Why Reach Teenagers?

When is the best time to reach a person for Jesus?

This is a tricky question.

Because of God’s great love for every person, He wants everyone to turn to Him and receive new life from Him (2 Peter 3:9). The need for that good news is always urgent. So it is safe to say that anytime is the best time and that’s true! The best opportunity to meet a need with the gospel could be found in the next person we meet.

However, is there a time of life when the gospel could potentially make a deeper and greater impact? A strategic time when people are commonly more open to the message of Jesus?

In Cru, we think the teenage years of a person’s life may be one of the best times to share the gospel with them.

Asking the Big Questions

There is no doubt that teens are unique, and we believe God intended for them to be this way. One of those special designs has to do with the changes in the teenage brain. Studies of human development during these years have made some amazing discoveries.

  • “Scientific evidence is showing that the brain systems involved in decision-making, planning, social understanding, and risk-taking are developing in adolescence.” – Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience, Sarah-Jayne Blakemore.
  • The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry states that individuals age 12-15 are beginning to struggle with a sense of identity, look for role models, and understand the potential consequences of future behaviors.
  • Individuals age 16-20 develop even further to consider the importance placed on one’s role in life and an increased concern for the future and life beyond high school according to the AACAP

If God has designed a time when a person would wake up and start to ask questions about life, identity, value, and purpose, we ought to be there in that moment with the gospel. This moment and these questions are signs of readiness for the gospel. Teenagers are ready!

If God has designed a time when a person would wake up and start to ask questions about life, identity, value, and purpose, we ought to be there in that moment with the gospel.

High-Risk Choices

Unfortunately, a teenager’s desire to discover purpose, value, worth and fulfillment in life often starts without God. Teenagers commonly make choices for their lives that are high-risk.

In fact, if you did a quick internet search for “youth risk survey,” your results would be jam-packed with information and data that could lead you to see teenagers as rebellious, wild, and out of control.

Here is a quick look at some CDC statistics for drug and sexual activity among high school students.

  • 185% increase in sexual activity from 9th grade to 12th grade
  • 350% increase of teens who had four or more sexual partners from 9th grade to 12th grade
  • 140% increase in ecstasy use from 9th grade to 12th grade

There is no other age group that sees such a drastic increase in drug use, sexual activity, and alcohol abuse than teenagers. These numbers have not seemed to go down over the years. If anything, they have increased.

It can be tempting to throw our hands up and put labels on teens, but these behaviors are symptoms. We believe the questions teens are asking drive them to high-risk behaviors. They are looking for answers. They’re just looking in all the wrong places.

The behaviors are a problem to be sure, but we have to treat the disease, not just the symptoms. The real answer to their questions of meaning and purpose is found in a relationship with God. It’s important to remember that their choices don’t mean they’re an enemy–it means they’re lost, like sheep who have no shepherd.

Why do we go to the local high schools? Because that is where all the teenagers are…

Lasting, Lifelong Impact

Teenagers are eager to discover who they are. The choices they make now will leave a lasting impact on the rest of their life. Unfortunately, there is a long, tempting list of sins that the world offers as a way to provide meaning for life and self-worth (I John 2:16-17, Ephesians 2:1-3, John 10:10). 

When someone takes what the world has to offer, two things happen. First, the life the world offers quickly fades and leaves suffering and emptiness (Luke 15:11-16). The second, however, takes place on a longer timeline and is far worse. 

Have you ever read the phrase “hard heart” in the Bible? This phrase describes someone who repeatedly chooses to reject God’s truth and instead decides to live out their own truth. God will let a person live this way (Romans 1:18-24). So “hard heart” is a word picture of what happens when you reject God to the point that His message no longer sinks in because your heart has become like a hard stone.

This passage in Ephesians 4 helps us to clearly see this.

With the Lord’s authority, I say this: live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity. Ephesians 4:17-19

Throughout the Bible, God has shown us that when someone chooses to live life without Him, their heart will slowly harden.

At first, they may push God away intentionally and choose to trust other things. Eventually, though, they begin to just reject God without even thinking about it. They become unresponsive to God’s truth like a blind person would be toward the light (Acts 28:23-28).

Teenagers are dying to find out what makes life worth living! If we hesitate to take the gospel to them, their hearts grow hard. When they try to find lasting meaning in the world, a life of sin, and rebellion against God, their heart grows steadily harder with each passing year.

Now, this does not mean all hope is lost. God can always do amazing things that will change the course of a person’s life! Remember what God does with Saul, soon to be Paul, in Acts 9:1-19.

Many times, God uses the consequences of a person’s rebellion to show them how meaningless life is apart from Him. We call this coming to Jesus “the hard way.” This may mean years of pain, emptiness, and deeply ingrained habits that this person will have to carry with them.

When people come to Jesus this way, they will often say, “I just wasted so much time chasing the wrong things.”

We can take this to heart and take steps of faith to share the gospel with young people. Choosing to follow Jesus as a teenager means that a person can spend more years growing closer to God rather than distancing from Him.

Another thing we think a lot about in Cru is going to the students. We want to go where teenagers are and be there with the gospel in their world.

If we hesitate to take the gospel to teenagers, their hearts grow hard.

Reaching Everyone

If you wanted to reach everyone with the gospel in any given city, where would you go? Is there a place where everyone goes?

Almost the entire population goes through middle schools and high schools at some point. Reaching those campuses is one of the most strategic things we can do.

In Cru, we want to give everyone a chance to know someone who truly follows Jesus. This is our plan. We go to the local middle or high school and take steps of faith to serve and share the gospel with teenagers.

Why do we go to the local schools? Because that is where all the teenagers are! They are asking the questions, and we believe Jesus has the best answers. They are hurting, and we believe that we can help.

The best time to share the gospel with someone is during their teenage years.

Next Step

Find out if there is a Cru ministry reaching teens near you, and consider how you can invest in reaching teens with us.

Find Cru Near You

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The Claim Your Campus Prayer Strategy

CYC is an organization that exists to empower middle and high school students to pray for change on their campus. Their goal is to get one million students to claim their campus for Christ through prayer. CYC offers a phenomenal app you can check out here.

We encourage all campus movements to emphasize prayer and the Claim Your Campus app is a great way to engage students in prayer. Download it now to kickstart a movement of prayer on your campus!

5 Key Features of the Claim Your Campus App

Pray Now:
This section is designed to lead any student through a daily 15-minute prayer time for their school. The format is simple: Listen, Thank, Ask. Each day students read a passage of scripture, thank God for something specific He is doing in their school, and ask Him for help at their school and schools across the country.

21-Day Challenge:
Habits take time to build. The 21-Day Challenge can help you and your students build the habit of praying together daily.

Share Your Story:
Students from all over the country are using Claim Your Campus at their schools. This video feature gives students one minute to capture what God is doing at their school and then share it.

Groups:
Use the Groups section to form your own prayer group and/or join other groups. Students praying together in community for their school(s) is the foundation of CYC. The group feature keeps students connected, motivated, and encouraged to keep pressing on!

Prayer Walk Your Campus:
This feature describes how to prayer walk a campus in three easy steps. Invite. Pray. Report. It includes a brief tutorial and a downloadable prayer walk guide.

Social Media:
Stay connected through Tik Tok, Instagram, and Youtube pages; News and Updates can also be found in the app.

Cast the Vision: Prayer Equals Change

  • Use these videos to get excited about how God could change your campus through prayer and how He could use you to build a prayer movement at your school.
  • General Promo video
  • Marion School video

Invite Students to Be One in the Million

Students download the app using the QR code graphic & claim their campus!

We encourage all campus movements to emphasize prayer and the Claim Your Campus app is a great way to engage students in prayer.

4 Different Ways Students Can Claim Their Campus

  1. Start a Weekly Prayer Group. The CYC app provides prompts that change weekly.
  2. Host a prayer walk around your campus. The CYC app features a Prayer Walk Guide.
  3. Embed 5-10 minutes of Prayer into Your Weekly Cru Club Meeting. Build a CULTURE of prayer. CYC has done all the work for you. Click here for the Leader’s Guide and here for premade slides for up to 20 weeks. That is enough for an entire school year. CYC’s GRAB-N-GO resources make praying EASY.
  4. Participate in Annual National Events such as SYATP.

Invite the adults in your community to support SYATP by signing up for The Prayer Walk Project. This project offers a way for caring adults to join hands in prayer on the Saturdays before and after SYATP.

Prayer is the real power in any campus movement. Make it a non-negotiable in your ministry to emphasize prayer with adults and students and see how God moves.

Next Step

Download the Claim Your Campus app and consider how you could use it on your campus today. Do you have a prayer strategy for your plans? If not, send the app to a few student leaders and invite them to start praying for their campus!

DOWNLOAD THE APP
4 Ways to Prepare for a Prayer Walk
1
Prepare Your Heart

Surrender the Prayer Walk to the Lord. Ask the Lord for one or two scriptures to help prepare your heart. Jot them down. If you like, use them to inspire the people you invite, or share them with your team the day you meet to prayer walk. Pray for:

  • Divine appointments with people.
  • Connections with insiders at the school who are like-minded and willing to help.
  • God to guide your steps.
  • Open eyes to see the spiritual needs of the campus.
2
Prepare Your Team

Pray for Names. Ask the Lord to bring to mind specific names of students, volunteers, parents, pastors, and/or faculty you can ask to join your prayer walk. Keep in mind, this is not about numbers. Even one prayer partner is enough. Matthew 18:20 says, “Where two or three gather in my name, there I am with them.”

Invite the People
that He brought to mind. Decide what mode of communication is best: text? social media? phone call? Give them a brief description of what a prayer walk is and what they can expect that day. Share what has motivated you to gather a team to pray. Be sure to tell them the date, the start and end times, and the location. Give them an RSVP date.

Send them any final details
on the day before. Remind your team what time you will begin and end and the location to meet. Let them know what to bring and any adjustments needed due to weather or other factors.

(During a Prayer Walk) Pray for: Divine appointments with people. Connections with insiders at the school who are like-minded and willing to help. God to guide your steps. Open eyes to see the spiritual needs of the campus.

3
Prepare Your Campus

Check with an Insider at Your School. Once you choose your campus and gather your team, you may want to check with an insider at the school to see if there is anyone you need to notify ahead of time. Most likely, it will not be an issue if you are prayer walking after school or over the weekend on the parts of the campus that are open to the public. Avoid prayer walking on campus during school hours without permission.

4
Prepare Your Details

“WHO” DETAILS: By now, you know WHO is coming. But here are some other “WHO” questions to think about if you have a larger group. Who will…

  • begin the prayer walk (introduce/explain it)?
  • end the prayer walk?
  • lead smaller groups (if your team is large)?


“WHAT TO BRING” DETAILS
: You may want to bring copies of the Prayer Guide and the Leader Guide.

“WHERE/WHEN” DETAILS: Make sure everyone knows the date and time you will meet. Include starting point (address of meeting spot) and ending point (time and meeting spot).

“HOW” DETAILS: For your convenience, this Campus Prayer Walk Leader’s Guide provides a general flow and includes sample scripts of what to say from start to finish. If you can read it, you can lead it. But you may need to think through the unique needs of your prayer walk.

Would you like the prayer walk to be more casual or more organized? Do you have people who are comfortable prayer walking or more new people who may need more instruction?

You have prepared your part. Time to grab your walking shoes. Let’s do this!

Next Step
It is time to get on the campus to pray. Text one friend today and ask them if they would be willing to go to the school to prayer walk with you this week. Get your feet on the campus and pray together. Once you have done it yourself, it will be a lot easier to gather others to do it with you.
Prayer Walking

After the Israelites wandered for 40 years in the desert, God called Joshua to bring His people into the land He had promised them. The commander of the army of the Lord appeared to Joshua with instructions essentially for a prayer walk around the city of Jericho. And let’s just say the Israelites’ obedience to his words, made history. (If you are unfamiliar with this incredible story, you can read the whole story here.)

What is Prayer Walking?

Prayer walking is just what it sounds like—praying as you walk. And you can do it anywhere: around your neighborhood, through your city, or even on your daily commute. Invite others to join you! As you walk together, let the Spirit of God use what you see to guide your prayers. Then, trust God to respond in His perfect way and timing.

One of the most impactful places for a prayer walk is around a school campus that means something to you. It puts you right where the students are—like God’s boots on the ground—allowing you to connect your heart to that specific location as you pray. And who knows? It might even lead to a chance meeting with a key person on campus. Many ministries have started with a simple “Hey there!” to a student or administrator during a prayer walk. A casual stroll can open unexpected doors!

If you have never done this before, no worries! Joshua—the young leader from the Bible—had not done it before either. It was his willingness and availability to God that mattered most. And the same goes for you—no experience required!

Prayer walking is just what it sounds like—praying as you walk.

Prayer Walk in Three Easy Steps

Meet Up (5 minutes)

Grab a friend or two and meet on campus- ideally after school or on the weekend. Select and read a meaningful passage from the Bible together. Take a minute to pray a blessing over this time, and ask the Holy Spirit to guide your prayers.

Walk & Pray (10-20 minutes)

Start walking the perimeter of the campus and let the Holy Spirit use who/what you see guide your prayers. Here are 5 ways you could begin praying:

  • Ask God to move by His Spirit on this campus and be glorified.
  • Pray people here would hunger and thirst for God.
  • Pray for the believers here to live wholeheartedly for Jesus and make others feel seen, known, and loved by God.
  • Pray for leaders in this school’s community (students, parents, administration, faculty, coaches, etc.)

Wrap It Up (5 minutes)

Select a spot to close your time together. Talk about how it went. Was there anything that stood out as significant or meaningful? Take a few minutes to thank God for this time. Express your love for Him and your confidence that He will respond to the prayers He heard today.

Other Prayer Walking Guides

If you would rather have a more specific guide to help you in your prayer walk, try one below:

One of the most impactful places for a prayer walk is around a school campus that means something to you.

Why Do It?

Prayer Walking Knocks Down Walls

What effect did Joshua’s and the Israelites’ obedience have on the fortified and powerful ancient city of Jericho? Well, the God of the Universe infused their faith-filled feet with power, causing the otherwise insurmountable walls of the city to collapse. That’s how they fought and won the battle of Jericho—without ever throwing a punch!

Now, maybe you are not planning to tear down any physical walls around your school—in fact, let’s definitely avoid that! But in the spiritual realm, every school is a battlefield for souls. On every campus, there are barriers to the gospel that need to be broken down. Inside every person, there are walls that separate us from God or keep us from fully experiencing the abundant life He wants for us.

Looking for a more current example of a battle fought and won with prayer? Check out this powerful story of what happened when a group of students in Marion, Indiana consistently and prayerfully put feet to their faith and watched God win the battle for their campus. If you want to read about more victories won with praying feet, check out Exodus 14 and 2 Chronicles 20:1-30.

Some Other Great Reasons to Prayer Walk Your Campus

  • It is a place to gather other believers who have a heart for the campus.
  • It is a way to be on campus with a purpose.
  • Sometimes God uses these times to introduce us to key gatekeepers on campus.
  • It might surface some needs on the campus with which you could help.
  • It helps your team become more familiar with the campus and less fearful of going there.
  • It is better than doing nothing. Sometimes God moves when we take action.

 

Within the campus ministry of Cru, prayer walking has actually been shown to be the single most effective strategy in seeing new gospel movements started.
Dan Allen, Director of Mission Expansion

 

The powerful presence of God always has and STILL does mix with our prayers and supernaturally connects us more deeply to God, ourselves, and others. Prayer breaks down barriers that lie between us and wins the battle for souls.

Prayer walking can be your lead foot on any campus. Ready to grab a friend and step into the unknown with Him? Prayer walking is something anyone can do.

Next Step
Plan 15 minutes this week to stop at your local high school, walk around, and pray for the school. Bring a friend or do it alone; just get your feet on the campus and pray. Ask God to show you what next steps He would like you to take.

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