As sophomores in college, just out of our teen years, we don’t feel like it’s our place to tell youth pastors what to do. However, as two young guys in ministry to our peers, we offer a unique perspective that we feel needs to be shared: God is working in our generation. Normal teens are becoming world-changers. Because there’s nothing more exciting than being a part of what God is doing, we don’t want you to miss the boat.

We were 16 when we started calling other teens to join us in choosing to “rebel against low expectations” and “do hard things” for the glory of God. The response has blown us away.

Teens today want to be challenged. They need to be respected. They’re not stupid, but they are frustrated when people don’t expect them to understand or care about things that actually matter. What’s more, they’re starting to realize God wants to use them right now as teens—they don’t have to wait!

During the past three years, we’ve encountered countless young people who are changing the world for Christ. These are young people who were 12 when they began to hate slavery, who were 14 when they had compassion on the homeless or who were 16 when they decided bringing clean water and the gospel to Sudan was not impossible.

These are young people who leave our conferences with a copy of Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology (1,200-plus pages) in one hand and a copy of Do Hard Things in the other.

These are teens who are passionate about learning more about God and His Word, who are willing to do hard things and are ready to raise the bar.

What does this mean? It means teens are tired of being labeled “good kids” for all the bad stuff they don’t do. They want to be known for the challenging things they do. It means teens are ready for youth group to be more than a place to go on Wednesday night for a funny skit, a slice of pizza and a Bible verse.

They need youth pastors who won’t just occupy and entertain them but who will equip and send them out to help others. They need mentors who won’t just try to keep them out of trouble but will help them get into the right kind of trouble—the kind that comes when you trust God, dream big and do hard things for Christ.

In 1 Timothy 4:12, the apostle Paul not only commands young people to reject a culture that looks down on them for their youth, but he also challenges them to be examples to fellow believers in every area of Christian life. We see our peers grabbing hold of that high standard, taking responsibility to do, act and lead. For those of us who minister to this generation, there’s nothing more thrilling than that.