Why I Work With The UMYF

or…Why I'm So Excited About "Global Vision"

21 September 2000

Last night, I was invited to go along on a youth event called Global Vision. For those of you who may not be familiar with it, Global Vision is a five-day trip to New York City for senior high youth of the North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church. I was thrilled to be invited, and I am looking forward to it so very much. As I thought about sharing this excitement with those of you kind enough to read my little website, I realized a simple journal entry would not be enough to describe what makes opportunities like this so very, very important to me. So, I decided to write this little page.

Now, obviously, on the surface level I'm excited 'cause—hey! I get to go to New York City for five days next spring! What's not cool about that? But it goes deeper than that of course. I mean, I have pocket money, and I can whip up a little excursion to Manhattan just about any ol' time I want. As a matter of fact, I do try to go up there at least once every year or two. But this is a trip with our conference youth, and that's what makes it so special for so many reasons.

First—and still on a superficial level—it's very nostalgic for me. When I was in high school, I went on Global Vision for two years in a row (1986 and 1987). Of course, back in the day, it was called the United Nations Study Tour, and it lasted a full week. It was a chance to get away from home, away from your school and hang out in a huge, exciting city with some really, really great people from across the state. As a matter of fact, during the bus ride up on my first United Nations Study Tour, I met this other kid as we stopped for food at Baltimore's Inner Harbor, and he and I went on to become best friends. It's almost fifteen years now, and the two of us are still best friends, and have been the whole time.

But, as much as I like to lose myself in memories of the past from time to time, I am one who lives very much in the present. And that means I'm not a kid anymore, and I'm not a senior high youth participant. What I am is a youth worker and volunteer for the United Methodist Church. I work with the kids at my local church, and during the summer, I go off and volunteer at week-long events for youth from across the North Carolina conference. I do it for very selfish reasons—I think they're a blast! I almost feel guilty 'cause I have such a great time. And the more you are able to bond with the kids, the better it is.

Just about more than any other times in my life, this is when I really feel God. I get a huge jolt of His love, raw and pure, sometimes almost overwhelming. It comes down to this simple truth: whenever two or more people come together in the name of their higher power, their God, their Christ, then He is there among them, and the connections that form between those blessed people overrides any differences between them. God is love, and God is the connection between us, His children, and when we come together, He makes His face shown through each person involved.

Young people have fresh minds and spirits. They live in the present and are connected into the here and now. They have no career, no family to support, no major bills to pay. They do not yet carry many of the burdens that hang on the shoulders of us world-weary adults. And because of this, God seems to shine so much more brightly in them.

It's funny, though—as you start working with young folks, you are surprised at how invisible and inconsequential adults can be to them. You're there in the room with them, but you don't really "matter"! If you show up and help lead the local UMYF meeting for an hour or two each week, you kinda get to know some of them, and many of them may learn your name. If you take a group on a weekend retreat, then you get to know them a bit better, but the dynamics of the group doesn't change much; you're still dealing with a group of kids who have known each other all their lives, the relationships are pretty set, and you're still a bit of an "outsider" to them.

But now, take a group of kids from all across the state, and bring them together for a week. Everyone's on top of each other, around the clock. Sure, there are several established friendships in place when the week starts, but there's always so many new faces that the dynamics are constantly changing. Now everyone present is a member of the group and exploring each other, and some intense bonding is now taking place. Everyone has a chance to leave the world they know—and the day-to-day concerns that are associated with that world—behind. Everyone greets each other with fresh faces and can start new relationships from square one with no baggage. This is how the fire starts, and everyone is warmed by its glow. And now you are there with these bright young folks, and you are a member of this new tribe.

The events I have been a part of for the past couple of summers, Summer Breakaway in Louisburg and the UMYF Annual Conference Session in Fayetteville, are big. We're talking over 300 folks. In those situations, you bond in clusters. You still feel a part of the whole, but you identify with smaller, more manageable sub-tribes. Traditional activities such as "Growth Groups" are a wonderful way to establish smaller bonding circles with a group of about a dozen folks for the duration of the week; it is one of the things I love leading and participating in most of all. But I look back fondly to the smaller events I used to participate in: the United Nations Study Tour, Youth Music Workshop, and, of course, the CCYM meetings. These involved much smaller numbers of participants, and you were able to form a single, cohesive group that included practically everyone involved.

So, that's what I'm looking forward to in March when we get together for our Global Vision experience. There will be the pre-trip orientation, where there will be a lot of familiar faces, with hugs and warm greetings, but there will also be the new faces with the exciting possibilities of new experiences, sharing and friendships. There will be the day-long bus trip up the east coast, with jokes, story-swapping, laughter, seat-hopping, and the giddy buzz of anticipation and excitement. Then there will be the city itself, Manhattan, and the awe that greets us as a group. Throughout our time there, the experiences will hit us from all sides, the unexpected will occur, and the inside jokes that develop from those moments will become the unifying themes of the week. And then, finally, we'll pack up, take our final photographs, and reluctantly return to the life we put aside for a while, a life made more beautiful and meaningful by the days we've shared, and by the many people we now share deeply rooted and meaningful friendships with.

And that's why I am so excited!