It was a typical Friday morning at one of our middle schools. A large group of students had gathered in the library for their Campus Life club. And they seemed eager to participate. What was unique about the day was one of our new leaders was being given the chance to share her story. I will call her Nina. Nina’s story like most of ours is filled with times of heartache and doubts. She felt painfully unwanted as a child. But God used these feelings of abandonment to make her aware of her need for Him. As Nina shared the students paid full attention. We could feel her pain but we could all see the hope that filled her eyes as she shared about the love and acceptance she had found in a relationship with Jesus. It was inspiring.
The club ended and the hundred or so students began to make their way to class. I had begun to clean up the supplies from club when I spotted Nina in the back of the room talking with a handful of students. Obviously what she had shared had connected with them. The students soon departed and Nina confirmed that what she had shared had made an impact on these students in particular. They all said that they also had felt unwanted at some point in their lives. They were incredibly appreciative for what Nina had shared. They had discovered that they weren’t the only ones.
What Nina had stumbled upon that morning was what we call tie points between her story and the stories of these kids. Tie points are simply common experiences that help tie two stories together. They happen as we share our own stories and discover the stories of the students we reach. These tie points are like bridges that God uses to eventually tie His story to their story. If you read the last few sentences closely you will see there are three stories: me and my story, a student and their story, and God and His story. This is what YFC calls Three Story. It is our operating system. It’s how we engage in relationship with the many students we meet. Our ultimate goal is to connect these three stories and point students towards the hope found in Jesus Christ. In 2021 hundreds of stories were connected. And dozens of students placed their hope in God’s story of forgiveness through the death of His Son. It was a great year. But we believe God has more in store.
Every day YFC leaders are entering the lives of Tuscaloosa teenagers with the Good News of Jesus Christ. To join our team please visit our Join Page.