Southland Christian Church

Hollywood is smart. Really smart. They've picked up on something that the church has yet to notice. 

The power of the Middle Schoolers, tweens, teenyboppers,..whatever you call them, they've got power they don't even know they posses.

Think about it. It's Middle Schoolers who've rocketed Miley Cyrus to international pop stardom, gave us the multi-million dollar High School Musical trilogy, presented Taylor Swift with a Grammy, single-handledly made Nick Jonas' split from the Jonas Brothers a top ten search on Google, and bought up every last pair of skinny jeans and Vans for when their moms drop them off at the skate park on Saturday. 

Hollywood knows that these kids are impressionable, they're looking for someone to tell them what's cool, what's meaningful, what they should be doing. 

Brad Bramer, Middle School Experience Leader: "[Middle Schoolers] are unpredictable, they are discovering who they are. They are inconsistent, sometimes they are all over the place and sometimes they are focused. It's the most teachable and influential age." 

Brad thinks that Middle School students have a place in the "body" of Christ, but it's not necessarily the one they should have: "I call them the armpit of the church. No one expects anything out of them. I expect them to reflect Christ's actions. I expect [adults in the church] to pour into them, to pour into the most influential part of someone's life, not treat them like damage control." 

This is where Brad and countless other Middle School leaders from Southland and several other Lexington churches are stepping in. Enter the GLU Conference. 

"Our students don't always have a concept of the what the Church, with a capital "C," really is. They've got friends who go to different churches, they drive around and see churches all over Lexington, some of them even go to two or three different churches in a week. Our goal is to unite the church, city-wide, to unite our Middle School students." 

The goal of GLU is to teach Middle Schoolers to be recognizable Christ-followers in their three main mission fields: in the home, with friends, and at school. "Those places are their mission fields and if these students are reflecting Christ [in these places] families would be more healthy, schools would a place of love and healing, not judgement and insecurity. And we want them to do it together; there is strength in numbers. We want them to work together, from all churches in Lexington, to see the bigger picture of the mission is and how they fit into it." 

The GLU conference is stealing a page from Hollywood's book and catching the crowds on their way to watch the DIsney channel. "If we can get Middle School students to start caring about the gospel in the same way, or more than, they care about pop-culture, then Middle Schoolers could lead the church. They could teach us how to be real, not forced or fake. They can make a huge impact in their three mission fields and in the church." 

So, unplug their ipod, wash them up, swing through McDonalds for some pre-conference fuel, give them 10 bucks for the registration fee and bring your Middle Schooler to the GLU Conference, March 5-6, at Southland. We can't promise miracles. Their pants might still  be a little low, they still won't want to take a shower, and they may still sneak out with way too much eyeliner on but they'll come back with a few new friends, a greater understanding of their identity in Christ, and the strength to stand together, no matter where they sit on Sunday. 

GLU from Southland Christian Church on Vimeo.