She remembers feeling especially alone in her middle school years, with no easily accessible adult beyond her family to seek for solace.
“A lot of the young kids today talk about bullying and how hard and awkward it can be to make friends,” said Denise Gressel. “Years ago, I did not have a good junior high experience (in Shelbyville) through my freshman year. And I still remember the pain of that.”
That recollection is one reason that Gressel is a decade-long volunteer and financial supporter of the Campus Life national Christian youth ministry, a part of the umbrella of Southern Hills Youth For Christ ministry. The chapter will present “Stand in the Gap,” an online update on Friday and Saturday for the outreach and an invitation for added supporters like Gressel.
The phrase “standing in the gap” is used among believers to denote those spiritually praying for and protecting others much like soldiers in ancient biblical times stood in the literal gaps of the walls of fortified cities.
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In recent years, Campus Life annual gatherings such as this have attracted 175 to 250 people, according to Columbus resident Tim Hoeflinger. He serves as the ministry’s middle school director focused on some 200 students — mostly with no standard church background or even youth group experience — in Columbus. His goal: to nurture young people toward a relationship with Jesus and a life of faith.
“And that number doesn’t include the kids we meet and talk with at basketball games or in the school lunch rooms,” Hoeflinger said.
He added that he loves this time of year. His ultimate goal: to nurture young people toward a relationship with Jesus and a life of faith in which they mentor their peers.
“For me, this is one of the highlights of my year, and it’s always fun to reminisce and see just how God has moved and worked in kids’ lives — and to see the doors he has opened for them,” Hoeflinger said.
Christian leaders worldwide regularly highlight the evangelical and relational work of reaching young audiences with God’s love. A flurry of studies has shown that the bulk of decisions to become a Christian unfold at younger ages.
Hoeflinger works with an annual budget of $70,000 to recruit and equip adult volunteers to work with and simply come alongside middle schoolers amid life’s challenges.
In recent weeks, Hoeflinger and volunteers have continued meeting with young people, though they have done so online via apps such as Zoom amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Ironically, in the environment that is alleged to be the specialty of young teens, the outreach leader has found a surprise among his groups of 12- to 15-year-olds.
“It’s actually been harder for them to interact online,” he said, even amid lighthearted ice-breakers such as Pictionary. “They’ve frequently been silent. It’s been odd to see.”
Ideally, Hoeflinger and his team would like to reach many more of the thousands of local middle schoolers and also high schoolers, representing an additional part of Campus Life.
“God has laid a message of love on my heart,” he said. “It’s my place to plant spiritual seeds and to water those seeds. But, ultimately, the harvest is up to him.”
And part of Hoeflinger’s vision of that growth and harvest is what next week’s online updates are all about.
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What: "Stand in the Gap" online updates on the middle school ministry of the Campus Life national Christian youth ministry, a part of Southern Hills Youth For Christ.
When: Noon Friday and at 4 p.m. Saturday.
Where: southernhillsyfc.org
Online registration: southernhillsyfc.org
Information: Tim Hoeflinger at [email protected]
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