Join our Ministry Team
Wednesday Night Youth Group Advisor
Come help teenagers discover that faith can be real, relevant, inclusive, and a LOT of fun on Wednesdays from 6:15-8:15 p.m.
Are you the person who can walk into a room of teenagers and immediately get them laughing, talking, playing, and feeling like they belong? Do you love Jesus—but aren’t interested in pretending you have all the answers? Do you believe church should be a place where every person is fully welcomed, LGBTQIA+ people are celebrated, questions are encouraged, and God’s love is bigger than every box we try to put it in?
Then we should talk.
Abiding Presence Lutheran Church is looking for a high-energy, relational, theologically progressive Youth Advisor to assist in creating an unforgettable youth ministry experience for middle and high school students.
This isn’t a “stand in the corner and supervise teenagers” job. It’s a get-in-the-game job. You might find yourself leading a Bible discussion one night, playing an absurdly competitive game of Gaga Ball the next, grabbing pizza with a group of teenagers, helping a student through a difficult moment, or sitting on the floor talking about what it actually means to follow Jesus in today’s world. And yes—you will be asked to play the game. You should probably be okay with that.
OUR IDEAL CANDIDATE
We’re especially interested in someone who is 18–30-ish and may be a college student, recent graduate, teacher, education major, youth worker, camp counselor, or someone who simply has a natural gift for connecting with teenagers.
You don’t have to have years of church experience. You do need to bring:
ENERGY - You genuinely enjoy being around teenagers. You’re willing to be silly, play games, jump into activities, lead from the front, and bring energy into a room.
RELATIONSHIP - You know that youth ministry isn’t primarily about having the coolest program. It’s about relationships. You notice the kid sitting by themselves. You remember what someone told you last week. You show up.
PROGRESSIVE THEOLOGY - This is essential. We’re looking for someone who genuinely believes in God’s inclusive and abundant love for all people and is excited to be part of a theologically progressive ELCA Lutheran congregation.
You should be comfortable with a faith that:
Welcomes and celebrates LGBTQIA+ people
Takes questions seriously
Doesn’t require teenagers to check their brains at the door
Centers grace rather than guilt
Understands faith as something we live out in community
Takes Jesus seriously without pretending we have every answer
Recognizes God’s presence and work beyond the walls of the church
Encourages young people to think deeply about justice, compassion, and what it means to love our neighbors
PLAYFULNESS - You should be willing to play. Board games. Dodgeball. Minute-to-win-it challenges. Scavenger hunts. Nerf battles. Youth group games that somehow become way more competitive than anyone intended.
ROLE-MODEL ENERGY - Teenagers don’t need another person telling them what to believe. They need adults who demonstrate what a thoughtful, compassionate, curious, Jesus-centered life can look like. You don’t need to be perfect. You do need to be authentic, dependable, kind, and willing to show up.
ABOUT ABIDING PRESENCE
Abiding Presence Lutheran Church is a progressive ELCA congregation in Burke, Virginia, committed to following Jesus in a way that is grace-filled, curious, inclusive, justice-minded, and deeply rooted in God’s abundant love. We believe teenagers aren’t the future of the church. They’re the church right now. And they deserve a youth ministry that treats them that way.
READY TO JUMP IN?
Fill out the application form below.
Come help us build a youth ministry where teenagers can belong, question, laugh, grow, serve, wonder, and encounter God’s wildly abundant love. Abiding Together, let’s make church a place teenagers want to be.
DETAILS
We are looking for someone who can commit to Wednesdays from 6:15-8:15 p.m. College graduates will be paid $50/hour. College students will be paid $35/hour.