"Welcome to the Grace Baptist Church Youth Ministry. My wife, Amy, and I are excited to be serving the Lord here at Grace Baptist Church. Our lifelong goal has been to serve the Lord in the local church. That goal was developed over a period of time because of two important influences -- my parents and my youth group. I can say in all honesty, it is because of these two influences in my life, that I was directed into full time service for God.

Parents are given tremendous privilege and responsibility to train their children for God. This can often be a rewarding, yet, demanding job -- especially through the teen years. The youth program here at Grace Baptist is geared to complement you as a parent as you seek to bring up your children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. We want to stand beside you as you seek to build strong character and conviction into the lives of your teenagers.

Our program is not meant to simply "keep the kids busy". Everything we do, from Sunday School to special activities and trips, will have a definite purpose behind it. Each preaching or teaching service, each youth activity, each service opportunity, has been placed there to fulfill a specific need in a teenager's spiritual life.

Please pray for us regularly. We desire God's wisdom and direction in all that we do. Please feel free to contact us at any time for whatever reason. I will do my best to be at your disposal twenty-four hours a day if need be.

May the Lord grant us wisdom, patience, and grace to give ourselves wholly to the task of building mature Christians that will surrender their lives to do the will of God no matter what the cost."

The purpose of the youth ministry here at Grace Baptist Church is to develop spiritually mature teenagers who exhibit Christ-likeness in their attitude and actions (Eph. 4:11-13). Included in this, we desire to see the teens grow in four basic areas of life, as seen in the life the Lord Jesus Christ (Luke 2:52). These areas are: mental growth, physical growth, social growth, and spiritual growth. Our youth program is centered around the Savior and His Word.

Our aim through the youth ministry is to produce teenagers that are: Eternally secure in Christ (Eph. 2:8,9; Rom. 10:9,10,13), Hungry for the Word of God (II Pet. 3:18; Psalm 1:2; Josh. 1:8), Separated from the world and surrendered to Christ (I John 2:15-17; II Cor. 6:17; Phil. 3:10), and Burdened for the lost (Matt. 9:37,38). We must constantly be seeking to maintain a balance in these areas in order to produce a completed, mature Christian young person.

There are three basic plans to reach our goal and aim: Bible Knowledge -- academics (II Tim. 3:15-17), Character Development -- attitude (II Pet. 3:18), and Evangelism -- action (Mark 15:16). All of the Grace Baptist Youth activities will have at least one if not all of these plans in mind. Listed below are the various activities and programs of this ministry:

• Sunday School
• Singspirations
• Weekend Activities
• Summer Camp
• Conferences
• Soulwinning
• Wednesday Night Youth Chapel
• Missions Trip
• Work Days
• Preacher Boys
• Area-wide Activities
• ATTAC Team

Parents play a vital role in the youth ministry. Our desire is that individual families will be strengthened through the overall youth program (Malachi 4:6). Parent meetings will be a part of the regular schedule in order to communicate with and encourage parents of teens. The youth program will seek to build strong loyalty around the home and bring the teens closer to their parents. Parental support of the overall program is a must if our desired goals are to be achieved.

Knowing your destination will determine your route to take to get there. The same is true with the youth program at Grace Baptist. If we know where we want to end up, it will determine what methods we use to achieve those goals. Our goals then are the direction setter -- the compass, if you will -- for an overall youth philosophy. Knowing these goals will help us to keep on track.

The purpose of the youth ministry at Grace Baptist Church is:

• To see that each teen is saved and has assurance of that salvation.
• To thoroughly teach and ground them in the Word of God.
• To see each teen make the jump from knowing the Bible to living it.
• To see them fulfilling the Great Commission as they share their faith in Christ.
• To challenge each teen to find God's will for their life and do it.
• To see them develop a sense of commitment to the Lord and the local church.
• To produce solid Christian leaders able to assume responsibility.
• To involve each teen in a ministry that focuses on others.
• To see each teen growing spiritually by being consistent in daily devotions.
• To see each teen develop their God-given talents and use them for His glory.

Teen Sunday School
Sundays @ 9:30 am in the Teen Room

Teens begin their Sunday School hour with a combined opening time of music and announcements in rooms E109 and E111. Following the opening, teens divide into four different classes designed to teach the teens at their level of Bible knowledge and Christian maturity.

Classes end at 10:30 am and teens are dismissed into the morning service in the main auditorium.

Tract Team
Wednesdays @ 3:30 pm in the Gymnasium

During Tract Team, teens break up into groups and go through various neighborhoods in Muncie and the surrounding communities knocking on doors, passing out tracts and church brochures, inviting people to church, and telling others the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Teens who are more experienced in soul winning are grouped with less experienced teens so that the less experienced teens can receive training and build confidence in spreading the Word of God. Teams consist of three teenagers and two teams are placed on each street. Teens return to the gymnasium at around 5 pm where they eat dinner and participate in group games conducted by a member of the Youth Staff until 7 pm.

Youth Chapel
Wednesdays @ 7:00 PM in the Teen Room

The main emphasis of the youth program at Grace Baptist Church is the Youth Chapel. Youth Chapel is a time for singing and preaching designed to be evangelistic (reaching the lost) and edifying (building up the saved). Pastor Rory Bond leads the service which is geared toward problems teenagers face and making decisions for God that will lead the teen toward being more Christ like at church, home, and school. A bus goes out into the Muncie Community to pick up teens who do not have a ride to Youth Chapel. Youth Chapel usually lets out at around 8:30 pm.

Activities
Throughout the month and leaves from the Gymnasium

Monthly outings are an important part of the Youth program at Grace Baptist. Activities like Singspiration, paintball, camps and retreats, and youth rallies provide a fun opportunity for the teens to be together and at the same time, gives them a chance to hear preaching that will make an impact in their lives. Teens are always encouraged to bring a friend and visitors are always welcome.