Matt reflects on the new teen center crowd and school year

October 2013 mission letter--written by Matt Krieg

In this letter, I want to talk about this upcoming year, and describe some of the shifts God seems to be directing.

One of these main changes comes through the new crop of students attending the teen center. Whereas we had a strong gang-related student body coming last year, it’s different now. The tempting draw of gang- life is still there, but it is not as prevalent in the majority of the current crew.

It is interesting to see what types of broken students God brings. As many of you know, I really love sports... soccer, football, hockey... If there is a ball, puck, or frisbee, I like it. The students showing up each day just happen to love sports about as much as I do. We have guys and girls coming who play football, baseball, and soccer in school.

The involvement with athletic competition has been an excellent connection point for me to meet with students. I not only talk about sports and play with them at the teen center, but Laurie and I have entered their world through showing up at their games. This demonstrates to the kids that we care about them outside of our “job.” It’s been an incredible blessing to me to interact on a familiar, sport-based level.

Some might not think it is unique that we predominantly work with Latino youth, and surprise! They like soccer. (Stereotype much, right?) It might seem like God didn’t have to work very hard to make that one happen.

However, the second grouping of new kids has us definitely aware of God’s hand on this year. We call this group our “sexually ambiguous” crowd because, quite frankly, we never know who is dating whom. One girl could be with another girl, and then the next day she could be hooking up with a different guy.

For those of you who don’t know Laurie personally, one of her biggest passions is to work with people who struggle with gender identity—especially Christians who struggle. This second crew of kids fits the bill. They all have sexual identity issues, but they are not Christians. Most come from some sort of church background, but received rejection in one way or another by “Bible preaching” people. Because of this felt rejection, many have shifted in the total opposite direction to Satanism or Wicca.

The funny thing is that their “Satan worship” doesn’t stop them from memorizing Bible verses to earn food at our cafe. It also hasn’t stopped them from seeking out relationships with Jesus-loving staff members. Even more amazing is that when some of these students memorize verses, they can recall it days later. 

A few students even carry around the printed-out verses in their pockets—challenging Christian kids not to fight one another because of what they recently memorized about loving Christian brothers and sisters. (See 1 John 4:20 for an example of a verse we had them memorize for a brownie.) God’s Word is alive, and it is making a difference in the lives of people who claim to hate Him.

Laurie truly has an amazing way of working with students. I’ve told multiple people that she is the single best youth worker I have ever seen. As I look around and see God bringing in the students who struggle where Laurie is passionate, the result is incredible. The depth of insight and compassion that she has toward these students makes me extremely proud to have her as a partner in this mission. (Sorry to go on and on about her, but I think my wife is awesome!)

In addition to new kids coming to the teen center, we launched a few new programs this fall. To match the students’ athletic passion, we started bi-weekly pick-up soccer games at a local park. So far, we have just been playing around and having fun. But as this group continues, we will couple the games with some mini-lessons on who God is and how we can live in relationship to Him. I’m still working out how to format this into the games, but I’m really excited to get to work bringing Christ into the athletic setting.

A second new program we began this fall is Laurie’s Girls’ Night Out on Thursday nights. She, Melissa, and Sarah want it to be a time of sharing life, struggles, and Scripture. So far, there have been mixed results. One week the team will have 14 girls show up, and all talk about real heart-issues. The next week, eight girls will come, and everyone is fighting and tearing each other down. It all depends on the week.

As you can imagine, the constant ups and downs of life and ministry have been wearing on us. There have been times of incredible frustration toward students, staff members, and each other as a couple. However, God has led us through all of it to a place where we realize that no matter how much we love the students and each other, we absolutely cannot do this work on our own strength.

Thankfully, God has also gifted us with a community of believers who have recently become a strong support system. California may never really feel like home for us. At heart, we are still mid-westerners transplanted into a strange Californian culture. But when I look at the way that God provides for us, and the way he has orchestrated bringing students with needs that match our passions, I am assured that God wants us out here.

The harvest is here, and Lodi is ripe for the picking.