Story of God at Work Through the Joy of the Youth

Sunday night at Resonate Conference, I was sitting in the front as I was helping facilitate some of the elements we had planned for the evening. The band was singing, and suddenly, I saw movement in the corner of my eye. 

A multitude of students stood and began leaving their seats to come to the edge of the stage to worship. Hands up, voices raised, bodies jumping. It was startling, and I was ready to judge and roll my eyes until this verse popped into my mind:

“Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth” (Ecclesiastes 11:9). 

It’s easy for me to forget the good of being young. The raw experience of confession, worship, and learning something new about Jesus. The urge to lose yourself in a moment of being in God’s overwhelming presence. I am so glad that I not only witnessed that happening around me but that I was being edified through it. I was challenged not to be embarrassed to cry or jump up and down while singing praise to the One who deserves it all. 

The church needs young people. The church needs college students. I’ve known that, but God revealed a new “why” this year at Resonate Conference. 

The young person reminds the church to be excited. To be giddy at what God could do. They remind us of what it was like before we were hurt, tired, and weary. They just got started running the race, and it's exhilarating. I was reminded of the cheer that is in the days of the youth while watching the students I do life with worship, and I wanted to cheer alongside them.

Confession: I am a cynic at heart. It is only because of Jesus when I am not. Yet, I was convicted by the youthfulness of our church to stop. If God has it all rigged, why am I in the back with my arms crossed, anxiously tapping my foot, waiting for the other shoe to drop? That is not who God is, and that is not the posture of a saved one. It's the posture of someone who’s had their teeth kicked and is protecting themselves. It's someone afraid to worship uninhibitedly. As a Christian, I have proclaimed that I believe in a God who brings life from death, a God who makes things and calls them good, and who has the power to redeem all things. That belief should be expressed in a hopeful joy that I have seemed to have lost due to the scars of experience. 

So I left the conference asking God for a little more expectant hope, a little more courage to worship freely and emotively, and praising God for the young and the young at heart. 

To the young - keep being you, keep being young, keep running fast. Remind us of the abundant life Jesus has given us. Push us to worship uninhibitedly. Remind us the good days are not behind us but in front of us, wrapped in the promise of Jesus’s return.