Loire News

LinkUp Nantes

The letters LU are very well known here in France as the brand name of a famous biscuit factory that started in Nantes. Since the beginning of this year there is another phenomenon in Nantes that carries the same name: LinkUp. This is the name of the interdenominational youth event we started in January 2008.

After several months of discussion with youth leaders and pastors about teenagers, TeenStreet and our role as OMers in youth work, we decided to launch this event. We want to bring together teenagers from different (church) backgrounds for an interactive programme where they can explore themes that are creative, relevant, understandable and adapted to their daily life. Our goal is to complement and support the existing local church youth groups by creating a safe environment for Christian teenagers to bring their non-Christian friends.

Many of today’s young adults benefited from attending TeenStreet as teenagers. It helped them in their Christian life. We consulted a good number of these young people and asked them about their teenage years. One thing became very clear: a teenager needs older brothers and sisters in the faith (besides their parents) who take interest in their lives and are willing to invest in them. Many of these young adults have been willing from the beginning to get involved as small group leaders and are in many ways the big brother or sister for their younger peers.

Through LinkUp, we would like to provide a programme similar to TeenStreet with the same core values and variety of activities, but with a much more regional focus and more regular contact with the teenagers. Our two core values are: loving God and loving people. We would like to help teenagers ‘link up’ with God and with others to love them. Everything we do during our LU events supports one of these two core values.

The theme of our first event was Droit au Cœur (“straight to the heart”). We talked about how our heart can be soft and tender to love God and others, but that it can also be hardened like stone. We were very encouraged when one girl from a Catholic background, during the small group time, really started to understand what the parable of the sower meant and what type of soil her heart corresponded to. She realised that she needed the ‘heart transplant’ that the Bible talks about. When asked what she thought of our first LU event, her response was, “Very good, because that evening I became a Christian!”

Using video clips, a pig’s heart, interactive games, small group times, personal time with God, workshops and worship stations, we spent an afternoon and an evening together with around 80 people, concentrating on how we can love God and others in a different or new way. We encourage everyone to keep in touch with each other through an interactive website, where we can share ideas, music, photos, videos, updates, prayer requests etc. There are 83 members, which includes the majority of all the teens that have been coming.

Besides the event we like to involve teens in projects where they can reach out and love people that don’t necessarily come to LU. In May 2008 a group of us were able to do some spring-cleaning in a centre which provides meals and a place to hang out for homeless people. One of our young adults organised a football tournament so he and others could invite non-Christian friends. Every football match started with a time of prayer, which was a real testimony for many un-churched players. We’re looking for more opportunities here in Nantes where people are in need and where teenagers can make a difference.

In June we will have a LU around the theme Renewable Intelligence. The key verse from Romans 12 talks about “the renewing of our minds.” In October we hope to do a LU weekend, where we will develop the theme of holiness. We would appreciate your prayers for this initiative, that we may find new and fresh ways for teenagers to love God and to love people.

www.linkupnantes.ning.com

article by Ger van Veen, June 2008