The most common question asked of anyone in their teenage years is some variation of this one: “What are you going to be when you grow up?” Youth will answer this in many different ways.
“I’m going to be a sports star.”
“I’m majoring in nursing so I can be a nurse.”
“I’m going to be famous.”
“I’m looking forward to being a dad someday.”
“I don’t really know.”
Here’s the fundamental flaw in this question: in our world, we equate what we do with who we are. The question centers on vocation. Vocation is important, but the better question to ask is “Who are you going to be?” This question is asking about identity.
The question about vocation is great when everything is going well. Take for example, the high school student who is the star athlete, the lead of the play, or the top of the class. It’s easy to find your identity in what you do when you’re such a star! But what happens after the curtain drops, the season ends, or the tassel is turned at graduation? You have to start all over. The people at your college, in the workforce, or wherever you find yourself likely don’t know how awesome you were in high school, and so you have to start from scratch. Or you get injured and can’t play your sport anymore, and you find yourself not just wondering what to do now but also “Who am I if I’m not the star of the team?”
Here’s my core concern with this system where our identity comes from what we do: it leads to us sending our young people into the world searching for their identity, not just their career path. If we don’t clearly speak into the identity of our youth, the world’s answers to the questions of identity will be all that they hear. And we as the church cannot allow the world to dictate who God’s dear children think they are.
This is where the concept of an identity statement comes in. An identity statement is simply a short summary of who you are. Any organization or individual can come up with one of these, but for disciples of Jesus, it is essential that it is biblically grounded. Your identity statement does not change, even when your season ends, you get a new job, you switch majors, you go through a breakup, you win a major award, or you doubt yourself. It remains the same because it’s rooted in God’s Word, which “will stand forever” (Isaiah 40:8).
Most organizations have a mission statement, which normally describes their purpose or what they’re going to do. It’s my contention, though, that we need to ask, “Who am I?” before we ask, “What am I going to do?” Mission statements can be great, but they should flow from a clear statement of identity in Christ. That’s why we should first start with an identity statement. Everything else comes out of and flows back into it.
An identity statement provides a clear answer for all of your youth to the question “Who am I?” which is the question of adolescence. That’s why every youth ministry needs an identity statement. It is a priceless gift you can give to the families in your congregation and community. It is an anchor that will hold them in the midst of the storms of life. If your youth will learn one thing from their teenage years at your congregation, this is what you want it to be, because it is the message of the Gospel applied specifically to them.
Before you go out and paint a random Bible verse onto your youth room wall, let’s consider how to go about crafting an identity statement for your youth ministry:
Because we want this statement to be rooted in the Gospel as the foundation of our identity, the first step is to study key passages of God’s Word that talk about our identity as God’s children. Here are some places to start:
As you read these passages, begin to develop a list of how God’s Word answers the question “Who am I?”
Building on the scriptural foundation, now you’ll want to look at the truths that are especially important to your congregation. This could be found through verses or phrases that are prominently displayed in your church building, words that are highlighted in your mission statement as a congregation, or even words from a particularly memorable sermon.
For example, in the congregation I serve, the words “in” and “through” are prominent in our mission statement. Having an identity statement that reflects God’s love working in and through us would be a great connection to make in that case, keeping in mind that mission flows from identity. Seek to make these types of connections, because youth ministry should never be treated as a siloed ministry, separate from the life of the congregation. In fact, the best identity statements are ones that are used not just in youth ministry but also for the entire congregation.
Now that you have your ever-expanding list of possible identity statements, you will want to try to narrow it down to what applies best to the youth in your context. One great way to do that is to actually spend time teaching on identity in Christ. I first did this years ago through a Bible study with my youth group, using the “I am” statements of Jesus in the Gospel of John as a way to talk about our identity coming from Christ. That particular study is available as a free resource through LCMS Youth Ministry, if you would like to take your group through a similar process. Whatever format or study you choose to do, be sure to specifically note which passages, themes, and truths seem to resonate the most with your youth. That will help you narrow down further your list of possible statements.
After you’ve both reflected and taught on what the Bible says about identity, put together three to five sample identity statements. You want these to be clear and concise, ideally one sentence long. By one sentence, I mean a normal one that we would use, not the paragraph-long sentences that the apostle Paul is known for!
The one I use in my own life and ministry is “Because of Jesus, I am worth dying for.” I know other ministries have used statements like “I am a baptized, beloved child of God” or “I am a child of God, loved and saved by Jesus.” Note that these are all short and easy to remember, but contain a depth of meaning and theology to them that can be unpacked and applied in a limitless number of situations.
Formulate these sample statements, and then get the input of your youth and adult leaders. Have them vote on a favorite and allow them to suggest their own. You want to build some ownership in the statement, as it ideally belongs to not just the whole group but also each individual member.
Whatever statement your group lands on, incorporate it into everything that you do. Put it on your handouts and in the places where your youth meet. Have it as the signature on your emails and in your texts to the parents. Regularly ask questions in Bible study like, “How does this passage connect to our identity statement?” When dealing with behavior issues, refer back to the statement and ask, “How does what you said reflect that other person’s value? Remember, here at church, we believe that you are worth dying for.” Sign your seniors’ graduation gifts with the identity statement. You want this to become such a part of the DNA of your group that when your youth graduate, they no longer wonder, “Who am I?” And when someone asks them what they’re going to be when they grow up, they will be able to answer confidently with the words of their identity statement. “I’m going to be a baptized, beloved child of God, which is great because that’s what I already am today!”
Teenagers today are surrounded by all sorts of noise, all kinds of voices that are trying to tell them who they are. Having a clear and compelling identity statement for your youth ministry, rooted in the Gospel, is like giving your teenagers noise-canceling headphones. It will block out all the other noise so that they can listen to the one voice that matters: the voice of their Savior! May that gift be central in our homes, youth ministries, and congregations!
As you work to create your youth ministry identity statement, discover seven markers of a robust youth ministry program in Seven Practices of Healthy Youth Ministry.