Youth Workers!
Every month I get sent a copy of
.
This is a UK Christian Newspaper from the more reformed, conservative end of things.

One of the articles this month opens with:
"The last 20 years have seen a huge increase in the number of youth workers in British churches — yet at the same time the church is losing young people. Alan Bright wonders if the two are connected" (article here).
Now there's an interesting thought - is the rise in paid Christian youthworkers a good thing or not?
The article itself is about the crucial role of parents nurturing children in the faith. But it raises this important issue. Should we really be happy about the number of churches advertising for youth staff in the Christian press?
The author also makes an interesting point about "youth evangelism":
"So much evangelism is aimed at children and young people. But is that a Bible pattern: evangelising other people’s children? How about concentrating on men — on fathers? Of course it is a lot more ‘difficult’ but in terms of effective use of resources it might be the best way to reach whole families."
Should I tell the youthworkers to be going down to the job centre and hanging up thier hoodies?