CORE: Defined

We're going to continue giving some background and info on the different specific programs we have in HYPE Youth Ministries - so far, we've looked at HYPE Youth Group and CrossOver. For info about those programs, check out the archive to your left. Today, we're going to look at CORE - something I think is very unique.

CORE (or Core, either works) came about through a serendipitous series of events (or, some might say, a divinely inspired few). I had been spending a few weeks specifically thinking about the process of HYPE Youth Ministries; I was realizing ministry needed an entry point, a growing point, and a sending point. As I looked at what we had, I noticed we had been trying to cram the first two - entry and growing - into a single program: HYPE (or CrossOver, for Middle School). We were trying to accomplish two objectives with our Wednesday night program: introduce unbelieving students to Christ while concurrently building into our believing students and give them an opportunity to deepen their relationship with Christ and with others.

This had left us, in a number of ways, failing at both; when we had a lot of unbelieving students, the tenor of the evenings tended toward evangelism - leaving a ministry gap for our more mature students. But when the maturity deepened, we had begun switching to a more discipleship-focused methodology; as a result, we had lost a few of our more 'fringe' students who were no longer engaged by the content.

At the exact time I was realizing this discrepancy, I had a student come to me and confess the Lord had put on his heart a desire to form and run a depth level discipleship Bible study for students. It would be a time to develop accountability, relationships and reliance on the Lord, while also learning Bible-study techniques and grappling with the truths of Scripture in a real, honest way.

Obviously, when you have a student come to you and say, "I'd like to lead a Bible study," you kinda roll with it! And so Core was born.

The purpose of Core is to give Christian students and opportunity to deepen their dependency on Jesus. This is accomplished through prayer, Scripture, and community oriented activities. Usually, the evening will involve an activity or service project (for instance, baking cookies for members of the church), and then move to a time of Bible study and prayer.

There are adults at the meetings, but the general idea is that this is for the students, by the students, and through the students. In our process speak, this is the "Root" level of ministry. This is where students allow the Word of God to deeply grab their hearts, and challenge them into new ministry.

Core is yet in it's infancy. It's really only been meeting for a few months, but already there's been growth. Recently, we've opened Core to Middle School students, further creating a facility of vertical training and accountability through the group - not just high schooler's mentoring and encouraging high schooler's, but now high schoolers mentoring and encouraging middle schoolers.

Core has a bright future. We'll be running it through the summer, and then tweaking during the 2011-2012 school year to make it as effective as possible. As the community deepens, Core will have an exceptional effective on HYPE and CrossOver, as well as providing a first-look place for ministry leaders, ministry participants, and other activities. I can't wait to see how Core develops! Through this blog, we'll keep you up-to-date on the tweaks and changes we make to Core. It'll be an exciting process.

Thanks for continuing along in these posts with us! Next, we'll be taking a look at Trek.