Devotions on the Go – For Youth Workers in the “Busy” Seasons

Youth Workers are always on the go.  We know in our brains that the busier things get the more we need some time alone with God.  Yet, we also know that the busier things get the easier it is to let that time slowly slip away.  Whether it’s a summer mission trip back to back with VBS or when Confirmation, Easter and the end of the school year celebrations all land within three weeks of each other, we’ve all experienced the “busy” seasons… the times when we’re not even sure we have time to breathe and use the restroom, let alone stop and spend time with Jesus.

This series of devotions is designed to help us pause in those busy times, even for just a moment, and connect with our Savior. Pull one out at the rest stop on the way to the mission trip or in your office after lunch in the middle of VBS week.  Press pause for a few short moments, turn your attention to God and let him fill you up again so you can get back out there and do all the awesome things He has planned for you!

They are each centered on a name for God and include a Scripture reference, a devotional story/thought and some questions to ponder as you press “play” again. 

Never-Ending Work

“Therefore, since through God’s mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart.” (2 Corinthians 4:1)

While having a conversation with a friend who serves in youth ministry the other day, she eagerly shared about their project of painting the youth room at their church.  We laughed together at how excited she got as she talked about finishing one of the walls the day before.

We laughed because we realized how exciting some of those little things really are simply because they can be finished.  The reality is that results of what we do day in and day out in ministry aren’t realized until years down the line and often we don’t even get to witness it.  This feeling of never really being “done” with anything can be exhausting! So when you have a project like painting a youth room, the completeness of it is so refreshing!

As I wrapped up my DCE practicum and prepared for my internship, my practicum supervisor spoke of the never-ending nature of ministry.  He shared, “Bekah, as long as there are people in this world, there will be sin. And as long as there is sin there will be people who need a Savior.”  He followed with encouragement to take care of myself and go home and rest for a while each day, even in the busiest seasons, to be refreshed so I could get back at it the next day, leading people to that Savior.   Sure, one project or trip may end, but there’s always the next thing.  In those exhausting days of work that never really end, what comfort to know our God as Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End!

“Behold, I am coming soon!  My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.  I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.” (Revelation 22:12-13)

There is One who was there at the very beginning and He will remain until the very end.  He will see His work through to completion.  From the moment sin entered the world, God has been on a mission to redeem it. In Christ this redemption has happened and He continues on in the work of making everything new (Revelation 21:5).  We get the joy of proclaiming this redemption until He comes again!  As a member of the body of Christ, the Church, we get to be God’s light in a dark world, bringing hope to the hopeless through Jesus’ work on the cross.

Christ alone could cry out, “It is finished” hanging there on the cross.  And on the exhausting days of never-ending work, we find strength by hanging on to the Alpha and Omega who declared both “I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20) and “Yes, I am coming soon.”  (Revelation 22:20).  For when He comes, our work, and His, will truly be complete.

What does it mean to you that God is the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End? How have you seen Him bring things He’s started to completion in your life or the lives of people around you?  Where do you need Him to show up as the Beginning and End today?

Lord, You are the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.  On days when I get overwhelmed by the tasks in front of me, especially the ones that seem as if they may never end, remind me that my role in this world is just one little part of your Master plan of making disciples in this world and telling the truth of Your redemption, salvation, and hope.  May I rest in knowing that You alone are the beginning and the end and that you will be with me always. I’m never alone.  Through your mercy and grace, may I not lose heart.  Amen, Come, Lord Jesus!