(Thanks to Daniel Hames - Vice President, Union School of Theology and Peter Wright - Director of Digital Training and Resources, Growing Young Disciples, for their input on this topic.)

Having grown up in a home and church where mission held a high priority, and in a time when it was relatively common for many Christian young people to plan their summers around short-term mission work, a particular passion of mine is engaging with youth for mission.  But life is very different now from 20 years ago.

So in 2024, how do we - as parents, church leaders, and youth workers –  engage and enthuse young people for mission?

The first question to consider is this: who are our young people?

This is an important question.  A young person in 2024 is not the same as a young person in 1994, or 1964.  Their culture is different, the world is different, and while some pressures remain unchanged, there are many new pressures that didn’t exist 10 years ago, let alone 50.  Things are just… different.  Psychologists and youth workers alike describe how this current generation is much more risk-averse than previous generations – cautious, and often anxious.  Our Christian young people are shaped by this.  

They are also looking for a cause.  They hear the news.  They hear that the earth is being destroyed, that people are being marginalised or mistreated.  Peter says this “can drive their anxiety, but also drive their desire to make a change”.

 With that in mind, I believe there are 3 key things to consider here.  

1. Theology

Our theology of God, and of the Christian life, are first and fundamental.

Daniel believes that “we don’t see God rightly, and so feel mission or evangelism is a difficult and unattractive add-on to the cosy Christian life we hoped for. But when we see God as he really is – gloriously self-giving, endlessly loving – then we become more like him and want to share him. If we want to see more / better missionaries, we need to see Christians enjoying God better.”  

Peter adds: “Teaching young Christians about their identity in Christ is key.  They are growing up in a world where owning your life and doing what you like with it is prized.  We have to teach them to whom their life belongs, and what that means.”  Peter refers to question 1 of the Heidelberg catechism, which says: ‘I am not my own, but belong with body and soul, both in life and in death, to my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ… He… makes me heartily willing and ready from now on to live for him.’

In the book that Daniel co-authored with Michael Reeves [Ref 1] they speak of mission as the ‘fruit of happy hearts’, rather than the ‘toil of spiritual captives’.  We can’t force or guilt-trip an enthusiasm for mission, but we can teach the gospel.  Those who are truly changed by this glorious gospel, the book goes on to say, will ‘radiate outward into the world’.

2. Example

Peter says, “Often students are ambivalent about mission because they’ve learned that from adults for whom mission is not a priority.”

Our young people learn from us.  

As a church, do we talk about mission?  Do we support missionaries, pray for them during services, invite them to share with us?  What are our priorities, what do we want to invest in, and can our youth group get involved?  A joined-up approach on this benefits everyone.

As youth leaders, are we seeking to align with the greater church on this?  Are we prioritising some kind of mission emphasis in our yearly planning?

As parents, what do we want for our children?  Would a life of full-time ministry disappoint us?  Do we pray more for their career prospects than that they know God and follow hard after him, wherever that might lead them?  Do we actively support mission work as a family?  How do we talk about and pray for and behave in the wider world – is it simply an exciting place to travel, or is it a world that needs the Lord?  

I would also add, as the parent of young children myself – start young.  There are fantastic books that tell missionary stories for children of all ages, and serialised versions that can be used in kids’ clubs or youth groups.  Stories of Amy Carmichael and Jim Elliot and Helen Roseveare – ordinary people used in incredible ways by our amazing Lord.  These stories can kindle a heart for mission at an early age.  

3. Intention and focus

As we’ve already recognised, our young people are overwhelmed and anxious about the world. They often have a desire to effect change, but can be paralysed by choice and indecision.  

We can help with that.  By teaching them that the world’s greatest need is the Gospel, and that the priority of God’s people is to share it.  By picking a cause, and engaging with it . I believe there is enormous value in teaching our young people to be committed to even just one thing, and to show them the difference that can make.  As parents, this might look like regularly supporting and praying for the same missionary.  As a youth leader, it might mean choosing a cause and committing to it for a fixed term project – say 3 years – with regular input from the missionary / organisation, regular prayer for them, and perhaps even a missions’ trip to visit them.  All of this can help your young people to understand the importance of mission work, and to engage with it.  

As Hames and Reeves put it, ‘as we grow in the knowledge and love of this God, we’ll find blossoming in ourselves his own desire to see the world filled with his blessing’.

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God loves our young people passionately.  He is working in their lives, and he can and will use them.  So let’s keep on praying for them, talking with them, and supporting those who teach and guide them.  And let’s boldly ask God to raise up a generation of new workers for his harvest field.

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Ali Woodrow 

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Ref 1: "God Shines Forth: How the Nature of God Shapes and Drives the Mission of the Church", Daniel Hames and Michael Reeves (Union, 2022)