The Young Life’s founder’s most famous “RAYBURN-ISMS”
As a communicator, Jim Rayburn spoke like no other. His impassioned pronouncements on Christ, kids, camps, and many other subjects revealed a man who longed for excellence in himself and others. Below are just a few of his gems …
“That’s not just what Young Life’s all about; that’s all that Young Life’s all about — Jesus Christ.”
“It’s a sin to bore a kid with the gospel.”
“I do not want anything in my life that is not of the Lord Jesus.”
“You know, gang, if you don’t believe the Christian faith you’ve gotta dream up a whole lot of other stuff to explain what’s all around us — I mean a whole lot of stuff.”
“Who started the idea that Christians ought to have the seat of their pants in patches, or that we ought to hold camp in tents? We talk about the King of kings; let’s act like he’s in charge! We’re going to have the classiest camps in this country.”
“Jesus Christ is really attractive! So, we seek to present him in the most attractive way.”
Read more about Jim’s philosophy on making the gospel matter
“There are thousands of people in this country that no Christian has ever said a kind word to. Most of the kids in this nation are like that. A few million more of them will graduate from high school this year … and they’ve never heard the story. And I can’t stand that.”
“Jesus is the only one we can talk about without fear of exaggeration.”
“Everyone has the right to know the truth about Jesus Christ. They have a right to know who he is, a right to know what he’s done for them, a right to know how they relate to that, a right to make their own choice of him.”
“I’ve believed that the greatest job in the world today, by far and away the greatest job in the world today, is just to thumb the pages of this New Testament, which was written to make Jesus Christ known, and to do it in the presence of a group of people who are listening, who know you care about them, and no beans about it; people that you’ve taken the time and the trouble to prove to that you really care that they’re people — and that’s all you are is people, that you may have one great glorious advantage over them. But you didn’t earn it and you don’t have any more right to it than they do. And that’s a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.”
“When you talk to kids about the Sovereign of all that is, the One who made you and everything else, the One who became one of us, the One who died for us, and the One who is alive for us today — don’t you dare bore anyone with that. If you can’t do this, then you need to get better acquainted with the One you’re talking about.”
“Most kids haven’t trusted Jesus Christ simply because they don’t know who he is, and what he has done for them.”
“Young Life is a group of people committed to the idea of winning a hearing with kids for the greatest story ever told.”
“Jesus did somethin’ tremendous for me, so much that when I think of it the teardrops start; so much that I’ll never be able to thank him; so much that it wouldn’t make any difference if I never had another happy moment, if I could just please him and honor him, and show him how thankful I am. He suffered for me, the just for the unjust, to free me from the curse of death, and give me a new life.”
Read a 1960 Christmas letter from Jim
“I’ve always felt a little twinge or something when I was introduced as the founder of this outfit — I am the founder of this outfit, don’t get me wrong! But the reason for my embarrassment is that I always felt like a fella who founded something should at least know he was founding something. I didn’t have the slightest idea I was founding something.”
“Christ is the strongest, grandest, most attractive personality ever to grace the earth. But a careless messenger with the wrong approach can reduce all this magnificence to the level of boredom…it is a crime to bore anyone with the gospel.”
“We’re never going to justify Young Life with numbers because our count may not match heaven’s.”
“The best Young Life work has yet to be done.”
“Don’t ever let ’em quit talking about Jesus!”
