Friday, July 1, 2016

The Hogwarts School of Youth Ministry

Bob in Spanish Wells, 1997
This post was first shared in May of 2014. I share it again on this Flashback Friday in it's original format (slightly edited) for a couple of reasons. One, I was recently asked once again how we were able to do all we did in our student ministries and this post is my favorite answer. Two, I wanted you to see the original comments. And three, I have been talking with a lot of old Kissimmee friends these past few weeks. It got me thinking about the good old days...

"Most folks these days don't have enough faith to see that God's magic is happening all around them..."

I have a dear friend named Jennifer Kuramochi. Some of you know her her Jennifer Minnigan; still others simply as Bob. You can read about her days in the youth ministries of the First United Methodist Church of Kissimmee in many posts on this site, including The Legend of Bob, which is her entry into my Hall of Fame! So anyway...Jen and I are still friends. We were talking a few weeks back and she was telling me that whenever she recounts stories from her youth group days people are often in disbelief of all that we were able to do. Her husband Jun just shakes his head in wonder at the fact that a church youth group was able to go places like Spanish Wells, New York City and Myrtle Beach- not to mention the speakers, the concerts, the mission trips and the day trips. We got a lot of that same reaction at the FUMC-K reunion last year. Jennifer told me that once when asked how we were able to do all that we did, she thought for moment and responded, "I'm not sure. I think maybe Carl was part Wizard!


One of my favorite places on Walt Disney World property was The Beaches and Cream Soda Shoppe. I remember not only the great meals and the oh-so-decadent banana split pictured here, but also all the times times we were there with so many old friends and youth groups. This, after all, was the home of the Disney Dash Ice Cream Bash! One of those memories concerns the time in 1993 a group of us from Springfield Friends Meeting headed over mid-afternoon one day to get an ice cream fix and wound up singing Hopelessly Devoted to the other patrons of the restaurant (click But Now for the whole story!). That memory got me thinking more about that amazing '93 trip to WDW, stories of which were told here on this blog under the label Magic Tour back in 2010- and it took me 20 posts! Each of the nearly 50 participants had a 5-day park hopper pass. We stayed at Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort. We ate at some of the finest restaurants on property, and saw both the Hoop-de-doo Musical Revue and Polynesian Luau dinner shows. We were special (and featured!) guests at Pleasure Island's Comedy Warehouse. Every day was amazing, and as Marilyn I sat talking on Saturday the words of Bob came ringing back to me. How did we do all that stuff? Maybe I was part Wizard...


Of course we know the truth. We were able to do all that we did and accomplish all that we accomplished because we were blessed by God to do these things in Jesus' name. All of the churches I served had the resources and gave us the freedom to dream, to be creative, and yes- to be MAGICAL with our youth ministry programming! But the adult leadership in each of those ministries deserves credit for this one thing- we believed the magic could happen! We had faith that amazing things could happen. We had the audacity to believe in the biblical directive to pray big prayers and dream big dreams. I learned early on from some brilliant mentors that youth ministry thrives when you live in the Possimpible (thank you, Barney Stinson)- that place where the possible and the impossible meet. There was no doubt in my mind that if we did those things, God could provide the supernatural- the MAGIC. I suppose you could say I attended the Hogwarts School of Youth Ministry! What I lacked in theological training I made up for in faith. I believed in what we were doing and never allowed nay-saying Muggles to steal our dreams. If I were indeed part Wizard, it was only in the sense that I never ruled anything out just because it seemed to be out of our reach or impractical. Big churches or small, we believed in trusting God to take us to places beyond our grasp- but firmly in His. There was never any doubt in my mind that God had great things in store for the churches I served a youth pastor. That's how we did great mission trips over my 28 years to places like DC, Chicago, Nashville, Tijuana and Spanish Wells. It's how we did ski trips, amazing weekend retreats, over a dozen NYC trips, took trips to see the Braves play baseball, spent weeks at Myrtle Beach and had
New York Trip in the early 1990s
amazing adventures together at
WDW. It's how we hosted great bands like Spooky Tuesday, SundryLost And Found and Geoff Moore & the Distance, and communicators like Curt Clonninger, Duffy Robbins, Mike Williams, Rick Bundschuh and Ted & Lee. It's how we did outrageous summer events, had awe-filled worship and built bonds that are still strong to this very day. It's how we changed lives! We didn't get everything right, and we had our share of mishaps. There were times when it became less about God's power and too much about me, and the ministry suffered. But even in the tough times, we never stopped believing in the magic of youth ministry to bring teenagers into the presence of God and into relationship with Jesus and with one another. And when our plans were filtered through a mission for Christ and magnified by God's love for us, all things were possible. 

Looking back now, I still can't explain how it all came together. I don't know how we paid for everything, I don't know how the plans came together so well, and I don't know why God blessed us in so many ways- other than we believed God would! I just know that for 28 years God kept sending waves, and instead of ducking and hiding we kept yelling SURF'S UP!!! It was indeed magical. And if that makes me part Wizard- probably more like the foul-up Mickey the Sorcerer than Harry Potter- so be it. The abiding lesson of the Hogwarts School of Youth Ministry? Never underestimate the awesome power of God to do things that are far beyond your reach. So tell me, fellow Christians- do you believe in that kind of magic? The church so often seems to be full of Muggles...

Because of Jesus,

21 comments:

  1. Anonymous5/21/2014

    I love it Carl. Faith matters. Belief matters. You are so right about God wanting us to pray bigger prayers and dream bigger dreams. Thanks for this push to go "back to school" and get my wizarding degree! As always dude, you ROCK! ~ Chris Cooper

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    1. It's amazing how great things can be when we acknowledge that God is in control. And how quickly they can go south when we think it's all about us! But we do have to BELIEVE! Thanks, Chris.

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  2. Anonymous5/21/2014

    The other part of the "magic" was your enthusiasm, Carl. You never let us be negative or lose faith, even when things were rough. That must have been another class you took at Hogwarts- "Smiling 101." Thank you for so many memories! - Lisa

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  3. By my estimates I know about 21 Lisas who were connected to my student ministries over the years. Whichever one you are-- that was just too sweet. Thank you so much- and those memories were made by ALL of us!

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  4. Anonymous5/21/2014

    You are a youth pastor who teaches magic and witchcraft? There is a special place in hell reserved for you. Unbelievable.

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    1. I normally delete anonymous comments like yours...but it was too funny not to post! Did you even read what I wrote? There is no place in the world where ignorance is more obvious than in the comment sections of blogs. But thanks for stopping by. :)

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    2. Anonymous5/21/2014

      God will have his vengeance on the day of judgement, and we will see who is laughing then! May He have mercy on your soul!

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    3. Your prayers are always appreciated.

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  5. Anonymous5/21/2014

    Would love to hear that prayer on your behalf. "Please help that heathen to be as holy as I am. And please ask him to write more simply so even I can follow it."
    Steve

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    1. That's great Steve! Either that or a simple "roast him quickly, please!" Maybe that's what he means by mercy...

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  6. Anonymous5/21/2014

    Carl!!! I loved reading this! I was telling some friends a few weeks ago that when I was in
    your youth group at Wesley we got to spend a Night of Joy weekend in a Disney hotel and a week at Myrtle Beach! They couldn't believe it either. Thanks for giving me magical memories! - Kelsey

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    1. So good to hear from you Kelsey! Thanks so much and glad you have such good memories.

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    2. Anonymous5/21/2014

      That Night of Joy weekend at the All Star was awesome! Only time I have stayed in a Disney hotel. - Erin

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  7. Anonymous5/21/2014

    Nothing will ever top that 1993 WDW trip. My family vacations with my own kids feel like such a letdown now. Thanks, Carl! LOL

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  8. Always glad to be of service? :) But yeah...that trip would be hard to top as far as Disney vacations go!

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  9. Anonymous9/17/2014

    This is one of the most inspiring posts I have ever read. The belief that God has bigger things in store for each of us than we have for ourselves is a big part of what faith is all about. Thank you for holding that truth is such a creative light. The kids who passed through your youth groups were blessed indeed. Oh that there were more "Wizards" in our churches! -Pastor Miranda Kregge

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    1. Thanks so much Pastor Kregge. Glad you found my little corner of the blogosphere! And I agree- the church needs more folks ready to be astonished by the wonders of our might God!

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  10. Anonymous9/18/2014

    I somehow missed this when you posted it, Carl, but it is so dead on. You always had faith that God was with us and would pull us through, and you always believed in us too. We did some amazing things together, and I only hope that someday my kids will have a group to love and support them the way our youth group did me. Blessings, my friend!

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    1. Thank you...whoever you are! :)

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  11. Anonymous9/30/2014

    I'm also late to the party, but LOVE THIS! You did the possible and trusted the impossible to God. And the results are there for all to see. A great post with a wonderful message!

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    1. Again, thanks for the kind words. And I love that- we did trust God with the impossible, because with Him NOTHING is impossible! That'll preach!

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Thanks for reading,and thanks for your comment!