Theological Convictions December 4, 2006

The following are the theological commitments of the Journey Ministries that guide us to do ministry the way we do. It is in no way an exhaustive list.

missio Dei
We believe that God is working and active in all the world because he is both immanent and transcendent. Because we believe God is everywhere, we do not seek to bring people out of their lives and into our church but help them realize the ways God is already at work in their life.

the Gospel
We believe the gospel is just as much about how we live as how we die. We believe the gospel calls us to both a personal relationship with God and to build his Kingdom by loving others and living out his commands. We believe that God offers us a free gift of grace yet calls us to take up our cross and follow him. The Journey Ministries lives in this tension in the gospel. Therefore our mission calls us to seek the holistic transformation of adolescents towards Christ-likeness and commitment to building his Kingdom. We believe that a personal relationship with God can transform every part of an adolescent’s life towards Christ-likeness. We also believe that following Jesus means building his Kingdom on earth by creating communities that that embody the Kingdom.

humanity

We believe that all humans bear God’s image and therefore have intrinsic value. Therefore, we believe we need to serve the needs of all people, even non-Christians. Therefore we seek to reach the greater Madison community and serve them through the Journey Coffeehouse and Ministries. We believe that Christians should not only meet the spiritual needs of others, but the physical, mental, and emotional needs as a way of displaying God’s love for them.

Program Model December 4, 2006

The Journey Ministries does not fit just one model of ministry because of the diversity of programs within the ministry. The Journey Ministries exist to create a community that seeks the holistic transformation of adolescents towards Christ-likeness and commitment to building his Kingdom. (Our mission)

The Journey Ministries are centered around the Journey Coffeehouse. The Journey Coffeehouse is simply a place to build a transformational community. Most youth ministries meet at a church but Journey chose to build community at a coffeehouse so that the community can come in contact with everyone of any age and background. Non-Christians may feel unsafe when interacting with Christians at a church so the coffeehouse is meant to be a neutral and “safe-place” for Christians and non-Christians to interact.

At the Journey the leaders act as catalysts for community. Leaders intentionally work to connect with students and connect students with each other. Leaders also work to make the community intentionally Christian and transformational. Leaders work to live out the gospel every day, giving students an example of the true Christian life. Leaders also gently challenge and question students to direct them towards spiritual growth. The leaders at the Journey Ministries must know and embody the mission of the ministry if it is to be carried out.

Through the Journey Ministries adolescents can move from being part of the larger Madison community with no commitment to Christ or a church to a deep commitment to Christ and a community of Christians.

Adolescents may contact the community by coming into the coffeehouse or coming to a Friday Night at the Journey with a friend. From there they can get involved with After Class or Homework Help and begin to build relationships with other students and leaders and become integrated into the community. Volunteer and student leaders purposefully work to create community at the coffeehouse during After Class hours and volunteer baristas are at the coffeehouse whenever it is open to support the community and members of it.

After becoming relationally tied to the community they can join a smaller community within one of the weekly bible studies. The Journey Ministries offer bible studies for both Christian and non-Christian youth. After Hours and Friday Nights at the Journey continue to offer space to build community with other adolescents and leaders.

Bible studies, retreats, camps, and relationships with leaders all seek to move students to a deeper understanding of and commitment to being a follower of Christ. Kingdom Works gives students an opportunity to regularly serve in the community and understand what it means to be a Kingdom-builder and part of God’s redemptive plan for creation. Volunteer leaders mentor students who wish for a guide to walk with them in their faith-journey.

Committed Christ-followers can join Revolution, the student leadership team, where their leadership skills will be developed and where they will get opportunities to minister to younger students within the ministry. All students who are committed Christ-followers within the Journey Ministries are encouraged to build Christian community with their non-Christian friends either by involving them in the Journey community or leading new communities of their own.

Our programs exist to build community so that our mission may be fulfilled.

Objectives and Evaluation December 2, 2006

At the Journey Ministry, we are committed to constantly evaluating our ministry. We believe it is important to fulfill our mission and vision for the overall ministry along with the objectives for each program within the ministry. To consistently fulfill our objectives we much evaluate our ministry and make adjustments when we aren’t fulfilling our objectives.

The mission, vision, values, and goals for our ministry can be found here. We evaluate the overall ministry based on these statements and also evaluate our programs based on their fulfillment of the overall mission and vision.

The description of some of the ministry’s programs can be found here.

The objectives and evaluation plan for The Journey Ministries’ programs:

Leaders:

Objectives

• to provide students with spiritual and life guides
• to provide students with Christ-like examples
• to provide students with people who love them
• to build community through the initiatives of the volunteer and youth leaders

Evaluation

• the youth minister meets with the pastor twice a year for a performance evaluation process, including written evaluations from volunteer leaders and students involved in the youth ministry
• new leaders are evaluated after one month of shadowing and then informally evaluated at a meeting with the youth minister each month
• complaints or concerns of any leader in the ministry will be followed by a formal evaluation

Volunteer leader training:

Objectives

• to provide once-a-month training sessions that will give leaders tools and information to help them minister
• to offer opportunities to attend a leadership retreat twice a year and CORE training once a year
• to provide support and encouragement
• to build relationships between the leaders

Evaluation

• Written evaluations twice a year asking:
  • Do the training sessions provide tools and information that you used?
  • What training was needed or wanted but wasn’t covered in the training sessions?
  • Did the training sessions make you feel supported and encouraged? Why or why not?
• Are at least 85% of the leaders attending the leadership retreat and 50% of the leaders attending CORE?
• Are the leaders spending time with each other outside of the Journey Ministries?

Revolution:

Objectives

• To develop the leadership skills of Christian adolescents
• To give young leaders experience by involving them in leading younger students
• To develop leaders that build Christian community outside of the Journey Ministries
• To create Kingdom-builders by teaching students how to use their leadership skills for God

Evaluation

• do students display use of the taught leadership skills during later Revolution meetings or in the Journey Ministries?
• Are 75% of Revolution students involved in leadership in some capacity within the Journey Ministries?
• Do students have a group of Christian friends outside of the Journey Ministries? Or are the students committed to sharing their faith and life with a group of non-Christian students not involved in the Journey Ministries?
• Through discussion, is it clear that students are using their leadership skills for God, or are they using them for their own success?

Bible study groups:

Objectives

• To create intimate community where students can be open and honest with each other
• To move students to a deeper understanding of and commitment to being a follower of Christ and a Kingdom-builder
• To provide non-Christian students with a clear and biblical understanding of the gospel and the Christian faith
• To provide Christian students with the theological groundwork for a biblical worldview
• To guide students to experiencing God in everyday life through spiritual disciplines

Evaluation

• Through observation, are students being honest and open during bible study?
• Can students articulate what it means to be a Christian?
• Can non-Christian students articulate the basic message of the gospel?
• Can Christian students articulate their basic theological understanding of God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, creation, sin, salvation, and the bible?
• Can students describe a time when they experienced God through the use of a spiritual discipline?

After Class/Homework Help:

Objectives

• To reach the non-Christian adolescents in the community and have 25% of attendance be non-Christian students
• To build relationships by having each student talk to at least one other student they did not come with and make contact with one leader (based on new student forms)
• Create a welcoming and fun atmosphere where students want to return to
• to provide students help with homework, life issues, and spiritual questions if they want it
• to move Christians towards Christ by having at least 2 new students join bible studies each month

Evaluation

• Is 25% of the attendance non-Christian? (based on new student forms)
• Has each student talked to at least one other student and one leader by the time they leave? (based on new student forms)
• Do at least 75% of students return to the journey more than once?
• Ask the students: do they feel they got help with their homework and spiritual/life questions?
• Have at least 2 new students joined a bible study this month?

Fridays at the Journey:

Objectives

• Students invite their non-Christian friends to the event so at least 25% of the students present are non-Christian
• Every student gets personally invited to attend After Class and/or the next Friday Night at the Journey by an adult volunteer or student leader
• every student talks to at least one other student that they didn’t come with

Evaluation

• Is 25% of the attendance non-Christian? (based on new student forms)
• Has every student been invited to return to Friday Night at the Journey or to After Class before they leave?
• Has every student talked to at least one student they haven’t come with?

Demographics October 31, 2006

Demographics of the Community- Madison, Wisconsin

Madison, Wisconsin has been named one of the best places to live in the country for 2006. The city lies in south-central Wisconsin about two hours away from Milwaukee. Downtown lies on an isthmus between two large lakes. Madisonites are very recreational and enjoy numerous the lakes, beaches, bike paths and parks around the city. There are several “pillars” of the community including the weekly farmers market on the capitol square every Saturday in the summer, weekly concerts on the square every week, bands at the terrace on UW-Madison’s campus, shopping on State Street, and a huge commitment to UW-Madison athletics. Madison is also known for it’s liberal, and sometimes radical, politics, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, one of top public universities in the country and a huge party school, and it’s hippie culture on the east-side. The university, several hospitals, research centers, and businesses employ a lot of Madison residents. Madison does not have a lot of industry within it’s city limits.

Implications for Ministry

Because Madison is an educated, liberal, university town it is usually seen as an unfriendly place for Christians, but Madison has a thriving Christian community. Like any city, Madison is diverse in race and socioeconomic class, and the excellent public school system has exposed teenagers to a broad worldview. Unfortunately this worldview sometimes contradicts the Christian worldview. It is difficult for Madison adolescents to adopt the Christian worldview because the culture of Madison sometimes runs against it. Madison also has a lot of unchurched adolescents who are from unchurched families. These students need to be connected to churched students so they can be exposed to the gospel. Many of the unchurched students in Madison come from educated families who have false beliefs about Christian faith and intellectual oppositions to Christianity. These students need a place to ask questions and challenge Christianity so they can receive a clear picture of Christianity before making a choice before or against it.

General Population

• Population… 221,600

• Median Age- 31.8

• Completed at least some college- 58.8%

• Has health plan- 93.5%

Percent Population by Race

• White- 82.1%

• Black or African American- 6.4%

• Asian- 6.2%

• American Indian and Alaska Native- 0.3%

• Some other race- 2.4%

• Two or more races- 2.5%

• Hispanic or Latino (of any race)- 5.9%

• Foreign born- 10.2%

Finances

• Per capita income- $27,475

• Median family income- $67,713

• Medium home price- $218,600

Awards

• Money Magazine 53^rd Best Place to Live- 2006

Demographics of the Church- First Church of Madison

First Church population differs from the larger Madison population because it is both more educated and wealthier, although not by much. First Church has a strong commitment to solid theological teaching, which is evident in the weekly sermon. The commitment to theological education draws a lot of intellectuals from the community including a lot of students and graduate students from UW-Madison and university faculty. First Church is very much a “teaching” rather than a “preaching” church. The church also has a very strong commitment to community, which is evident in the huge community group ministry and attendance at ministries for specified groups. First Church is not just a Sunday church, either. Most members are involved in at least one ministry or community group and a large percent of the members volunteer with the church. The church has been growing very rapidly over the past few years and now has 9 services each Sunday (during 4 services the sermon given shown via video). The adolescents from the church, on average, come from stable and whole families who are committed to the church and it’s ministries. The churched students come from generally middle-upper class backgrounds and are committed to sports, activities, and academics. There are approximately 200 adolescents who are regularly committed to the junior high or senior high ministry.

Implications for Ministry

The families at First Church are very involved in the church and the community, making time a valuable commodity. Students are generally very busy with sports and activities and have high academic achievement. These commitments generally compete for priority with involvement in the youth ministry. Although many of the churched students are committed to the youth ministry, a lot of them have a difficult time living out their faith in life because of their comfortable and relatively wealthy lifestyle. They are generally privileged and spend a lot of time online. They enjoy using a lot of technology and spending time out in the community. The Journey Ministries is committed to building community online as well as at the coffeehouse to meet students were they are already in community.

General Population

• Average Weekend Attendance (including Children)… 3,500 aprox

• 35% College and Graduate Students

• 45% Families with Children Under 18

• 15% Adults with Adult Children or Over Age 45

• 5% Over Age 65

Race (aprox.)

• White- 85%

• Black/Asian/Other- 15%

Fianaces

• Middle/Upper Class

• Majority of Adults are Homeowners