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WHAT'S SO SPECIAL ABOUT YOUTH EE?

1. Easier To Reach Versus Harder To Reach People

One objection made about EE is that it is confrontational and does not take the time required to build a trust relationship with a person before attempting to share the Gospel; and therefore it may put people off by appearing to force God on them.

If witnessing with an EE approach is not appropriately done, the above statement, unfortunately, is entirely true. Sometimes, enthusiastic but insensitive Christians will misuse a tool like EE. That happens. However, be careful not to assume that the method is flawed. Like the craftsman building a house would not try to cut a board with a screwdriver, you would not want to misuse this God-given tool He has obviously blessed with incredible effectiveness worldwide in millions of lives.

There are times and circumstances where sharing the Gospel with someone would not be appropriate. One of the goals of EE training is to teach you how to discern those times and, more importantly, when the circumstances are appropriate, how to effectively proceed to share the Gospel.

We would say that EE is not confrontational, but it is intentional. Often those who criticize any method of intentional evangelism as being pushy, are the very ones who do not recognize appropriate opportunities to share the Gospel when they are presented to them. In EE we do not want to ever be pushy with the Gospel. On the other hand, we do not want to miss God-given opportunities simply because we were too afraid of offending someone.

Perhaps the following chart could help you recognize where different people are culturally and spiritually and give a clue to how they may be approached.

In your ministry, what kind of kids do you see? That is, where would they fit on the above scale, from easier to reach to harder to reach? A relational approach works great with hard to reach kids. But, in any neighborhood or community there are still many kids who already have a real openness to the Gospel.
When we develop a friendship with folks, how do we decide when they are open to the Gospel? Some tend to run everyone through the “process” at the same pace, rather than meet kids “where they are.” If a person needs more time in a relationship in order to build the kind of trust that is needed to share the Gospel, then we must be willing to pay the price of time and effort to build that trust, and not jump too quickly into the Gospel. Some so-called “relational evangelism” methods never quite get around to actually sharing the Gospel, and some so-called “confrontational” methods never are willing to build trust over time. We must learn to discern which approach to take with people to be truly effective and not err on either side.

2. Why Youth EE Is Different From Adult EE

There has been a great deal of research and writing about the Baby Buster and Generation-X crowd. Youth Pastors would serve their ministries well to learn the dynamics of the youth culture. Originally the EE Gospel Presentation was written at a time when Baby Boomers were very young. Most people held onto certain presuppositions and had a distinct predisposition towards Christianity that enabled EE to be effective. However, younger generations of people are growing up in a culture that views Christianity in a different way. It therefore would be reasonable that we carefully examine how we present the Gospel today versus 20 years ago. Youth EE attempts to do that. Although the basic Gospel, which is a timeless truth, has not changed from Adult EE, many sections and ways of making points of the Gospel have been revised.

A good analogy might be the difference between a traditional and a contemporary service. Many people, often those from an older generation and perspective, prefer the traditional approach to worship. On the other hand, the growth of contemporary services has been remarkable in our culture. Although there are both strong and weaker examples of both kinds of worship, the point is, one speaks more effectively to some people and the other to another crowd. In the same way, the EE Gospel Presentation is a proven tool for effectively sharing the Gospel, and the Youth EE adaptation, like the contemporary service, speaks in a language that is more “user friendly” for many. Specifically, Youth EE is trying to address some of the issues of the contemporary culture.

If you were to compare Youth and Adult EE you would notice that the basic Gospel message is the same. However, the way of speaking, the transitional sentences, and many of the illustrations are different. Also, the “Man” and “God” sections are actually more complicated in the Youth version. These additions have tried to address certain questions and objections that the younger culture has.

As you learn the Youth EE Presentation and seek to be a more effective witness for the Gospel we hope you will recognize and appreciate these differences.

3. Is The Youth EE Gospel Presentation Manipulative?

“Manipulation” suggests that the two people, presenter and contact, are playing by different rules. If the presenter were to intentionally misrepresent the content of the presentation or suggest that he/she were more interested in the subject than he/she really is, then that would be manipulative, or at least insincere. In fact, the presenter and the contact are playing by the same rules during an EE presentation.

· The presenter has asked for permission to ask questions of a spiritual nature and has been granted permission before the diagnostic questions are asked.

· The presenter asks for permission to share his/her experience with God before the gospel is shared. There is no manipulation here, nothing hidden or misrepresented. The contact has several opportunities to gracefully bow out of the conversation. If the presentation continues it is only because the contact allows it to do so.

· The presenter asks permission to share the Gospel.

Both the presenter and the contact understand that while a rapport is being built, no lasting relationship is promised or implied. In fact, both parties understand that the conversation is being built around a mutual interest, not a relationship.

It is not uncommon for two strangers to share stories and experiences that center on a mutual interest. We often talk with strangers about jobs, parenting, investing, hobbies and the like. Why should a conversation about spiritual issues be any different? In an EE presentation, the presenter several times asks for permission to engage the contact in a discussion about spiritual things, and when permission is given, a mutual interest is established. And that’s the foundation for the presentation.

Further evidence of non-manipulation in the EE Presentation

· Before any commitment is suggested the presenter asks if the presentation “makes sense”.
· The presenter asks, not assumes, whether or not the contact wants to make a commitment.
· The presenter further qualifies what is involved in such a commitment through a series of four statements. Each statement ends with the question, “Is this what you want?”, giving the contact four more opportunities to back out if he/she wishes to do so.
· We believe God is the one who gives repentance and faith. We are only His vessel to witness and therefore recognize that a contact’s interest is God’s responsibility and not ours.

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