There is a move of God taking place right now in the global Foursquare family, one so dynamic it has awakened many of us to the need to raise up, equip and release emerging leaders.
What especially thrills me is seeing divine inspiration affect both the next generation and the body of Christ as a whole. Over the past year, we have had several organic events, with young adults spontaneously gathering.
In both Thailand and Europe, more than 400 came together in each location to worship the Lord. Recently, in Panama, more than 600 young people from 17 countries paid their own travel expenses to attend a powerful worship service. Last fall, more than 180 leaders from seven nations attended the annual Equipped Conference (which started in 2017) in Medellín, Colombia.
The young people who came to these meetings were there because they’re spiritually hungry. They want to experience the presence and power of God within the global Foursquare family. This movement has taken off like wildfire. It’s something that we can’t control, nor would we even want to try.
We have thousands of young people within global Foursquare circles who are just waiting—like I did in my youth—for an opportunity to “get in the game.”
-Aaron hunter
The question uppermost in our minds: How can we release young people into their prophetic destiny? They don’t have to wait until they’re older to serve the Lord; they can do so right now.
To that end, the Foursquare Global Council launched an initiative to create materials to train those who work with children and youth around the world. To ensure they came from a global perspective, we selected leaders from places such as Africa, Asia, Central America and South America. This group spent a week working together to write and produce these materials, which have been incorporated into the Discipleship and Leadership Training (DLT) program.
The essentials
As for raising up emerging leaders, there are two essential factors behind giving them the opportunity to fulfill God’s call on their lives.
First is for pastors and other leaders to feel secure in their leadership, recognize they are valued, and realize that God has called them for such a time as this. But most of all, they must know that their primary task is to raise up the next generation.
Second, I encourage emerging leaders to honor what those before them have done. Too often, I have seen young adults come in thinking they have all the answers, and then destroying the foundations older leaders built. In order to work together to raise up the next generation, there must be respect and honor for the elders.
What draws me to serving the next generation is that I am where I am today because others believed in God’s call on my life. I recognize the importance of tapping into the potential of other young leaders and helping them move forward.
In my travels, I see a church consistently aging. Many have hair the same color as the white flecks in my beard. It is time to freshen the family. We have thousands of young people within global Foursquare circles who are just waiting—like I did in my youth—for an opportunity to “get in the game.”
Part of God’s call on my life is to help bridge gaps between young and old in order to open doors for the next generation. The beauty of young adults’ hunger to serve the Lord is how it extends beyond the traditional four walls. Many are going into the marketplace, knowing that God has gifted them as ministers in government, music and other realms of society.
I believe this generation dreams big. We older leaders need to disciple and train them, but also dream big with them. Pray that God will help us create the opportunities that will allow their voices to be heard—not tomorrow, but today.
Aaron Hunter is the global associate director for the South America Region. This update was written with Ken Walker, a longtime contributor to Foursquare.
