Every January I overhear countless conversations of students telling one another what they received for Christmas, from clothes to books to video games to all the fleeting fads. And each year I notice that sixth grade boys all receive the same thing: hormones.
I am amazed at the way they will flee in fear of cooties one month and glance daringly at the girl they have a crush on the next. The same boy who was convinced that girls were gross now cannot stop talking about them.
This is a distinct step forward in their development. Suddenly they care what other people think. Suddenly being “cool” matters. Suddenly they look and act and sound like the teenager they are becoming.
This is why we let go of the bike. As pastors and leaders for preteens, we are not trying to keep them in kid-mode, but are journeying with them as they become the teenagers that God is calling them to be. They’re called “preteens,” not “post-kids.” And for sixth grade boys, this involves a move towards their future teenage self where they see girls as cuties instead of cooties. They are growing up; their body and mind is changing in exciting and horrifying new ways. And we have the profound honor and challenge of journeying with them along the way, inviting them to deepen and discover their identity, belonging, and mission.
