R U Connected?

gurl4christ: U there?

I quickly shot off a greeting, and we chatted for over an hour about school, homework, dating, and music. On any given evening, you can find me online talking with teens-- but not teens from across the country or across the world. I am talking to the kids who attend my youth group, others who have graduated and moved off to college, and teens that I have met through my work at the YMCA.

Chances are, if you are reading this, then you already ulitize the internet for your ministry. Ideas, games, and illustrations are good, but are you using it to its fullest potential?

Newsletters Your church's traditional paper newsletters are a vital part of your communication with your parents, correct? Mailed newsletters sent out to the youth get mixed results-- at least in my congregation. They are often thrown away before being read or just skimmed over and tossed aside and forgotten.

Email newsletters are free, easy, and can be updated and sent out in seconds. Free email programs are available through Yahoogroups and topica, and both are very simple to use. Simply set up your group, get your students to register their email, and write one email to the entire group.

Chat rooms and instant messengers Often we think of chat rooms as bad influences on our kids' lives. Unsavory characters are out there to prey on young minds, but there is no reason why we can't be as well. Find out the areas that your teens chat and visit them. Standard personal information sheets for your group could include email contacts and also screen names, ICQ id's, and favorite chats. Set up your own chat times with the group and ask them to invite others. Most chat programs have the ability to "create" a room for any topic.

Probably one of the easiest but time-consuming ways to connect with your computer-savvy kids is to use an instant messenger service. Yahoo, MSN, and AOL all offer free programs to chat in "real time" privately with an individual. Download the program, load in your "friends's list", and watch to see when they come online (you will be notified when any of your friends come online." You then can counsel, catch up with kids who are not attending regularly, and just chat with those you may not have had the chance to talk to one-on-one in your group setting.

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