This year I am volunteering with the Junior High youth group again. This is starting my 5th year there. Some of it feels very much the same, the kids, the games, the format. This year, however is so very different because I'm co-leading it this year. Holy cow! How did that happen?
I'm lucky, because I get a new co-leader I already know and enjoy. I think that we are going to have a really great time this year. Wednesday night was our first night of the year. It felt so weird, first: it was on Wednesday. Previously, it had been on Tuesday, a night when very few people are there. Wednesday night, wow... so many different people: all of AWANAs, choir, high school. All of a sudden, we had to share the property. That was strange. Also, being in a different room, with a different recreational area really messed with the habitual portion of my mind. The absolute weirdest part was calling the shots... all of them. My co-leader and I are calling all of the shots, all night, every night. I feel like I have come full circle, from being the hyper junior higher, to being the energetic youth volunteer, and now, much like the woman who was in charge when both my co-leader were in junior high, we're running it. Cool. I think we can do this. Like writing with my left hand, this year's first night felt both familiar and clumsy all at once.
The pleasant surprise, and pay off for changing nights, is that we had twice as many students as we expected, which means: 4! Don't laugh. Four students rather than two makes playing games, and having discussions so much less work, and so much more fun. I feel like the games we tried backfired amazingly, but the kids were good sports, and so that went decently well. Next week we'll have a better idea of where to go with that. We did introductions, the leaders shared testimonies, and the kids seemed opened to just talking with us and each other. This seems like a good start. We knew it would be a small group this year, and we were hoping to get them started on a closer group more like a Bible study group rather than the more distant spread out youth group, which only works with lots of kids who will make their own small groups. The way the discussion went was encouraging to me. Next week, we are going to have to get the lessons in motion, and see if we can keep that small group discussion style rolling. Please, feel free to pray for me, my fellow leader, the kids, and the group as a whole. We've got a whole new adventure ahead of us.
In conclusion, I'm tired, excited, hungry, and glad to be getting back to my Tuesda--er... Wednesday night schedule.
I'm lucky, because I get a new co-leader I already know and enjoy. I think that we are going to have a really great time this year. Wednesday night was our first night of the year. It felt so weird, first: it was on Wednesday. Previously, it had been on Tuesday, a night when very few people are there. Wednesday night, wow... so many different people: all of AWANAs, choir, high school. All of a sudden, we had to share the property. That was strange. Also, being in a different room, with a different recreational area really messed with the habitual portion of my mind. The absolute weirdest part was calling the shots... all of them. My co-leader and I are calling all of the shots, all night, every night. I feel like I have come full circle, from being the hyper junior higher, to being the energetic youth volunteer, and now, much like the woman who was in charge when both my co-leader were in junior high, we're running it. Cool. I think we can do this. Like writing with my left hand, this year's first night felt both familiar and clumsy all at once.
The pleasant surprise, and pay off for changing nights, is that we had twice as many students as we expected, which means: 4! Don't laugh. Four students rather than two makes playing games, and having discussions so much less work, and so much more fun. I feel like the games we tried backfired amazingly, but the kids were good sports, and so that went decently well. Next week we'll have a better idea of where to go with that. We did introductions, the leaders shared testimonies, and the kids seemed opened to just talking with us and each other. This seems like a good start. We knew it would be a small group this year, and we were hoping to get them started on a closer group more like a Bible study group rather than the more distant spread out youth group, which only works with lots of kids who will make their own small groups. The way the discussion went was encouraging to me. Next week, we are going to have to get the lessons in motion, and see if we can keep that small group discussion style rolling. Please, feel free to pray for me, my fellow leader, the kids, and the group as a whole. We've got a whole new adventure ahead of us.
In conclusion, I'm tired, excited, hungry, and glad to be getting back to my Tuesda--er... Wednesday night schedule.
But . . . but . . . our small group changed to Wednesdays and I thought you'd be able to come now!!! :-(
ReplyDeleteSomehow, I had this feeling it would go down that way! I only recently learned of the night change. I was sitting here thinking...maybe just maybe they'll keep tuesdays for the small group. Foiled again.
ReplyDelete