Student Ministry
Purpose
Two 14 is a ministry to, for, and by students 6th grade through college that exists to reach students with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, train them to obey all that He commanded, and send them into the world as ambassadors of the King.
Values
Our values are determined by the intersection of our purpose and culture. We have to ask and answer the question, "what things should matter most to someone with our purpose in our culture." Values are what make our ministry different from every other ministry. All ministries have people and meetings. What makes us unique is our values. These are the ideas that forge the image of our ministry. In other words, what our ministry is like, what we do or don't do, how leadership and ministry is done is dictated by our values. Needless to say, values play an important role.
Vision
Two thousand years ago our God and King, Jesus Christ, gave those quaking final words to his loyal followers that would forever change the world "you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." Every since that day, the glorious God of the gospel of Jesus Christ has forever been changing the lives of people all over the world. The light of the gospel has wrought justice, freedom, education, peace and love from one end of the world to the other. Nevertheless, the mission is incomplete. There is still work to be done, for even in our very own county, people depart from this life and enter the hereafter without ever being really brought face to face with a genuine follower of Jesus Christ.
In many, if not most of the churches in our area, the student ministry is largely an ineffective social gathering for good kids. Few churches are actually making a difference and the ones that are growing are not growing fast enough (keeping up with the population) to make a large scale impact on our county. We seek to become part of the solution. We want to be people on mission with God to change the state of affairs in Pflugerville, the Greater Austin Area, the state of Texas, the U.S.A. and the entire world.
With this large scale vision in mind, the shorter term vision is forged. I see a day when every teenager in Pflugerville has heard and seen the gospel from Hill Country Student.
I see a day when teenagers are spiritually adopted by the fathers of our congregation and embrace God's plan for their lives. I see a day when Fathers pastor their wives and children. I see a day when other churches are planted. I see an army of sold out people armed with truth, love and zeal, changing the work environment. I see a specific strategy for outreach at each Junior and High School.
Objective (Defining the Win for Student Ministry):
the more students committed to the five areas of spiritual growth (corporate worship, discipleship group, financial giving, serving in a ministry, and engaging the lost) the better.
Programs:
Student Worship Gathering (Middle School) and Terminal (High School) are designed to motivate unchurched students to begin the journey of discipleship (beginning with trusting Christ and then following in baptism, the five commitments and membership). Gatherings are on Sunday mornings at 11:00 for Middle School and 9:15 am for High School. Both meet in the High Dive (Room 204). These gatherings are high energy, with fun activities, live band, up front teaching and small group discussion. This is our primary reach program.
Outreach Events are designed to be an entry point or first encounter opportunity for churched students to invite unchurched students to. Events include retreats, Super Bowl parties, Halloween outreaches, and other events. Events are not for churched kid's leisure activities instead, they are an environment to supplement their incarnational and missional lifestyles of outreach and friendship evangelism. Events should be very "cool" therefore modeling the value of beauty
O3 (One on One) Discipleship is one way students get acclimated into the overall process of discipleship and spiritual formation. Scenarios are dependent upon age, and length of time in SM. Ideally, JH students will be discipled by adults as well as older classmen (Junior and Seniors). Freshman and Sophomores will be taken on by adults exclusively. Juniors and Seniors will reproduce themselves in JH students.
Discipleship Groups are the place for students to go deep in the word and be trained to be sent. Groups are grade and gender specific and generally meet in homes throughout the school year. D-groups help students to connect with each other and God through caring relationships, provide biblical teaching, and accountability. D-groups also celebrate special occasions (Birthdays, Holidays) and get together for ministry projects and just some good fun. There are five commitments for D-group members:
1. To make attendance of meetings of the D-group a priority.
2. To complete all reading and writing assignments on time.
3. To memorize assigned scripture verses on time.
4. To pray for the other members of the group.
5. To be held accountable for the above commitments.
Ministry Teams help people develop and use their spiritual gifts as well as provide organization and structure for SM. Students serve in a variety of ways including but not limited to: Worship, Audio/Video/Lighting, Mentoring, Mission Trips and Great Adventure.
Rights of Passage celebrate and challenge the progress of students as they mature in Christ and society. Areas include: 6th Grade Orientation, Freshman Entrance, and Senior Graduation
YLF (Youth Leadership Family) provides direction (vision casting) and training for adult leaders. YLF helps leaders stay focused on the win for TWO14 in light of the overall vision. YLF also equips leaders to accomplish the win for their area of ministry. Format: Vision Gathering & Lunch (30 min), JH & HS Specific Breakouts (30 min), Ministry Specific Breakouts (30 min).
Parent Meetings -at least twice a year (January and September) we have Parent Meetings to give out calendar dates, answer questions and solicit feedback from parents.
