Being and making disciples who know God and make God known through worship, community, and mission.

1st, 3rd, and 5th Wednesdays; 6:30PM to 8:00PM

*Christmas/New Year break between 12/20 and 1/17
*Summer Break between 6/19 and 10/2

Knowing Jesus and Making Him Known!

Youth are suspicious...so our world says. Surely you have heard it said: "children can be a challenge, but just wait until they become teenagers; then the real trouble hits!" We can all agree that adolescence presents major challenges for both teens and their parents, but thankfully Jesus speaks a new word. He doesn't merely see our youth as his broken image, but people ready to be re-created and re-formed into the image of Christ and His fullness. He sees their cocooning as an opportunity! What hope! The church gets to influence youth in a way that points them to Christ and pushes them to make an impact on their schools, city and world!
We get to "love" them and "gospel" them!!

With God's view in mind here are some of the things we want to be about:

We want our students to know God more deeply through Jesus and his Word.
We want them to be a vital part of the family of God. Students are encouraged to seek God in Sunday gatherings and to be a part of the larger family of God. If students are not a part of the larger body of Christ until they are 18 they probably won't start then. Youth group is only a supplemental encouragement to the spiritual lives of our youth. Parents and the church as a whole are the primary people created to befriend and lead our youth.

We want students to be intimately connected to other students who follow Jesus.
Students are encouraged to move from examining God on Sunday gatherings to growing in God's word and experience Christian friendships at youth group. Youth group consists of listening to God through Scripture, multimedia, guest speakers and panel discussions. We also try to break into smaller groups at youth group in order to share struggles and talk about exactly what it means to know God.

We want students to make Jesus known their friends, families, our community, and to the world.
We desire that all of our youth move from experiencing Christian friendship to expressing their faith in tangible ways. We have regular events and trips in order for the youth to invite other students into the community of Christ. Also, time is dedicated each year to feeding the poor, helping around our local community, loving the elderly, and helping others who are in need.

RV TEENS wants to help students become who they are meant to be by being incarnational (meeting them where they are), transformational (introducing them to the person and work of Jesus), and integrational (helping them see they are part of a larger family: the church).

Most Wednesday gatherings include times of connecting with other students and adult leaders, games, singing, Bible teaching, and break out discussion groups. At times through the year we will have special "event" nights where  our gathering is more activity based. There will also be theme nights where parents and the wider church are invited to join us as we contemplate a relevant issue affecting our culture and the Christ-centered response. 

For more information, please contact Pastor Bob Comarsh at bob@rivervalleyyc.org.