The VYG becomes themselves at the 'Yourself' event

All the common things that youths usually use to masquerade who they are didn’t matter at the Yourself youth event. As the youths from the different VYGs came together at the Kilburn UCKG branch, they had no choice but to drop the act and come face to face with who they really are.

The general meeting, which began with a friendly contest, where the different regions represented themselves by wearing different colours and presenting their logo, had many young people stunned, as they were challenged to take a deep look at themselves.

“Why do you pretend to be someone you’re not?” asked Pastor Luke, the UK Youth Group Leader, as he went on to explain that many young people do not have an identity of their own, but rather, create an image of themselves from what they see and who they hang around with. “When they take the mask off and assume who they are, that’s when change can happen,” he said.

As they looked at their reflection on the Yourself cards, many youths decided to be sincere and pray, revealing to God who they really are.

Today’s youth culture is all about image - tag names, area codes, aliases, codes of conduct - it’s all about how you portray yourself. But as the youths learned in the general meeting, pretending to be someone you’re not can often lead you down a path that you don’t want to go down. When you don’t know who you are, you don’t know where you’re going.

The Where U Going? Challenge which kick started last week, is all about young people facing reality and taking control of their lives.

For more information, call 020 7686 6000 and ask to speak to the Youth Leader or fill in this form.

Released on Monday, 14th July