The question asked 25 years ago was, “What could happen to our church if . . . S.W.I.M. would catch fire and get started throughout the denomination?”¹ Taking a quick look back over what has happened since the summer of 1960, makes the above question almost seem rhetorical. Ten young people from Northwest Iowa, piloted the project in Salt Lake City, Utah, under the direction of the Rev. Nicholas Vogelzang. Since that summer, thousands² of young people have participated in the program, throughout the North American continent. Of course, the Christian Reformed Denomination is better off because of SUMMER WORKSHOP IN MINISTRIES. Or is it?

The lament of 25 years ago was, “Our young people have had too much done for them, and too little required of them. We have ministered to them, but have not really succeeded in getting them to minister to others.”* In discussions concerning the church, many young people express the fact that they find it difficult to get excited about their religious commitment and activities because their parents seem to be so half–hearted and calloused toward their religious experiences. Christianity is viewed as an “all talk, do nothing religion.” For the most part, young people are still not expected to, are not asked to, nor are given opportunity to, take part in church work. So it seems that the situation has really not changed, in spite of S.W.I.M.

Young people are still not being given enough opportunities to work with and experience the claims of the Christian faith. Neither have they been challenged enough to seek ways by which they could embrace the Christian world-and-life-view as their own. The sheer materialism around which our families and neighborhoods are shaped and molded, makes the gospel seem irrelevant. From infancy through adolescence, parents give and give to their children. In the home, and even in the church, the young person’s entire experience is on the receiving end-sitting there, taking it in. Seldom are they expected to give something or do anything in return. Church youth leaders are constantly wracking their brains to come up with new “fun times,” catering to the world’s notion that young people must be continuously pacified with entertainment and good times.

Ideally, parents who embrace Calvinism, give emphasis to gaining a Christian perspective, a worldand-life-view of God’s creation and their place in it. In the entire educational process, at home, church and school. their children are confronted with God’s Truth and challenged to be prophets, priests and Kings in the world. However, it appears that in reality, the inner-Christian-life and warm religious experience is missing. Our youth do not see enough faith commitment carried over into action by those who influence them the most.

In the individual’s development, the teenage years are the most critical with regard to the need to be committed. It is important for parents to face the fact that their children act or react mostly against the background of parental influence. Parents, out of obedience to God and out of duty to their children owe total dedication, total surrender, total commitment with respect to their profession of Christ. Jesus asks for and accepts nothing less (Mark 12:30).

If parents do not take their Christianity absolutely seriously, why should they expect any more from their children? If the reality of Christian living is missing in the daily home-work-worship-life, children may understandably criticize their parents’ hypocrisy. And the blame for a lack of commitment on the part of their youth, is not on the church or school, but squarely, on the home.

Conversely, the Lord has done much for the young people and for His Church through S.W.I.M. As we reminisce, we also celebrate, but as we celebrate, we had better mean business in impressing commitment and dedication of our youth to Jesus Christ. We had better be more serious about our own discipleship, and investigate and innovate ways and means by which we involve our children, first at home, and then in the local church , in doing things out of love and obedience to Christ.

The strategy of S.W.I.M. is to shift the approach from letting the church do something for the youth, to allowing the youth to do something for the church. It is “a project with youth in action for the Lord.”* Twenty-five years ago I participated in that pilot project. Since that summer, I have assisted with or directed six such summer projects. S.W.I.M. is one of those unique opportunities that offer young people a taste of discipleship. Besides the glamour and excitement of new places and experiences, there must also be real commitment, dedication and even sacrifice involved. Several weeks of closely scheduled, strenuous activity centered around a church’s program gives first-hand experience in what Christ has called us to do. Into those several weeks is crammed more evangelism and practical experience than most home-church members allow themselves to experience in a life-time. If you really want to do something worthwhile for your youth, give them a summer on S.W.I.M. 

1. The Banner, November 11 , 1960. pp. 4·5. 2. An accompanying communication from Rev. N. Vogelzong puts the total number at 9,268!

Ivan Mulder is a Bible teacher in Pella Christian High School and has served as church elder and clerk.