Youth Group was over and outside a couple of teens were messing around slap boxing, when it got serious. One of the kids hauled off and punched the other kid, which spurred some angry words and more serious fighting. Three others jumped in on the one (much smaller kid) and began to punch him and drag him across the pavement by his jacket. This action caused the young mans jacket to rip which really angered him.
One of the youth leaders caught the scene at the end of the dragging and broke it up. We called all the teens in to have a discussion about what just happened at the consequences of their actions.
This is where I was shocked. Fights break out and you have to deal with them so that didn't surprise me, what surprised me was the attitude of the teens involved. When we were talking to them about the situation we shared the severity of what they did and asked them what a cop would've done if he'd have witnessed the scene.
Shortly into this discussion some of the boys began to smile and laugh, having no sense of understanding as to what they had just done. There was no remorse, there was no conviction just straight defiance. We asked the young men what was so funny and how could they laugh at this situation. They had no answers for our questions, only more laughter.
We brought in some of our church security guards and let the young men know they aren't allowed on the premises for 3 weeks. We shared with them the severity of problems if they violated this punishment and they still didn't seem to get it.
This lack of care really re-woke me up to the grip Satan has on the city. It's no wonder teens very similar to these young men get thrown into jail. It's no wonder the city is in turmoil with theft and violent crimes; because most of the young men don't care. I called the moms of these young men and they started to care then because they knew they'd be on punishment for what they did and they knew that their actions were going to effect more than just Youth Group but still, the attitude was there.
I told the boys that its sad that I care more about their future than they do. I told these guys that I loved them and I want to see God use them and that I pray for them to come to grips with how serious their decisions are for their future.
I had the privilege of driving all of these boys home after all this long discussion about the incident. I was able to speak with one of the teens moms face-to-face as well as one of the father (BTW the father could've cared less) and interact with their families on a deeper level which was one good thing I suppose.
This blog is a bit more thrown together because I have tons of thoughts swirling around about this evening, I know however that this is the city God desires me to work within and even though its tough He can and will use me in this place in the lives of these teens! I love what I do even when I see these crazy things happen and the lack of care or understanding I know these kids do have hope, they are not hopeless as many would write them off as. God has the power to change them from the inside out and my job is to keep loving them and leading them towards the Father!
0 comments:
Post a Comment