the opportunity.

A few years later, God pushed me into the work myself. He wanted me to do it a different way, the way that I was taught by my parents, and my own high-school youth group leader: the personal way. What I mean by this is to allow the kids to see my own mistakes. It isn’t always fun, but I hope they know that I care about what they care about. God loves them, and He loves what He created them to get excited about. I want kids to understand this by seeing my example. I want to be invested in who they are, not just waiting for them give me the right answer. Many kids may know the answer, but God doesn’t want the words, He wants their hearts.

Sometimes I sense that they don’t understand. Most of the time, it’s just a routine for them. I know it was like that for me when I was their age, I can’t expect anything different from them. Yet, if they hear the truth, and see that I care about who they are, these are the memories that will never leave them. I have to be willing to address problems I see in their character; I have to be willing to say no to things that sound fun (even to me). Sometimes I’ll get to say yes to things, and then I have to be willing to take the fall for my own poor decisions. In the end though, when they look back, they’ll see Jesus doing his perfect work through an imperfect person who truly cared.