Young Adult Ministry

Fr. Nick Meisl and I teamed up during our first year. He prepared content and gave talks on various topics at our monthly First Friday events while I took care of logistics. Right before he left our parish, he gathered four other young adults and formed the SPYAC Team. 

Working with other people not only relieves the stress of organizing activities, it also allows for more ideas to flow, widens the reach for more young adults to connect with through circles of influence, and it’s more fun! It is also very helpful to know each team member’s strengths. This will help the team run smoothly and minimize potential conflicts due to personality or working style differences. Resources such as the StrengthsFinder test and Patrick Lencioni’s “The Advantage” are helpful in building a strong and healthy team.

My involvement in church began through RCIA. Being part of this gave me the time and space I needed to learn more about the Catholic faith and grow in my spiritual life before I became involved in youth and young adult ministry. 

Everyone’s faith journey is different.I can’t stress enough that “you can’t give what you don’t have”. Strive to grow spiritually. Go to daily Mass if you can and to Confession regularly. There are so many ways to grow in faith, from books, videos, podcasts, and more, so try and see what works for the current season of your life. Rely on the Holy Spirit and invite Him in every aspect of your ministry. Ask Him to breathe life into all the things you have prepared, and witness for yourself what He can do to you and to those around you.

In SPYAC, I’ve learned to lean on the “tried and true” approach such as hosting First Friday talks or our annual Good Friday Retreat. However, as time went on, our team noticed a shift in attendance and engagement. We realized that some activities we hosted may not have resonated with the young adults that we wanted to reach out to. We looked at what other parishes and ministries are doing and decided to host Alpha nights. We also incorporated more social nights and Adoration nights for our First Friday events. In turn, we drew in more and newer young adults that we haven’t met before, and we even got some of them more involved as well.

Don’t be afraid to try new initiatives if the current ones don’t work. You’ll never know unless you try. At the very least, you will learn what not to do next time!

At St. Paul Parish, SPYAC is for young adults between ages 18 to 35. In practice, we tend to have the college-aged young adults and working professionals attend our activities.  We’ve identified a gap in how we serve teens that have attended LifeTeen and hope to improve on how SPYAC can connect and engage with this age group better.      

If you are just starting a young adult ministry at your parish, find out the age group that the majority of young adults in your community fall into and focus on reaching out to them. For example, hosting evening events could be difficult for young families, or hosting a big event close to exams week would make it challenging for young adults in college to attend. Understand the young adults that you are serving and figure out the best time and type of activities that could be of value to them.

I have seen many leaders come and go, including myself in previous ministries. This is normal and expected. If you are a current leader, come to realize this sooner rather than later and start to imagine who could be your replacement. Who regularly comes out to your events? Are they someone who strives to grow in their faith? Do they have an interest in helping out in your ministry? Reach out to these people and get to know them deeper. Invite them to consider becoming a leader and give them the opportunity to decide for themselves. You’ll never know who could join the team and become a solid leader unless you ask.

I’ve had the privilege of going to two World Youth Days (Rio 2013 and Krakow 2016) and they are truly life changing. There is a special grace that comes from being a WYD pilgrim. To be in the same place with millions of young people sounds crazy (and it sometimes was!) but what’s even more beautiful is how each pilgrim would take home with them something that is particular to their own journey. I started coordinating SPYAC in 2014 and I give credit to my WYD experience in Rio for the courage I had to be more involved in this ministry. Pope Francis’ message to “Go, do not be afraid, and serve” is what I’ve tried to do since then. Consider going to the next WYD in Lisbon in 2023 and see what God has in store for you!

Just as our faith is a journey, so is the path by which God calls us to serve. I spent five years in LifeTeen first, learning the ropes of ministry work, but I eventually felt more comfortable and confident in peer ministry through SPYAC. Realizing this has empowered me to do what I can to serve other young adults. Whenever my tank is running low, I remind myself that what I do is not for my own success and that I’m in SPYAC so that God can work through me to reach others. 

Ministry work takes a lot of your time and energy. If you focus too much on the details like meeting agendas and event logistics, it can start to feel like you’re just running a show. Encourage your team leaders to think about why they decided to be involved in young adult ministry. Ask yourselves “Why am I serving in young adult ministry? What drew me to this ministry? Is this where God is calling me to be?”