The slogan of Leonard Dow’s hometown Philadelphia Phillies is “Ya Gotta Believe.” Dow, wearing a black Phillies cap, challenged youth on Thursday morning to believe — in worshipping God again.

“Watching and working without worship can lead to worry,” said Dow, senior pastor at Philadelphia’s Oxford Circle Mennonite Church.

Dow illustrated his exhortation with a story from Durban, a coastal city in South Africa. On a learning tour with Mennonite Central Committee, Dow watched persons gather, sing and cleanse themselves at the ocean. “I wondered, ‘what are they saying?’ Dow said, as he couldn’t understand the Zulu language. “I can’t swim. Will they take me out? Is this some reality television show?”

One of the men approached Dow and asked if he wanted to be washed, to be cleansed. Dow stood then in disbelief, though he longed for personal cleansing. “When the Holy Spirit is moving, what is the proper response?” Dow asked. “I took a step back and said no, and to this day I regret it. I missed out on an opportunity for the Holy Spirit to reach out to me.”

Too often, we are distracted from the Holy Spirit by constant use of media and communication technology. “I invite you to turn off modern distractions and invite the Holy Spirit in to you,” Dow said. “Even modern youth conventions can be a distraction. This should be about how we can go out and do kingdom work in the world.”

On Dow’s prompting, the crowd broke into “Lean On Me.” With open palms — the international sign for giving up, which Dow learned in South Africa — Dow invited youth to believe again in the Holy Spirit. “I sense you are becoming your generation,” Dow said. “I sense we can be radical in our worship together.”

For example, he asked, how often do we get down on our knees like Mary did, and listen for the Holy Spirit? Not often enough. “We’re not afraid to use our voices in four-part harmony,” Dow said. “But can we lift our Lord up with our voices, in prayer, the same way we do in song?”

So flashy distractions were shut down in Nationwide Arena: lights were turned off; Dow left the stage; the cameras refocused on the red, yellow and blue stained-glass cross.

The youth worshippers were invited to rid their mirrors of distraction. The small mirrors given to youth at Wednesday night’s worship session were tossed into buckets and wheel-barrows with noisy splashes of glass like hail on a tin roof.

Dow’s closing words had left youth with a call to believe. “Tell God, ‘I give you my fears. I let it go.’”