WWJD?

The other day, my friend Lauren and I were talking about stuff. Ok stuff is a bit broad. Well ok.

I called her a party pooper because she's gonna miss Friends Day and Cedar Point this next week because she's going on a mission trip in North Carolina with I think her old youth group from Florida.

I was kidding and she knew that. I think mission trips are great. I love going on them and I'm glad she's getting out there and helping others.

Now I knew she wasn't talking about me when she said what she said when replying to what I said, but what she said hit me hard and it hasn't left my mind since she said it.

She said she was sorry, but she'd be with her friends from Florida; people who don't think she's a whore.

I know, I know. Harsh words there. But it got me thinking and yes, that's exactly what she said. And it's one of those things that I really do know she wasn't saying that I said it and she wasn't saying that I was among those that had, but still it was a crushing blow that made me think a lot.

See, this year was Lauren's first year joining my youth group. It's been a lot of fun. She's such a bubbly and fun person to be around. I've really enjoyed hanging out with her this year.

But I know some people who don't seem to want her in youth group even though they claim they don't hate her and they claim that they're not doing the things that are happening. There are rumors being spread from teens to parents about Lauren that aren't true. She's to the point of not coming anymore to church. Is that how a church is supposed to work?

There are the rumors. There have been the texts about her being called mean things. The bullying. They don't call it bullying because they don't talk to her, but bullying is bullying. I hate the idea of people being pushed around.

This is why I got into an argument with one of the girls calling Lauren mean things a few weeks ago. She just wouldn't listen to me though. Then when I apologized, she told me to try not to make her feel like a bad Christian when we argue. Honestly I just wanted to argue back at that point, but I didn't.

The teasing hasn't ended yet and I'm not sure if it will anytime soon. The people doing this need to act their own age and get over it.

Ok, so, I wasn't planning on telling you this much, but if you wanted to understand this, I think you needed to hear it.

Really people, is this what a church is supposed to look like? Is this what a youth group is supposed to look like? Is this what a youth group is supposed to do? Is this what a church is supposed to do?

This is what I've been thinking ever since Lauren said those things about being with friends who didn't think such things.

Is this what my youth group looks like? Is this what we're trying to look like?

If this is what we're trying to look like, then we fail at the purpose of a youth group.

I've seen the arguments fly about whether or not this is a youth group issue. It most certainly is. We have a problem here. A girl isn't coming back to our youth group because people became jealous and started dragging her down to make themselves feel better.

Every time I think about what Lauren said to me about her friends in Florida, it's like a blow in the face. What is my youth group trying to accomplish here?

Do you guys wanna die out? Or do you wanna keep growing?

We had a pretty good growth this year, but if people keep getting jealous of others, we're just gonna keep pushing people away. Who wants to join a youth group that gets jealous so easily? Who wants to be in a youth group where the teens bully others?

Surely not I. And actually everyone I start talking to youth group about says I'm not in youth group anymore. Fine! I'm not in youth group. Good riddance. I don't want to be in a youth group full of bullies.

Ok, maybe I exaggerated a little there. Not everyone in my church's youth group is bad. And the ones we seem to be having the most problems with seem to be the ones that just graduated with me. No wonder they don't think it's a youth group problem. They know they're out.

Why are we being so immature? Why are we being major hypocrites here?

We say we're Christians. Then we go bully someone. We go pick on someone who is smaller and weaker than us. We get jealous. We gossip and spread rumors.

Are we really being Christians? Christians are followers of Christ. Did Jesus do any of this stuff? Spread the rumors? Bully people? Pick on the weak? Gossip?

I think we all really need to be asking the same question.

What would Jesus do?