Franciscan LEAD - Leadership, Evangelization And Discipeship Program

For the entire month of June, I participated in directing and facilitating Franciscan LEAD. LEAD took the place of the former "Young Apostle" program. And from what I can tell, the change was wonderful. There are still LEAD weeks going on before most of the 19 Steubenville Conferences, so keep your prayers coming!


LEAD gathers about 20 young people at each conference site who are currently in high school, or have just graduated, and give them 5 days of training on how to be a better "LEADer" in their communities. I encountered roughly 60 young people this summer who were on fire for Christ, and wanted to set the world ablaze.

At each conference many of the LEAD youth were about to stand up in front of the whole conference and give their 3-minute testimony, which they put together over the week. One women in particular touched so many, I will attempt to put the video here, if not, it will be on facebook.

Here are some pictures of their experiences:

Stacee is a WITNESS

Go to Facebook and watch this video of Stacee. She is in front of 4000 people giving her Testimony. I think you have to have Facebook to watch it, but maybe not. Try it out!

http://www.franciscanyouth.org/Apostles/

One of the most exciting aspects of Franciscan LEAD is the depth of training that the teens will receive. Our goal is to equip and empower young people to be witnesses to their Catholic faith and lead their peers into a deeper relationship with Christ. Imagine the impact on your youth group, even your parish, if you had teens that were unafraid and passionate about preaching the Gospel. This program is designed with you and your ministry in mind. We want to prepare your teens to strengthen their relationship in Christ and empower them to be authentic witnesses in your youth groups. In order to do this, we are going to need your help.

Franciscan LEAD seeks to be the soil where God will plant the seeds of evangelization for the next generation. Participants will discover who they are in Christ, how to walk with Him as a disciple, and how to share His love as a living witness. This program will help fulfill John Paul II’s call on this generation to join in the New Evangelization.