At Friday night’s youth lock-in, middle and high schoolers spent the evening stepping into the world of the early church, forming “house churches,” carrying messages, and finally making the dangerous journey from one gathering place to another in a game of Romans and Christians. Between cheese balls, movies, laughter, and very little sleep, they also made a striking connection: for many immigrants in our own time, the fear of being stopped, taken, or kept from reaching a safe place is not a game at all.
As we reflected together, the vulnerability of early Christians under empire opened into a deeper conversation about the vulnerability many families live with today. What stayed with me was the way our youth began to see that Christian faith is not only about believing certain things, but about learning to stand with people who are afraid, to notice who is at risk, and to become the kind of community where no one has to carry fear alone.
A special thank you to Tyler Swim, Jesse McClain, Megan Fuller, and Amber Burke for volunteering to make our lock-in happen.
~ John Kupar