Many people believe that pizza contains a secret ingredient that is indispensable to youth ministry success. Youth pastors report having observed an extra-large pizza turn a small, timid youth group into an enthusiastic crowd. Lay youth leaders tell us that if you’ll combine a pizza with a root-beer float, you can make a non-cooperative spirit disappear. And some people even say they have witnessed a teen politely offer the last piece of pizza to someone else, although such reports are as yet unconfirmed.
Three Ways to Enjoy Pizza
- Bring your own. Next time you have a pizza feed ask every guy. to bring a medium pizza (homemade, store-bought, or fresh from the best pizza place in town) and every girl to bring a two-liter bottle of soft drink and some ice cream. Watch to see what the favorite flavors are.
- Make your own. Appoint a small group of your youth to do the shopping and have them get all the ingredients for good pizza, including tomato sauce and cheese, and all the toppings they think your group will enjoy; mushrooms, olives, onions, pineapple, etc. Use prepared pizza crusts, Boboli bread or sourdough English muffins for the crusts, and invite your youth to assemble their own mini-pizzas. Also have the supplies for the kids to mark or color tooth pick~ to use to identify their own pizzas.
- Just desserts. Eat something else for the main course and prepare dessert pizzas for after the meal. Use a piecrust or cookie or pastry dough covered with sweetened cream cheese, then be creative and top with things like fruit, candy, granola, nuts and icing, and drizzle with warmed jam or jelly, or hot fudge.
From: ABZ’s of Adventist Youth Ministry
© 2000 John Hancock Center for Youth&Family Ministry
Permission to copy for use in the local congregation or group.
