Youth Ministry for the Mature - Psalm 71:17-18

"God, You have taught me from my youth, and I still proclaim Your wonderful works. Even when I am old and gray, God, do not abandon me. Then I will proclaim Your power to another generation, Your strength to all who are to come" (Psalm 71:17-18, HCSB)

WANTED: MATURE PEOPLE FOR YOUTH MINISTRY! 

That's the message contained in these verses. The Psalmist exclaims that God needs him for youth ministry even though he is an old man.

The Psalmist reasons that a person of maturity who has known and benefited from God's grace and mercy for a long time is the person best prepared to declare God's power to the next generation.

It almost seems like the Psalmist is saying that youth ministry is the responsibility of the more mature.

But maybe you think you're too old for youth ministry.

Now I don't mean that you have to hold a position as a youth minister in a church.

What I mean is that God needs the older people to testify to the younger people about how God has worked in their lives.

However you choose to do it, God has assigned all us older people to tell the younger people about Jesus. The younger people need the older people to pass on the message of how Jesus has changed their lives and older people need to be around the younger people to stay young at heart.

Maybe your youth ministry is telling your own children, your grandchildren, even your great grandchildren about Jesus. Or maybe your youth ministry is working in the nursery or children's church or with the youth group at your local church or even teaching a Sunday School class for children or youth.

Whatever your youth ministry is and however you do it, you absolutely should be proclaiming the wonderful works of God in your life to the younger generation, to those coming after you, because you're never too old to tell people about Jesus!

"Let no one despise your youth; instead, you should be an example to the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity." (1 Timothy 4:12, HCSB)