Youths build their faith by good works

Summer vacation for thousands of teens doesn't mean leaving God at home, but finding the divine in new places, including the University of Utah, where several hundred youths from across the United States and Canada will gather this holiday weekend to immerse themselves in the good word and a good time.

While locals may first think of annual Latter-day Saint programs like "Especially for Youth" that offer summertime spirituality on college campuses, Utah is becoming a destination for youth groups from historic Christian churches to recharge their spiritual batteries by swinging hammers, wielding paintbrushes and fortifying their faith.

Youth Unlimited, a ministry that offers mission trips touching various places and purposes, has gathered some 900 teens 14 and older to Salt Lake City for five days of immersion in youth ministry designed to enhance their belief as they make new friends through music, ministry, small-group activities and large-scale gatherings.

The convention, which runs through Tuesday, comes on the heels of a Southern Baptist youth mission trip to Salt Lake City that brought hundreds of teens from across the country (see accompanying story). Last summer, several youth ministry groups visited the Beehive State, including the Ogden Group Workcamp. More than 100 teens from the Colorado-based Christian youth ministry converged on pre-selected homes in the Ogden area to paint up, fix up and reach out to people they'll likely never see again.

Bill Heersink of Salt Lake Theological Seminary, a member of the Christian Reform Church, said this weekend's convention includes young members of his faith. Local Christian Reformed Churches are providing volunteers to help staff the event, and the seminary is providing speakers.

He said the youths not only build each other, but seek to reach out to the community they meet in each year by selecting humanitarian organizations to support with their annual offering, which is taken during a worship service on Sunday. "It's great to see how they come together and offer something of themselves to a community, and they're very committed to it," he said.

Youth Unlimited coordinator Millie Hoekstra said organizers have been working on the event for three years and have brought popular youth speakers in from across the country. The program is serious spirituality-building through praise and worship, offering teens a variety of elective seminars on topics of interest.