About

Youth Dynamics, founded in 1970, is a Christian ministry serving youth in the Northwest Region through challenging experiences and dynamic relationships. Reaching any child 11 to 24 years old, regardless of religious affiliation, Youth Dynamics offers weekly events and clubs, leadership training, outdoor adventure trips, and retreats, all to build relationships with youth and help them reach their full potential. Youth Dynamics uniquely serves youth by providing transformational experiences and relationships that produce significant life changes. Research consistently demonstrates that students today face pressures and challenges, unlike at any time in history. More than ever, students need experiences like those offered through Youth Dynamics to help them process life, navigate risk, engage with the outdoors, and create space to learn about themselves and God.

 

Youth Dynamics reaches youth through relational adventure ministry. Each Youth Dynamics core ministry seeks to create a non-threatening environment where students can meet to have fun while building relationships with adult leaders. Adventures uses adventure-based activities to bring about life-changing learning situations called teachable moments. Stonewater is our 158-acre camp near Leavenworth, WA. It fulfills the mission of Youth Dynamics through adventure trips, leadership development, and retreat ministries. All core ministries strive to meet the same mission and vision.

Core Ministries

• COMMUNITIES: Relational adventure ministry with youth from a specific community, neighborhood, or location.
• ADVENTURES: Professionally guided river trips, backcountry trips, mountain and rock climbing, horse camp, and summer and winter adventures.
• RETREATS: Stonewater offers adventures, leadership training, and retreat ministry.

Summary of Programs

We offer after-school programs, Bible study, leadership development, community outreach, professionally guided river trips, backcountry trips, mountain and rock climbing, horse camps, summer and winter adventures, one-on-one mentoring, internships, and more!

Why

Many youths today have never heard the good news of Jesus Christ; this reality drives us daily. Many have never been in a wilderness setting that can so powerfully connect them to God’s creation.

• Only 4% of teens today report having a Biblical worldview.
• Teens are twice as likely as adults to identify as atheists.
• Teens spend half the time outdoors as their parents at the same age.
• Suicide, sexual identity issues, pornography, peer pressure, and bullying are prevalent.

* (Source: Barna Research Group, 2018)

 

What does Youth Dynamics offer today’s youth?

Youth Dynamics engages today’s youth culture head-on by offering relevant and robust life-changing opportunities. We connect youth to authentic communities and caring adults. We challenge youth to step out of their comfort zone and fall in love with God’s creation. We offer leadership opportunities and the kind of adventures youth are born to experience. Most importantly, we invite them to know and follow Christ.

 

3Story®

In 2021, Youth Dynamics, after prayer, research, and discussion, and with permission from Youth For Christ/USA (YFC), adopted 3Story as our formal evangelistic approach. Developed by Youth For Christ, 3Story is a wonderful fit for relational adventure youth ministry.

 

What is 3Story? (from YFC/3Story.net)

“3Story is a new, yet very old approach to evangelism. It is designed to reflect evangelism laid out in Scripture and the needs of people in a post-modern world. 3Story is all about connecting stories: me and my story Him and His story, them and their story. The more these stories and lives connect, the more powerful the gospel becomes.”

~Bill Muir

3Story is about relationships. It is a way of seeing how the relationships we have with other people and God can connect and grow. We pray that the Lord will help us move into a way of living that seamlessly connects our relationships with others to a God who desires to be known and followed in every area of our lives. No relationship is unaffected by a 3Story approach to life. 3Story is not an evangelism tool or method, it is who we want to be and how we want to live. 3Story in a sense is a living operating system. Knowing that if we seek to abide deeply with Jesus every day and stay saturated in His word, we will be ready and aware of the opportunities He gives us in a lost world. We focus on the “being” and the “doing” flows from there.

Mission

To invite youth to know and follow Jesus Christ through relationships and adventures.

Vision

To see generations of youth fully alive in Jesus Christ (John 10:10).

Core Values

• Prayer: We believe prayer is vital for connecting youth to Jesus Christ and for sustaining our ministry.
• Relationships: We are called to love and build relationships with youth, knowing God transforms lives as we connect His story, our story, and their story.
• Adventures: We encourage and challenge youth to discover life in Christ by using adventures and creation to inspire growth and transformation.
• The Local Church: We believe the local church is the place of lifelong growth and maturity for believers.
• Partnerships: We collaborate with local churches and other ministry partners to extend the reach and impact of Relational Adventure Youth Ministry.
• Spiritual Health: We strive to be a mission where staff and volunteers are well cared for, rooted in Scripture, and guided by the Holy Spirit.
• Donor Care: We are committed to faithfully stewarding the resources and relationships God has entrusted to us through our donors and ministry partners.

Youth Dynamics’ Statement of Faith

Youth Dynamics is non-sectarian Christian organization committed to reaching Northwest youth for Christ.

We believe the Bible is the inspired, inerrant, authoritative Word of God, and as such provides us with the truths necessary for a life of faith and service.
(I Thes. 2:13, II Tim. 3:16, II Pet. 1:21).

We believe in the one, true God, who exists in the persons of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who are one in essence and nature.
(Gen. 1:26, Mt. 28:19, Jn. 10:30).

We believe God created man in his own image, to fellowship with and serve him forever, but that man has been separated from God by his sin, and as such stands condemned.
(Gen. 1:26-27, Rom. 3:22, 5:12, 6:23).

We believe Jesus Christ is God the Son, eternally existent as God, yet incarnate as man through the virgin birth. He lived a perfect human life, and, because of God’s great love and mercy, died for us as a substitutionary sacrifice, paying the penalty for our sin, that through His finished work on the cross God could reconcile the world to himself, offering man freedom from judgment and eternal life with God. He arose from the dead, and has ascended to the Father, where He acts as the mediator, intercessor, and advocate of all true believers. It is His resurrection that confirms the truth of who He is, the finality of his work, and the assurance of our own resurrection.
(Jn. 1:2-18, Rom. 5:8-19, I Cor. 15:1-56, Col. 1:15-22, Heb. 9:15, I Jn. 2:1-2).

We believe that it is by God’s grace through faith in Christ alone that we are saved, justified, and reconciled to God as His children.
(Jn. 1:12, Rom. 5:1, Eph. 2:8-9).

We believe in the person and work of God the Holy Spirit, who convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment, and who indwells all believers, empowering them to live in, through, and for God.
(Jn. 16:5-15, Rom. 8:9-16, Gal. 5:16-25).

We believe in the oneness of the Body of Christ, His church composed of all believers in Christ, irrespective of age, gender, race, culture, or doctrinal/denominational affiliations.
(Gal. 3:26-28, Eph. 4:3-6, Col. 3:11).

We believe in the personal return of our Lord Jesus Christ, and in the resurrection of both believers and unbelievers, believers to a glorified state with Christ, and unbelievers to eternal judgment.
(Jn. 5:28, I Thes. 4:16-17, Tit. 2:13).

Youth Dynamics’ Place in the Greater Body

As a parachurch organization, Youth Dynamics seeks to work “alongside” (Greek: para-) the local church. Youth Dynamics seeks to support and enhance the ministries of the local church, not become a church. Youth Dynamics staff members sign the above statement of faith, which states commonly held beliefs about the Christian faith. Youth Dynamics is reliant on partnerships with churches of multiple denominations to live out our vision and mission. Therefore, Youth Dynamics does not seek to take stances on controversial tenets of the Christian faith. There may be occasions where leadership believes that taking a stance on a controversial issue is necessary to live out the mission and vision.

History

Youth Dynamics was founded in 1970 by Paul and Connie Evans.

A TRANSFORMED LIFE: As a life insurance salesman, Paul called a pastor and asked him if he could have a few minutes of his time to sell him life insurance. The pastor chuckled and said, “I’ll give you 20 minutes if you give me 10 to sell you my life insurance plan.”

This conversation with the 21-year-old salesman, Paul Evans, began a lifelong journey. Paul accepted Christ the day he met that pastor and soon after he felt compelled to share his newfound life with teens at his old high school.

As Paul began to see the immense need for a ministry to rural teens, he felt God calling him to a bold new venture. Paul and his wife, Connie, sensed God was leading them into full-time ministry. In those first few months, Paul saw hundreds of teens come to learn about and accept Jesus. Little did he realize that this was just the beginning of a ministry that would have a broad reach for Christ.

From these humble beginnings, the ministry grew. Youth Dynamics began in Anacortes in 1970 and expanded over the years into new communities. As the years progressed, more programs were added including adolescent counseling, an adventure-based ministry known as Adventures, and Stonewater Ranch.

Youth Dynamics continues to seek new opportunities to minister to the lives of young people and pursuing the vision God has placed before us, “To see youth transformed by the power of Christ, integrating them into the local church and impacting their world for Him.”

Paul’s and Connie’s heart, vision, and story lives on in the lives of current staff with similar vision and calling. Today, Youth Dynamics reaches thousands of students each year through personal relationships and adventure-based experiences. Each interaction is an opportunity to share the love of Jesus in a very tangible way. Our continuing commitment is to make a significant impact for Christ in the lives of young people.

 

LEADERSHIP: Paul Evans was the president of Youth Dynamics until 2001 when he had to step down due to health issues (for which he later passed away from ALS in 2019). His son Mark Evans followed in his fathers’ footsteps leading the organization to acquire a 158-acre property just outside of Leavenworth, Washington in 2005. In 2017, Tom Davis became president after a few leadership changes and now is spearheading change and growth for Youth Dynamics.

STONEWATER: In 2005, Youth Dynamics purchased Stonewater, formerly known as the Alpine Boys Ranch. The two organizations had worked together over the years and because of Youth Dynamics’ mission to serve youth, the Alpine board of directors accepted the proposal from Youth Dynamics over many other offers. If that wasn’t blessing enough, they immediately donated the funds back to Youth Dynamics for maintenance repairs and additions needed for ministry purposes. Stonewater is the adventure base in Washington and offers adventures, leadership training, and retreats.

 

Remembering Paul Evans, founder of Youth Dynamics

Youth Dynamics’ founder, Paul Evans, (Nov. 13, 1946 – Aug. 30, 2019), has passed away. Paul and Connie, his wife of over 50 years, founded Youth Dynamics in 1970. He served as the President from 1970 until 2000.

Reflections Newsletters

Reflections is a newsletter that reflects student impact, ministry news, and upcoming events ministry-wide. This is a bi-annual printed and mailed piece and is sent to anyone currently supporting a missionary, ministry area, or Youth Dynamics corporately.