By Tara Bullock
Special to the Tuscaloosa News
It’s 9 a.m. in the sanctuary. The band members begin tuning their instruments as the singers warm up their voices.
Cottondale Community Church, a nondenominational church on the corner of University Boulevard and Prudes Mill Road, participates in Youth Emphasis Day every fifth Sunday. On these mornings, members of the Cottondale Community Church’s youth lead worship.
“Since the youth is the generation of tomorrow, Youth Emphasis Day helps us transition into taking on roles in the church,” Michael Ford said. Ford, 20, plays the drums on Youth Emphasis Day. He also joins the band for traditional worship.
On a traditional Sunday, the band and praise team lead the congregation in slower songs, such as “Jesus Messiah.” On a Youth Emphasis Day, however, the band and praise team reflect the energy of the youth by playing upbeat tunes like “Trading My Sorrows.”
Though many younger members of the church like modern Christian music by artists like Kari Jobe and Needtobreathe, they also enjoy leading the congregation in traditional songs like the Southern hymn “I’ll Fly Away.”
“Playing a variety of music helps to incorporate everyone in the worship service,” Isaac Williams said. Williams, 20, plays the guitar and sings on Youth Emphasis Day. He too joins the band for the traditional service.
Cottondale Community Church began Youth Emphasis Day about a year ago. At first, the group only participated in music but they now lead prayer and have a drama team that performs.
“The skits are a new and different way for people to understand God’s power,” Williams said. “They can relate to a broader spectrum of people because you don’t have to be raised in church to understand the scenes; they’re like a visual translation of Jesus’ character.”
Ron Martin, the senior pastor at Cottondale Community Church, said that the church started Youth Emphasis Day to help younger churchgoers seize leadership opportunities.
“Our youth feel like they’re an active part of today’s church,” Martin said. “It’s important to get them involved so we can raise our leaders.”
He hopes that Youth Emphasis Days will inspire future ministers, worship leaders and teachers.
“I feel it’s a tremendous blessing seeing the older generation of our church sit back and enjoy parts of the service they normally don’t experience,” Ford said. “They enjoy seeing the youth getting involved and following in their footsteps.”
The next Youth Emphasis Day will be October 2. Services begin at 10:30 a.m. For more information, visit Cottondale Community Church’s blog.