In this session, the Don discussed ideas to connect with teens for Bible study classes. I resonated with a key theme of the session: “Anything you do is simply an excuse to get close to kids and build relationships for the kingdom [of God].”

Don shared a story about an elderly woman who wanted to help with the youth class, but she only wanted to greet the students at the door. She also requested a photo and information on each student. When Don discussed the idea with his class, they decided to take police booking-style photos with their key statistics on a whiteboard. Over time the woman developed relationships with all of the students, many of whom attended her funeral several years later.