Discipling teenagers through life’s terrains

I love hiking. I like short hikes through my neighborhood park, long hikes through the mountains, and everything in between.

If I’m headed to familiar terrain on a clearly marked trail, I’ll throw a snack and water into a backpack and head out. But when I’m on a multi-day trail, or one I’ve never hiked, it’s important to carry a map that shows what I might encounter. That way, I can navigate through (or around) any terrain and arrive at my destination.

In ministry, just like in life, it’s helpful to know what lies ahead, just around the bend.

If you’ve spent any time listening to teenagers, you know that growing up today is different than growing up 10, 20, or more years ago. The journey for today’s teenagers has changed—and so has the terrain they’re navigating.

Equipping young people for the journey of faith

Terrain can be a helpful metaphor for thinking about the challenging realities teenagers face in their lives and how we can equip them on the journey of faith. A high schooler trudging through the terrain called parental divorce may be wondering what the gospel has to say to them in this season of pain and transition. How can they live out their faith when they feel like they’re underwater? A middle schooler stuck in the terrain of shifting friendships can’t always avoid the fallen trees and rocks that litter their path toward healthy friendships. They may wonder what it means to trust in Jesus when they aren’t sure who’s trustworthy around them.

Terrain comes in many forms. Depression and anxiety often feel like cold, windy mountains—insurmountable obstacles that enclose and isolate us on all sides. As one young woman shared with FYI,

"I didn’t know it was anxiety at the time. I was always sick, but I would pretend I was fine, like there was nothing wrong. My therapist now says it was a coping skill. I wouldn’t let myself eat if I was anxious, so I would tell my Mom that I had already eaten so she wouldn’t be worried. Or I would tell her that I had friends I would hang out with, because I didn’t want her to be worried that I wasn’t making friends. I would hide in the bathroom to cry several times a day and sometimes have panic attacks."

The Mountains of Mental Health is on the map of most young people in our ministries. In 2022, over 16% of youth ages 12–17 reported experiencing “at least one major depressive episode in the past year.”^[1] 79% of 18–24-year-olds report being lonely.^[2] Suicide attempts have also risen sharply, especially among boys ages 10 to 13 and black teenagers.^[3] Considering the incredible obstacles that young people today face, as well as the increased generational separation so necessary to adolescent maturation, it’s no wonder young people are struggling with their mental health.

Teenagers need adults who will walk with them as they navigate each new terrain. One way youth ministry leaders can help young people journey through the mountain range of mental health is by cultivating a trust-filled community where young people can experience safety, practice vulnerability, and receive non-judgmental support. They may still require assistance from a therapist or medication, but trusted youth leaders can show them that their whole selves, including their mental health struggles, belong with God’s people.

Another often overwhelming terrain many of our young people experience is the Chaparral of Poverty and Economic Insecurity: Around 12 million kids and teenagers in the U.S. are currently navigating poverty, and many more are facing economic insecurity each day.^[4] Much of the California coast consists of chaparral—short shrubs that grow widely in desert areas. Roots are shallow, and seeds rarely turn into full-grown trees. Similarly, economic insecurity can feel to young people as if their ecosystem actively prevents them from flourishing as they struggle to find resources that will help them thrive.

A third terrain, the Canyon of Unmet Expectations, may seem less daunting to young people—but it still grips their imaginations. No matter their age during the pandemic, teenagers in your ministry undoubtedly watched with disappointment as many milestone events, plans, and opportunities were canceled or flew by without fanfare. They’ve also seen authority figures in the news and in their own lives (politicians, business leaders, and even pastors) who have hurt others or shamelessly promoted themselves. They expect adults in their lives to take care of them but are constantly seeing examples of moral failure.

Youth leaders can walk with young people through this canyon by modeling growth in their own lives. They can apologize when their words are hurtful and invite young people to hold them accountable when they fall short. They can tell stories (appropriately) about how God continues to transform them into whole-hearted Christ-followers. And when people or events inevitably disappoint, leaders can sit with teenagers in the canyon, demonstrating that God is with us in our sadness and disillusionment.

While these are three common terrains young people experience, many others exist. Recently a group of youth leaders helped our team at FYI identify several, such as:

• The Plains of Competing Priorities
• The Desert of Loneliness
• The Ocean of Identity Formation
• The Briar Patch of Prejudice (racism, sexism, classism, etc.)
• The Jungle of Relationships and Social Dynamics
• The Cliffs of Violence
• The Caves of Climate Change Anxiety

4 ideas to help disciple teenagers through life’s terrains

Some of this terrain imagery may resonate with your young people, and some may not. That’s why it’s essential to build a map that matches your young people’s unique experiences. Understanding what your young people experience will help you disciple them as they live out Jesus’ goodness every day by loving God and neighbor. Here are four ideas for building a map that accurately reflects the landscape your teenagers may be navigating.

1. Plan listening sessions with young people and families in your community. Ask questions about what energizes, worries, and challenges them. Show them some of these terrains and help them to name the ones they and their peers experience most strongly.
2. Walk or drive through your neighborhood. Note your observations, including the state of sidewalks, parks, property, gathering places, and commerce areas. Make sure to investigate well-traveled areas and those streets you rarely visit. When you return, reflect on how young people use space and what it says about the terrains they may be navigating. Share your reflections with your students and ask them to describe how different spaces influence their maps.
3. Invite your students to make you a map! Provide art supplies and ask them to tell you about the realities they’re navigating.
4. Use government and non-profit databases to understand your community's demographics and economic realities.

Hikers often get to choose the type of terrain they traverse, who goes with them, and the difficulty level they’re comfortable with. But young people don’t get these choices. That’s where caring adults with more experience navigating life’s terrains can guide young people through or around potential hazards as they live out Jesus’ goodness every day. And that’s the good work of discipleship that God has called us to.

If you're tired of youth ministry that fails to change lives, it's time to change youth ministry

Building on two decades of the Fuller Youth Institute's work and incorporating extensive new research and interviews, Faith Beyond Youth Group identifies the reasons it feels like you’re working so hard but having so little impact, and offers five ways adult youth leaders can cultivate character for a lifetime of growing closer to Jesus rather than drifting away. With practical insight and tips, you’ll find out how to cultivate trust, model growth, teach for transformation, practice together, and make meaning so that teenagers can become adults who hold fast to Jesus and boldly live out a robust faith in the world around them.

Order Now