Every once in a while I’m asked by someone in the church, “where are the young adults in our church?”  My initial thought is this is a person who genuinely cares but has a blind spot to this area of ministry in the church.  It’s no different than our lack of awareness about any ministry in the church that we’re not connected to at the time.  Think about it for a minute, you connect with the people that you’re in ministry with and without some intentional effort you can have a blind spot to other ministries you don’t participate in, it’s almost as though they don’t exist sometimes. 

Our College & Career ministry is one of those ministries that easily can be a blind spot for many members.  They’re a very transient group as they transition through various life stages…new jobs, new relationships, new colleges, and moving away.  That doesn’t even consider the fact that many of them are experiencing adulthood for the first time and trying to figure out if they want to do things the same way they’ve had to do them under their parent's authority up to this point.  It creates a unique challenge, to say the least in a town where the closest major college campus of any size is at least 20 minutes away.

All that being said, it’s been exciting to see as God has grown the ministry to young adults.  From the earliest stages of it, it was evident that God had a plan and despite who we may have thought was necessary for that plan, He provided who He knew we needed.  I’m very excited to see God work among our young adults and those in the community and since this is a blind spot for many in the church, want to give you a glimpse into what God is doing. 

While most of you are at home on Wednesday evenings, our College & Career (CnC) group meets each week.  At 8 p.m. they meet in my home (1243 Highland Circle Dr. Wentzville MO 63385) where we share a meal together, study the Bible together, pray together, and enjoy time hanging out.  They’re doing their “Sunday School” just like the rest of you do Explore the Bible, just a different time and place.  One of the things that is exciting about this is you never know who might come through the door on any given night.  We’ve had the opportunity to host people of all different backgrounds, from atheist to believers just looking for a place to connect with other young adults.  Over the last year, we’ve had about 25 different guests come through our doors as we try to reach young adults.

While that is exciting, what is just getting started excites me even more.  Just like other groups in our Sunday School ministry, we’ve been working through how to be more intentional in reaching people for Christ knowing that we need to do better to fulfill our purpose as a ministry.  We spent multiple weeks during our gathering to discuss how to reach people better than ever before.  At some point it became time to talk about who was actually going to do something about the ideas…not just talk about stuff. 

One of the first things that came out of our discussions was that we needed to spend time weekly praying for lost people.  Since then we’ve been breaking up into small groups of 2-3 to pray for lost people by name and for our prayer partners obedience when God presents opportunities.   I’ve got 3 young adults in mind right now that I’m praying for that work at a local Starbucks with one of our young men.  It changes things when we begin to think about and pray for lost people. 

Another thing that came out of our discussions was that we needed to have events outside our typical gathering time where we sought to bring people together that wouldn’t otherwise step foot into one of our worship services or our small group Bible Study.  Our goal is to bring people together and then to give them the opportunity to respond to the gospel.  Our first attempt at this will be May 27 as one of the young women is putting together a scavenger hunt where everyone is being encouraged to build their own team with the intent of having a time afterward where they can share testimonies of how Christ has changed their lives and how He can change theirs as well.

They’re not pretending like they’ve arrived, nor reached the point where we can be satisfied with the ministry but they are starting to embrace the reality of the fact that God has blessed us with such a ministry and in doing so has given us the responsibility to reach more young adults.  This is only a couple steps they’re taking to be more intentional.  To that end, I think if they continue on this path, that within the year, we’ll have another group of young adults meeting on a weekly basis….and who knows what God has in store from there.

One of the best things you can do is pray for these young adults.  Pray for them as they take steps to reach people for Christ.  Pray for their obedience and the hearts of those that they’re trying to reach.  Pray for those that graduate and have to go through a significant life change that results in having to find new friends and places to connect.  Pray for more young adults who are serious about the mission of God to rise up, to be a part of a core group that would start another Bible study group, maybe even on Sunday morning.

Our church is blessed to have young adults, seriously we are….some churches, like us a few years ago aren’t fortunate enough to have a group of young adults doing ministry together.  Encourage young adults when you see them…many are serving on Sunday mornings.  While you’re praying for them, ask God how He might lead you to do what they’re doing….trying to be intentional as a group in reaching people.  Your Sunday school group could probably take the task of reaching people more seriously as well, just like the College & Career ministry has begun to do!

First Baptist Church Wentzville (FBCW) started a prison ministry at a small jail in Lincoln County in early January 2017.  The purpose of this ministry is to share God’s love for inmates at their greatest point of need.  The Bible illustrates God’s heart toward prisoners, “I was in prison and you came to visit me…I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”  Matthew 25:36, 40

If Jesus walked the earth today, you would find Him in the jails and prisons, talking and dining with the most reviled criminals and outcasts in society.  He would be there “to seek and to save the lost.”  The men of FBCW’s Prison Ministry gather each Friday at the Lincoln County Jail to share God’s word, show God’s love for man and encourage inmates to follow Jesus.  The Prison Ministry recognizes the dignity of God’s creation in that no matter how far an inmate has fallen, no one is beyond Christ’s love and power to redeem. 

God does not despise the broken; nor do the men of FBCW Prison Ministry.  Jesus identifies strongly with the weak, the helpless, and the outcasts of society.  He considers the way we treat them to be the way we treat Him.  He wants us to identify with inmates as well, putting ourselves in their shoes and caring for them regardless of their crime.  God seeks to set prisoners free, not always from their physical location but from the imprisonment of sin, ignorance, and poor choices.  Jesus identified Himself as the source of this freedom and the Prison Ministry provides the nourishment of His Word each week, introducing God’s mercy and love. 

Every Friday evening, inmates sing and praise the word of God in a small recreational room, often cold and with inadequate lighting.  As the weeks progress for the Prison Ministry, refinement and transformation in God’s word fulfills an inmate’s soul, all within their place of punishment.  Jesus pursues each inmate in love and does not give up on anyone, even if they are in jail.  The law is at work, thanks be to God.  Each member of the Prison Ministry works tirelessly to transform lives of inmates to become better people and walk with God.  We have witnessed former inmates learning from their mistakes, renouncing their sin and becoming a leader for God.  For those who may not know, God is winning!   

Transformed lives point everyone’s attention to God!  This is the greatest motivation to get involved in the FBCW Prison Ministry.  If God leads you to serve Him through this ministry, contact Jim McAllister (636-265-0626).  Take part in the miraculous turnaround in a criminal’s life and remember, no one is beyond God’s reach.