Growing up, I went to youth group at my local church. We’d meet on Wednesday and Sunday nights, and each meeting would always kick off with a game led by our youth pastor. Sometimes the game would involve everyone, like dividing up into teams and seeing who could duck tape the lightest person on the team to the wall fastest. And some games would involve individuals, like blindfolding a volunteer and having them identify all the Chick-fil-a sauces by taste only.
I always wondered what the point of those games was, and I do even more so now as I’m tasked with coming up with games on my own. Were the games simple ice breakers to get students used to the environment they were in and talking with one another? Were they to help get their energy out? Or was there always something deeper than that? Could there be something deeper than that?
I don’t want to waste time, much less a kid’s time. I know when I was that age, I didn’t want my time wasted. So how can we make the most out of games, out of simple interactions?
I think it’s through intentionality. Learning someone’s name. Looking someone in the eye. Encouraging someone. Laughing with someone. Empowering them to succeed. All things we need. All things kids need.
So today, how can we do that?
-Cliff
Cliff’s Note: Encourage in the Simplicity.