I often find myself developing great new ways to engage and work with teenagers. The strange thing is they all involve me sitting behind my desk. I have two main issues with spending most of my time in front of the computer.

Issue number one: I'm always at my desk. Log in to your instant messenger and you will find this out the hard way. Yes, I am that guy. I might even hunt you down on Facebook.
Has youth ministry come down to text messaging systems and fancy technology? Raise your hand if your iPhone is used for "youth ministry." I rest my case.

Issue number two: I'm giving my students the impression that it's okay to spend life hiding behind technology, cell phones, computers, and other stuff I'm not cool enough to know about yet. This brings with it an entirely new onset of problems.
Yes the days of bringing a football out to the park and having 50 students show up are over. That doesn't mean youth pastors should be hiding out behind high tech devices.

I started thinking: When was the last time I went to a high school basketball game, took a group of teenagers out for no reason, or sat around outside the local school and waited to hand out flyers?
Get out from behind your desk and get in person.

John Denton is the youth pastor at Central Community Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California. yeahjohndenton@gmail.com. youthpastorjohn.com.

http://www.simplyyouthministry.com/community-articles-from-the-field.html