In the fall of 2003, I and a few friends followed a crazy dream to start a city-wide, multi-church, young adult group. We were inspired by Ezekiel 47:1-12. We longed to see young adults aged 18-30 go deeper in a relationship with Jesus. We wanted young professionals and college students to connect with one another. And we were nuts enough to think that a small group of young adult Christians from a wide range of churches could actually follow the lead of God's Spirit despite our non-essential doctrinal differences.
It never should have worked.
- I was on staff at a conservative Bible Church.
- Tom was on staff at an ELCA church.
- Steve was a young code monkey/engineer and was still pretty tied to his college church in Cedar Falls.
- Dennis was teaching middle school band and hadn't settled on a local church yet.
- Karen was a member at the same ELCA church as Tom, but was new to town as a community college guidance counselor in Iowa City.
- Adrian was at a small, semi-homeless Church of God.
- The large Assemblies of God church in town had a thriving young adult ministry.
- Similar ministries had come and gone in Cedar Rapids, most ending within 2 years.
- We had no budget.
- And our "test-the-waters" monthly Worship Nights were held in an echo chamber better known as a Jr. High youth group's room.
The facts screamed "THIS WILL NEVER WORK!" And other people were saying the same thing:
- I was told by pastors in other communities that this fledgling ministry would either split off and become a church plant, or fold within 3 years.
- Tom and I attended a conference together, and when we asked for advice about working together during the Q&A session, the staff of the hosting church looked at us like we were insane, and kept passing the mic around because no one wanted to answer our question.
On paper, this new idea seemed doomed from the beginning.
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But the first Worship Night brought 40. The next 50. The third saw 60+ and it was obvious we were tapping into something. So we set a date to "launch". We recruited people to help. We borrowed sound equipment from a different church. And we gave this new thing a name. We named it "Watershed".
The name Watershed was brilliant. It tapped into the essence of Ezekiel 47 and alluded to the river that stars in the passage. Plus, the definition reverberated with the dream we felt God had given us. A watershed event is a change of course - a turning point. And we knew that when people really meet Jesus, it is a complete change of course, a turning point in their lives. And that's what we wanted to see.
And see it we did!
- We saw some young adults come to faith in Christ.
- We saw young adults truly growing in their faith in Christ.
- We saw twentysomethings head out on the mission field (in fact, we sent 22 to Africa in our third year!).
- We saw this generation connect with local churches.
- We saw small groups form.
- And we saw people start Bible Studies in their work place.
- In other words, we saw people going deeper.
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But as with all of life, good things come to an end. Young adults move. They change jobs and schedules faster than rabbits can reproduce. They get married and shift into a new stage of life. Even my time with Watershed came to an end two years ago as I needed to be more available to my own family and the ministry God has given me as a young adult pastor. But the biggest ending of all has now come.
This past Thursday, the leadership team made the painful decision to end the 7-year ministry of Watershed. I am behind this decision 110%. My good friend Steve wrote an excellent letter explaining why it is time to say good-bye to the ministry we started and loved.
It is sad to think that the vision that God birthed within me, then brought such amazing folks to help make the vision a reality is now coming to a close. But my reflections are mostly ones of joy! I am thrilled that God got the glory in a ministry that wasn't supposed to make it. Many said it would never have seen the year 2006, let alone 2010.
Not only that, we saw the mission accomplished. We saw young adults going deeper in their spiritual journeys with Jesus. God did some wonderful things in those 7 years - and He deserves to be celebrated for them!
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The spiritual landscape of Cedar Rapids has changed some since Watershed was birthed. There are more churches today doing "young adult" ministry than there were 7 years ago, and that has me encouraged. The young adults Watershed was called to lead are now very connected to local churches, which also has me deeply encouraged.
It's interesting: The vision of Watershed has never died within me, even after I stepped away in obedience to God. And now that God has brought His ministry called Watershed to a close, the vision still burns in many of us. We still long to see this generation of twentysomethings (and I'll throw in thirtysomethings for good measure!) be "in over their heads" with Jesus. And any time we see this vision happening, even outside of "Watershed," we rejoice.
So Watershed as a formal ministry may be closing, but the move of God in leading young adults deeper with Him is not. I will remember Watershed's seven years with delight, but I also anticipate what He will be doing in the future through new "Watersheds."
Thank you to every young adult who ever served with Watershed. Thank you to every church that supported this ministry. But most of all, thank you, Father God, for allowing us to be apart of something this special for a few years.
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