My Youth Group is a Clique !
Friday, December 12th, 2008 at 3:00 AM by Ruth Tynes / Online Editor / InTheTimes.com
Q: There are a ton of us teens that want to get involved in our Church Youth Group... But it's a clique!
Our Youth Pastor only embraces his daughters friends and is rude and ignores the rest of us! What's the best way to handle this situation?
A: This is a very sad and difficult situation to deal with. First and foremost, remember that we are to look to Jesus as our example, and He knows all too well about cliques within the Church, as they existed in the Church He attended (read through the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John in the New Testament portion of the Bible to get the 411 on this).
Too often, people argue and try to push themselves into a clique, instead of standing tall / strong and existing beyond the persecution of a few insecure people.
"Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the LORD." (Romans 12:17-19, NIV )
It's sad, it will hurt, it's not fair, you may "miss out" on a lot, and you may even cry often because of it. But the LORD Jesus advices us to, "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in Heaven." (Matthew 5:44-45, NIV)
If you get the opportunity, encourage the other tweens and teens around you with the advice above. But don't waste time gossiping about the clique and steer clear of trouble!
You may want to take the lead and create a tween / teen Bible Study group that meets and does other fun things together outside of the Church Youth Group (yet not creating your own clique, lol). And...don't you dare drop out of Church !
Continue to live strong for God, don't let a few simple-minded people stop you from growing closer to the LORD, and pursuing the dreams / calling He has placed on your life!
* Originally published in the April 28, 2006 issue of In the Times magazine. Copyright 2006. All rights reserved. This article may not be reprinted or posted without written permission from the author. Please contact for reprint permission.
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