{"id":10144,"date":"2026-10-06T16:33:54","date_gmt":"2026-10-06T21:33:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hopelutheran.org\/church\/?p=10144"},"modified":"2026-10-06T16:33:56","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T21:33:56","slug":"youth-ministry-learning-to-lead-by-serving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hopelutheran.org\/church\/2026\/10\/06\/youth-ministry-learning-to-lead-by-serving\/","title":{"rendered":"Learning to Lead by Serving"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It\u2019s hard to push shopping carts loaded with more than 100 turkeys through a grocery store without attracting attention. Hope\u2019s youth<\/a> know that from experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every fall, Match-a-Turkey sends them shopping for turkeys for Shawnee Community Services<\/a>. Inevitably, someone asks, \u201cWhat are you going to do with all those turkeys?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That gives our youth a natural opportunity to explain that they are helping provide food for local families. They are simply serving their neighbors, and when someone notices, they have an opportunity to share why they are there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Serving Our Neighbors<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Match-a-Turkey is just one way Hope\u2019s youth serve throughout the year. This fall, they\u2019ll also collect food door to door for Shawnee Community Services through Trick or Treat So Others Can Eat and help welcome families at Trunk or Treat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What congregation members may not realize is that the youth help fund much of this service themselves. Proceeds from meals they serve during Advent and Lent support service and outreach projects, including Match-a-Turkey and Hope\u2019s Easter Fair. Much of the money they raise goes right back to work serving others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Preparing for the 2028 Youth Gathering<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, they have a big opportunity ahead: the 2028 LCMS Youth Gathering<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For that, the youth are pursuing separate fundraising opportunities in the community. This fall, they will sack groceries at Hy-Vee, with the money designated specifically for youth attending the Gathering. Their goal is to help fund the trip without relying solely on congregational fundraisers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Part of the Church Today<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We sometimes speak of youth as the \u201cfuture of the church.\u201d But Hope\u2019s youth are already part of its life and ministry today. They are learning to take responsibility, serve their neighbors, and speak naturally about why they serve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul encouraged the younger Timothy, \u201cLet no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity\u201d (1 Timothy 4:12).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They don\u2019t have to wait until adulthood to serve faithfully or set an example. Sometimes it\u2019s as simple as explaining why you\u2019re pushing carts filled with 100+ turkeys through a grocery store: to spread hope to the hopeless and Christ\u2019s light to the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s hard to push shopping carts loaded with more than 100 turkeys through a grocery store without attracting attention. Hope\u2019s youth know that from experience. Every fall, Match-a-Turkey sends them shopping for turkeys for Shawnee Community Services. Inevitably, someone asks, \u201cWhat are you going to do with all those turkeys?\u201d That gives our youth a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":10147,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10144","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general-information"],"yoast_head":"\nHope Lutheran 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