Letter from
“These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit — but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock.”
— MATTHEW 7:24-25 (THE MESSAGE)
Did you know there are over 500 references in the Bible to rocks and stones? Of course, the most famous of these revolve around the Lord: “the rock of our salvation” and the “chosen and precious cornerstone” of our faith. Jesus, as the hymnwriter so eloquently wrote, is indeed the “Rock of Ages, cleft for me.”
Jesus was surrounded by rocks his whole life — he was laid in a manger (a feeding trough most likely made of stone). His carpentry trade probably involved stonemasonry, because of a scarcity of trees in that region. His body was placed into the side of a cave and a stone covered it.
So Jesus knows of what he speaks when comparing his words to a house built on solid rock. We have found Jesus’ words, like their speaker, to be reliable and immovable. They are trustworthy. They are strong. They are enduring.
From day one Jesus has been our Foundation. Jim Rayburn, who started Young Life, famously said, “That’s not just what Young Life’s all about; that’s all Young Life’s about — Jesus Christ.”
So we build upon him. As we have spent countless hours in prayer determining the direction of our KNOWN vision, we have landed upon four strategies that follow our Lord’s example. We are relational; we are Kingdom minded; we are dependent upon volunteers; and we accomplish this work in community.
In this year’s annual report we look at how these strategies have played out in 2023 — from our relational work with Gen Zers around the globe to our raising up and equipping Kingdom leaders of color in the U.S.; from our exciting volunteer explosion in Bangladesh to the growing Deaf Young Life ministry in Texas.
These stories, and the others in these pages, cause us to stop and give thanks to our Lord for his steady foundation throughout the history of our mission, and to thank you too, for your faithful support which helps undergird God’s important work through Young Life.
May we all continue to build upon our rock and refuge in the years to come.
In Christ,
Newt Crenshaw
President/CEO
