Advice and Suggestions for Those Who Work With Children and Young People

It is absolutely vital to have the right people working with our children and young people. They must be God-fearing and have fellowship with the leader of the church. The church must be kept holy and pure, otherwise the children will be destroyed. Shepherds have a special responsibility to see to it that things do not become light and superficial. Troublemak­ers must not be allowed to take advantage of our activities. Church properties are not to be used for sin and ungodliness. Spiritual activities must take first priority. Be good, but firm! We need workers that have a vision for the work with the young people. It pays to work—it will bear fruit. “In all labor there is profit, but idle chatter leads only to poverty.” Prov. 14:23. Even though the results can seem rather pathetic at times, it pays to work. People’s thoughts must be guided and led. Now and then you have to speak out clearly: This is how it is, this is how it will be and this is how it should be. We need to understand what the church is and what its task is in the end times.

Young people need to learn not to meddle in other people’s business. Those who do so will never have a rod that blos­soms in the church. They must be helped to find their own place. Those who draw near to God have received a spirit of fear over their lives. We must speak about what the church is in the demonstration of Spirit and power so that people’s minds are guided into the right understanding and so every­one can comprehend what our work is all about.

How are things in your home church? Are you strengthen­ing and reinforcing godly fear? To do that, you must be led by the Spirit of God in your own daily life so that He can use you to free people from Satan’s snares. You must not think about yourself and your gifts. You must only think about being faith­ful to the promptings of the Spirit. When the Spirit works, let the sparks fly. Remain in your first love for Christ! Most ser­vants for whom it has gone badly have sunk because of honor, money or women. Therefore, be zealous and straightforward in your heart against all sin and impurity. Be circumcised from family and friends according to the flesh. Those who want honor come into the mindset of Saul, which is cursed forever! Remember that you are dealing with the living God in the church of the living God. Therefore, preach the Word of the cross! Let it work in your own life, and bear the church on your heart. Everyone who draws near to God gets a fear over him. They are truly humble and do not rely on their own gifts and abilities.

Often at your work place, people will try to get power over you. In such situations you must stand firm and serve God. Do not let yourself be pushed around by evil people and strong spirits. Keep your balance, and be extremely strong in your inner man—psychologically—so you are able to overcome them in the Lord and in the power of His might. We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the principalities and powers that control these people.

Coming to a quietness and poverty that enables you to hear God speaking is vital. We must grow and develop each day, so we need to be renewed in the spirit of our minds—so that we enter into God’s thoughts. Keep your good name by following Jesus in humiliation. Then being arrogant or proud of your­self will be disgusting to you. Everyone who has seen the greatness of Jesus’ humiliation detests his own high­mindedness. Our greatness will become apparent in the heav­enly dwellings.

“Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He con­secrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh . . . .” Heb.10:19-20. In all our activities, it is important to remember that the way goes through the flesh. Then you will always be kept on the new and living way. This way will become brighter and brighter until the perfect day. We can look one another in the eye and say, “I know the thoughts I have for you.” We must give people something that is burning and fervent. A mother does not take dinner straight out of the freezer and put it on the dinner table. We need to serve one another in the power of love! Then we will never end up in coldness and bitterness.

Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing. It is easy to point to outward things and to exert pressure on people when it concerns outward things. Be careful not to do that. You can easily become a Pharisee. Luke 11:39-41. “But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you.” If we don’t do that, we will become blind leaders of the blind. A blind person can only lead other blind people. And obviously, people who can see recognize one who is blind.

The urge to straighten things out, to dominate, to point the finger, etc., is a guard dog ministry. It has nothing to do with the gospel. It is pure Phariseeism. Give all those things as alms so that you can see clearly and can rejoice over what God is doing. Never pressure people into sectarian ways of thinking. That would be a departure from the calling and task that the church has been given.

“In like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, but, which is proper for women professing godliness, with good works.” 1 Tim. 2:9-10. True daughters of Sarah know in their hearts what is appropriate and good for them. There is no need for outward pressure about these things. Our task is to awaken godliness. We must not try to “standardize” people. We must not put them under the law and take away their ear for the gospel. Most people have a natural sense for what is appropri­ate. If someone clothes herself very inappropriately, a mature sister can exhort her in all goodness.

Speak the Word of God and awaken godliness. Teach people to walk before the face of God. That is our task. Care for the sheep and give them food. It costs something to give food. That is true in the natural and in the spiritual. The fa­thers can give help. You cannot circumvent the shepherd just because you think there is a situation in the church that you need to fix.

“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiv­ing. Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power. In Him you were also circumcised with the cir­cumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ.” Col. 2:6-11.

There is a mathematical relationship between the number of square feet of sail and the weight of the boat. Some young people raise all their sails, even though they have very little ballast or weight deep in the bottom of the boat. If you praise people like that, they usually hoist more sails and then cap­size, and you have contributed to their destruction. Obviously that is folly.

There is an expression that says, “Stick your fin­ger in the ground and consider where you came from.” We need to do that to remain in humility. Many in their ignorance have cheered such people on, and that has caused a lot of work later. If you have contributed to such bad work, it is good for you to use that as ballast down in your boat, so that you can be humble. Many shepherds had problems in times of revival because some people behaved so foolishly that others had to work very hard to keep everything on the right course. Some people were so exalted that they spoke nonstop, even when the eldest of our elder brothers were present. Several of those people suffered a setback in their race during that time. It takes time to rebuild confidence. If you go around thinking that you have not been esteemed highly enough, you have become wise in your own eyes.

Some people travel to other churches without the brothers in their home church knowing anything about it, and without doing it in harmony with those who bear the main responsibil­ity for the church. Brothers who are sent out must have fol­lowed Jesus in His humiliation. Otherwise they will come to ruin. All of this must take place in the Spirit of brotherhood.

Parents must raise their children to be godly, not ungodly. This responsibility rests with the parents. In the church too, children must learn to obey. Children who are well brought up will not usually, for example, vandalize church property. If something like that happens, the bill for the damage should be sent to those who have intentionally caused the damage. They must learn that such conduct is unacceptable. We must not invest a lot of work in troublemakers and neglect those we really should be working with. This is not righteous.

We have to work with our children so they behave like Christians. We must make the church and those brothers and sisters who have battled and warred for the church great for them. Some children have been neglected and have not had a home environment that has enabled them to grow up in a godly way. The entire home has been worldly. In these cases, we must exhort and awaken their pure minds.

At home there must be freedom so that the children can express their opinions. You can say things that make it inter­esting for them too. Don’t be so quick to straighten them out when they do something wrong. Take it up a good while later—a day when their heart is open and their mind is at rest. Then hearts will be knit together. A father can, for example, relate how things were for him when he was young—how weak he was. Don’t be a schoolmaster or a taskmaster who is so quick to arrest them. That often has a very bad effect.

We have to watch their facial expressions. Maybe the chil­dren doubt that you really love them. Thank them for the sup­port and help they have been. Give them a gift. Then they will love you and then, usually, they will not go out into the world. Often, small things have an enormous effect. It can make a deep impression when a young brother or sister does some­thing for the younger children. Bonds can then be formed that have eternal significance.

Do things for the child even when the situation seems very difficult. The watchmen must never keep silent day or night. Our prayers can help to hinder sin and the work of the devil. There is a battle in the spirit world, and we must fight. The children and young people should be in our consciousness day and night. In prayer we knock again and again, asking God to work in them. Even if things look really bad, we must never let go. Some might be preserved just because you are fighting for them. The day you give up the battle, it will go “straight down.” As long as we pray for a person, God contin­ues His work with him.

During revival meetings, you must appeal to the soul—that is the Father’s drawing to the Son. Some people have a spe­cial ability in this area, either through their words, songs or music. Those who are responsible for such meetings should prepare in a totally different way than for a regular meeting. Imagine yourself in a situation where your son or daughter has fallen away and needs to be converted. Then your mes­sage will have an energy and an appeal.

Speaking at a revival meeting requires a certain dramatic talent. Never conduct a revival meeting like a regular meet­ing. It takes preparation. And you can’t preach about the death of Christ and teach deep doctrinal truths at times like that. Weed out people who don’t have grace over them for such situations—revival meetings must be organized and led differently than regular meetings. Evangelists who have a gift to speak to sinners must be effectively utilized in these meet­ings. The music must be living. Some people have a gift for being able to awaken sinners through their songs. Be very sensitive. Get on the wavelength of those who need to be con­verted so that you draw them, appeal to them and move their hearts.