One billion.
That’s how many teens are on the planet right now. This number is a wake-up call that many youth leaders need to hear, because it means that we have work to do! Just about three percent of the world’s teen population live here in the United States; while that percentage sounds remotely manageable, these 30 million-plus teens are on a trajectory leading away from the church.
The question we must answer is: How do we change that?
At Dare2Share, we believe the gospel is the answer to this generation’s steep trend away from God. The church needs to be energized and teens need to be mobilized because their peers need to be gospelized! In Luke 19:10, Jesus describes His mission as simply this: “to seek and to save the lost.” This mission has been the heartbeat of our ministry efforts for more than 30 years, and God is opening door after door to keep us moving forward with partner ministries around the world.
Word of Life and Dare2Share are partners together in one aspect of Jesus’ mission—to see every teen everywhere hear the gospel from a friend. You, as a youth ministry leader, are a vital part of this mission! We need to raise up leaders who share Jesus personally and mobilize teens to do the same.
One of the ways we do this is through an annual gathering called the North American Gospel Advancing Summit. Hosted this year in Estes Park, Colorado, the summit will offer solid teaching about how to help lead the gospel advancing movement. It will also feature breakout sessions and workshops on applicable ministry topics, such as networking, student leadership, training philosophies, healthy rhythms in ministry, and much more! Our hope for this summit is that leaders are refreshed, equipped, and mobilized to carry the gospel to their teens and churches and to lead movements across their communities.
Last year, as we gathered for the summit, I was personally impacted by the conversations that happened in the “downtime.” Sometimes, we forget what it is like to be in a room with others who understand the gospel advancing mission and have insight that can help us grow. The deep desire of the voices in the room was to achieve the mission, and I came out of each conversation motivated to push forward with more vigor than ever! I cannot describe the lasting impact we have seen in leaders across North America because of this gathering.
The dates for this year’s summit are April 23–26, and the cost is $299 per person. If you are a leader who desires to grow in your gospel urgency, connect with other leaders from across North America who are on mission with you, and impact every teen in your community with the gospel, than this is the event for you!
Join us for this year’s North American Gospel Advancing Summit and be part of the movement to reach every teen everywhere. One billion is a big number—but we have a bigger God.
For more information on Dare2Share, visit www.dare2share.org. To learn more and to register for North American Gospel Advancing Summit, reach out to your local Word of Life youth ministry coach at https://youthministry.wol.org/resources/ministry-coaches/.
Ben Phillips is the Mobilization Manager for Dare2Share Ministries International. He has been serving in local churches and youth or young adult ministries for the past 15 years. He speaks at camps, retreats, services, and training sessions for students and leaders across several states, and he has had the privilege of seeing many come to Christ. At Dare2Share, he is a “trainer of trainers” who equips and mobilizes leaders to live out gospel advancing values. He loves to help ministries dive deeper into the mission and calling of Jesus as they work to reach every teen in their communities with the gospel! Ben and his wife, JaNae, live in Nebraska and have been married for 12 years. They have two children, Micah and Emery.