A GATHERING OF GOOD FRUIT

My husband spent the last seven years “advising “a youth group of high schoolers as they sought God. They called themselves “The Gathering.” He gave a lot to this group, drove our kids to Lebanon every Sunday night and another night a week for meetings. Kids came from all over the valley, from at least six different towns to attend.

The group was unique. The kids dreamed their own dreams, made their own plans, created their own worship teams, taught and shared with each other. They were the leaders. He was the protector so that the group didn’t get waylaid by agendas other than what the Lord had given, so that the true ministry in the Spirit would go forth. He was the designated adult. At first, there was a lot of skepticism that high school kids could actually do what he expected them to do.

They made a lot of mistakes. But they grew.

It was a small New Testament version of church, where instead of “professional” Christians instructing the non-professional, the young and the newly saved were allowed to grow and share, where their gifts and callings were identified and given ample opportunities (encouragement, even nudging) for the body to build itself up in love.

They made a lot of mistakes. But they grew. One of the hallmarks of this group was its commitment to real radical relationships which were 180 degrees from the popular cultural norms.  Instead of pairing up and creating all the subsequent drama most youth groups thrive on, these young people committed to treat each other like brothers and sisters as the Bible teaches. They learned a lot about relationships by hanging out in groups.

They learned to serve, to teach, to encourage, to worship, to prophesy and pray with power. They saw a lot of healing, salvation, lives changed forever.

Others in the valley saw the power of the kids doing their own group. They followed suit, to some degree or another. Several large groups told the Gathering that they wanted youth leaders because they saw the passion of our kids. In some ways this group started a tiny revolution of high schoolers and college students being “the church”.

They went to Mexico, then the Dominican Republic.  Their passion and abilities changed the way ministries managed short-term missions. They began to do Spirit-led treasure hunts, scared to death at first, but gradually with more and more confidence. More and more lives were changed. Strangers were cured of cancer and broken bones and through this people of all ages who did not even know God were brought into HIS glorious Kingdom.

Groups graduated and moved on. A bunch went to Bible and ministry schools and missions, others to universities and careers where they brought what they had learned in the Spirit by experience. The Gathering students have traveled all over the world from our tiny church in Lebanon, Oregon. They have gone to Cambodia and Thailand, England, the Netherlands, India, through Africa and South America, and the list could go on and on. Whether aware of it or not, they carry the confidence of being trusted with the full weight of the gospel, and the power of experiences which many American Christians never gain.

What have the hundreds of kids who connected with this ministry received?  Most of all, they have experienced being with people their age who honestly and wholeheartedly love God and have practical ways to love each other. This is as simple as it is rare. People who wanted to pretend or play church were encountered by the power of God and got honestly real, or they didn’t usually stay around very long. 

A very wise person once told me. “When it comes to teens, you pretty much have two choices. If you treat them like children, they’ll act like little kids. But if you treat them like adults, they will rise to the challenge.” This is so profoundly true, and has been superbly demonstrated by the last seven years of The Gathering. Tony’s express purpose was to identify the gifts and callings in each individual and give ample opportunities for growth, with nudging and guidance as necessary. I am so proud that he wisely sacrificed his time and money for fruit which can never be taken away.

And it was a sacrifice. During these seven years he worked a stressful full-time job and coached our kids’ basketball teams, drove them to football, track, and soccer, taught some to walk and some to drive, changed a thousand diapers, and made his weekly awesome Sunday morning breakfasts. He took several groups of kids of all ages backpacking every summer to climb mountains. He was a volunteer, which means that he was never paid a penny, never acknowledged as a pastor or otherwise monetarily rewarded.  During these seven years, we added four children to our large family of nine, and “adopted” many teens and young adults. It was a good sacrifice for a great and lasting purpose.

The Bible tells us: “Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work. If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward.” The ripples of work in the Spirit cannot be fully measured this side of Heaven, but today I'm rejoicing in what I can measure... a Gathering of Fruitful Life!