PRESIDENTIALREPORT
As this year comes to an end, I realised that I have literally done two laps of the earth. On my way around, I acknowledged that one of the most amazing things about YFC is our unity in diversity. Stephen Di Trolio, previously our missionary to Third Culture Kids in Buenos Aires, Argentina, gave an excellent closing devotional about this at CONVERGE in Rome, Italy, a gathering on behalf of the World Evangelical Alliance Youth Commission. Using Ephesians 4, he talked about how there is One Body and One Lord, One God and Father of all. And there is also ONE YFC. I am often asked, “So, how does YFC reach teens with the Gospel?” My response, “think of any creative and caring way possible and we are probably already doing that, and if we are not, we soon will be!” Creativity, ingenuity, entrepreneurship – all in a focused effort to bring more and more teenagers to the Jesus who loves them.
There are certain key factors that unite us and we call these are Unifying Essentials. In each of these ONE YFC editions, I will highlight another essential. Let’s start with the most basic unity factor: our Vision.
As part of the body of Christ, to see that every young person in every people group in every nation has the opportunity to make an informed decision to be a follower of Jesus Christ and become a part of a local church.
Read it out loud. Memorise it. It speaks for itself. Key words are “Every”, “Opportunity” and please note that it is book-ended by the Church (“as part of the Body of Christ . . . into a local church”). We are not just parachurch, we are PROChurch! And no, obviously we cannot reach EVERY teenager on our own as a movement. We are called to be the catalysts, the facilitators for a great generationally redemptive Mission.
Our goal is that every teenager on the planet would know that Jesus loves them and would also know that they have a choice to love Him in return.
What does every people group mean? Those are the niche groups – the teens whose parents have more money than they know what to do with and the teens who may have never met their parents. Teens that are deaf and teens that are aboriginal. Teens that are in prison and teens that are refugees.
And, in EVERY nation. We have the presence of YFC in well over 100 nations; there are close to 200 on this planet. Do we dare to dream, to envision that YFC may one day be reaching teenagers in every nation on this planet? During these past 10 years we opened ministries in dozens of new nations. Now we are consolidating those, but even as we do that, let’s not ever lose our pioneering spirit, “That NONE should perish.”