Today is Thank A Youth Worker Day!  Organizations, communities, and individuals around the world are joining together today to celebrate youth workers.  To all of you who are working with youth and children in the church – THANK YOU!  You are a gift and a blessing!

I’ve been thinking what an amazing experience it is to say thank you to someone who has impacted your life or the life of your family.  You feel good about saying it.  He or she feels appreciated.  You open up this place in your thankfulness for the Spirit to bring such energy and vitality and joy.  We probably don’t say thank you often enough.  Perhaps it should be a spiritual discipline.  If we said a special thank you, went out of our way each day or each week to send a note to someone who has touched our life, we might find it changes our outlook on life.

If you are working with youth and/or children in the church, I know you don’t do it for the money or for the recognition.  Today, however, take a minute (really, take an hour) to celebrate the work you do and the impact you make.  Recognize that you are a professional in a field of vital importance to our church, that God is working through you to raise not just tomorrow’s leaders, but young people with passion and energy and spirit that are making a difference now.  Every day you give of yourself for young people, sometimes through the darkest times in their life, and you probably don’t hear the words “thank you” enough.  So on behalf of the Indiana Conference and parents and youth, thank you!  Thank you!  THANK YOU!!!!!!