Our Guiding Principals...
We Acknowledge Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior
We Fellowship to grow in our faith in Christ and build Christian relationships
We Study to develop a deeper knowledge and understanding of our faith in Christ
We Go into the world to share our faith in Christ and to serve
In all that we do, we strive to Mirror Jesus Christ

Who We Are and Why We Love Your Kids...
The staff and youth leaders at Grace are people whose lives are marked by two basic things: we love God, and we love kids. We are here to help build and grow the students’ faith in Jesus Christ. We believe that having a personal relationship with Christ is the single most important decision that one can or will make in his/her life. The most important thing in our lives is our faith, and we seek to share this faith with the teenagers we come in contact with. We will spend time hanging out with, sharing with, and talking with students about God and how He wants to be at the center of their lives. We want to be there for youth as they deal with issues of faith and life and the struggles that arise.

Chris Sasser - Director of Youth & College Ministries
Chris is a 1992 graduate of the University of North Carolina. He worked from the summer of 1992 to the summer of 1993 as the Youth Director of the A.E. Finley YMCA. In 1993, Chris joined the staff at Saint Andrews Presbyterian Church as the Youth Director, overseeing the Middle School and High School ministries. Chris joined the staff at Grace Community Church in May of 2000 as the Director of Senior High and College Ministries.  He is married to Karin and they have one son, C.J and one daughter, Kylie..
 CSasser@gracecommchurch.com          (919) 862-8521 ext. 27

Youth Leaders
The success of the Youth Ministries at Grace Community Church revolves around its volunteer youth leaders. These parent and young adult volunteers invest time, money, and their very lives into building strong relationships with your youth. They are devoted to their faith in Christ and sharing that faith with teenagers.  These leaders attend Sunday night Youth Group meetings, lead weekly Bible studies and small groups, attend our many trips and retreats, and spend countless hours reaching out to the students in our ministry and beyond. They may attend sporting events, school functions, or invite kids into their homes to help build relationships.  Feel free to contact our youth leaders if you have any questions, need information, or simply want to offer them a word of encouragement.

Our Focus & Philosophy...
At Grace Community Church, our youth ministry focuses on four main areas: evangelism/outreach, fellowship, discipleship, and service. Every meeting we hold and event we plan has one of these four areas as its primary goal.

Our primary goal on Sunday nights is evangelism and outreach. Friends of our youth are always welcome to any event Grace sponsors, and many of the youth who attend Sunday night youth group are not actually members of the church, but friends of members. Inviting a friend to youth group is a great non-threatening way for youth to introduce their friends to a relationship with God. On Sunday nights we hope to interest in topics of faith and help them to see how Christianity relates to each one of them personally and to their everyday life. Many of our special events are also planned with evangelism and outreach in mind so that kids begin to feel comfortable in a church setting.  We also want to provide an environment where students can become comfortable with our youth leaders so they are open to explore questions about faith.

Most of our trips blend evangelism/outreach and discipleship. On our summer church camp trips - The Great Escape and Fun in the Son - many of our youth make a commitment to pursue their faith. It is on these trips where they really feel they experience God in a personal and powerful way for the first time and their faith becomes their own and not just what they were brought up with. Fall retreats, Metamorphosis, and other trips also spur kids on in their faith. For some, it proves to be the spark that causes them to take their faith seriously, and for others it is a way to add more fuel to the fire of their already growing faith.

Most of our discipleship occurs in our weekly small group Bible studies and our monthly Senior High Focus on the Cross. It is in this smaller setting that students are challenged to really study Scripture, ask deep questions, and seek to understand God’s Word. To us, the small group Bible studies are truly the backbone of our ministry. It is in these smaller groups that students really connect with one another, with leaders, and most importantly Christ. Those involved in small group Bible study tend to stay more involved in church and take their faith into consideration when making tough adolescent decisions. Discipleship also occurs in middle school Sunday school, confirmation classes and other special events.

Although we try to include more service during the school year, our primary service events are our summer mission trips and service projects. There is a service or mission opportunity for every grade 6 - 12 each summer. Tenth through twelfth graders do international missions, eighth and ninth graders take a national mission trip, and sixth and seventh graders have a local service project. We have a monthly outreach called Second Saturday where we serve ministries in the Raleigh area, and we take monthly visits on Sundays to a handicapped home called the Murdoch Center to escort residents to church.

"Relational Ministry"
At Grace Community Church, we employ the ministry model known as "relational ministry." This simply means that we take an ACTIVE role in student’s lives. . . instead of waiting for them at church, we take Jesus to them, on their turf. Our ministry does not revolve around programs, it revolves around people. The programs are simply the means to begin developing relationships. We want our leaders to not just know about the lives of our students, but to be in the lives of our students. The relationships that our leaders develop with the students are the central part of our ministry. As our leaders build these relationships and our youth know they genuinely care about them, the leaders gain the youth’s respect and earn the privilege of sharing the love of Christ with our youth.

This style of youth ministry becomes a ministry with students rather than a program-centered ministry to students.  Programs don’t develop relationships; people do.

When you ask a teenager to list their top ten favorite places to frequent, church usually misses the cut. Students sometimes come to us, but Jesus teaches us in the Great Commission (Matthew 28) that we should be going to them. We encourage our leaders to do weekly "contact ministry." Simply be in contact with kids. Go where they go and spend time with them . . . on campus, at school sporting events, at the mall, at school plays, at piano recitals, on the basketball court - wherever your students go, our leaders attempt to spend time with them there. Contact ministry allows leaders to learn more about the students and their true needs, and gives the students the arena they need to begin to trust them as real people they can count on. The leaders are no longer the "guy/gal from church," but their friend.
*Some of the content from this page was borrowed directly from Doug Fields’s book The Purpose-Driven Youth Ministry

What Do We Do?...
Sunday Night Youth Group
Sunday nights are a time where High School students can gather for fun, fellowship, and a time of teaching on deepening their faith in Jesus Christ. We want to provide an inviting atmosphere that makes students want to come to church and want to bring their friends. Sunday nights are typically filled with games, worship, singing, prayer, and a message about incorporating Christ in our daily lives. Sunday nights are planned and led by a combination of adults and students and occur throughout the school year. We meet from 7:00 - 8:45 p.m. in Grace Hall or in the GYM.

Senior High Small Groups
Our Small Groups are where students can meet in a more intimate setting to look deeper into what the Bible has to say and to learn how to make Christ the center of their lives. Sunday nights are so large that it is sometimes hard to have discussions on faith. Small Groups are a safe place for students to have discussions about the Lord and how he can work in their lives. Because there are so many students at Youth Group, it’s sometimes hard to build quality relationships. Small Groups also allow students to deepen their relationships with other students and leaders. Our Senior High Leaders plan and run these Small Groups, seeking to guide the students and offer them help as they grow in their faith. Small Groups are divided by gender and by class and meet in homes during the week. Times and directions for all Small Groups are available at church and in the youth section of the Grace calendar.

Summers at Grace...
9th Grade Mission Trip
Each summer 9th graders take a mission trip somewhere in the eastern part of the US. Some years we have traveled to rural mountainous areas to do home repair work for low-income and elderly residents and other years we have done more urban ministry missions.   Estimated cost: $350.

Mexico Mission Trip
Mexico is truly one of the cornerstones of the Senior High Ministry. We take rising Juniors and Seniors on a summer trip to Miguel Aleman, Mexico where we work with Faith Ministries on a variety of projects. We do construction in a village, working on a church complex as well as providing homes for families in need. We also plan and run a Vacation Bible School for the children in the colonia. This trip is typically a life changing event in the lives of students and is integral to their faith development for years. Estimated cost: $500.

Jamaica Mission Trip
After students have been to Mexico for a few years, they are ready for a new challenge. Our mission trip to Jamaica for our graduated seniors has grown into a great experience where students are forced to grow in their faith in different ways. We will do construction projects as well as interact with the people of Jamaica and share about faith. Jamaica is challenging to students because there is no language barrier, and they are forced to be vocal about their faith. This trip is a great way to launch students into their college careers. Estimated cost: $600.

Fun in the Son
Fun in the Son is our annual summer camp where we join hundreds of other high school students from across the southeast. This trip is sponsored by a national organization called Youth Conference Ministries and is one of the top youth camps in the country. There will be incredible music and speakers that will challenge students to accept Christ and follow Him on a daily basis. There will be lots of free time and recreational activities and a lot of fun to be had. Estimated cost: $350.