2025 LCMS Youth Gathering Poems

Author, spoken word poet, and speaker, Tanner Olson shared four poems at the 2025 LCMS Youth Gathering.

If you’d like for Tanner to come speak and share original spoken word poetry at your church, school, or conference, send him a message to learn more.

Night 1: This is for You

This...
This is for the Cheeseheads, Cornhuskers, and Hoosiers,
For the Minnesotans, Michiganders, and Missourians.
This is for the city kids and suburbanites,
For those who say the Midwest is best,
And those who know that the coasts have the most.

This is for the athletes and gamers,
Cheerleaders and readers,
Parents, pastors, and leaders,
For the freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors.

This is for those wondering why they are here, and those who couldn’t wait to arrive,
For the burdened and baptized, half asleep and fully alive.
This is for those who are seeking a better way,
And the ones who decided to stay for another day,
For those who toss and turn at night,
Wondering if everything will be alright.

This is for the comfort dogs and the people they comfort,
For the wrestling and wondering,
The anxious and depressed,
The questioning and concerned.

For the couples and singles,
And those of you who are figuring it out.
This is for the future doctors and pastors,
Teachers and poets.

This is for the parents who are here because they used vacation days,
And the youth leaders who deserve your shout of praise,
And for the beautiful city of New Orleans and their delicious beignets.

This is for those who are struggling to believe the truth that they are free,
And for those of us who are finding out how life can be heavy.

This is for us who feel too much,
And the ones trying to keep up,

For those wondering if they belong,
And are ready to sing a new song,
For the ones who are trying to hold on,
And carry on, and move on, and so on.

This is for those who just don’t know...
The mourning and lonely,
The brokenhearted and healing,
The misunderstood and worried,
For those who are tired, but are still going.

This is for you who are just happy to be here.
This is for the hopeful, the joyful, the soulfully grateful.

This is for those who didn’t think life would be this way,
But are trusting God will one day make it all better than okay.

This is for you.
You.
You who are loved.
You who are seen.
You who are known.

You who are never alone.
You who were created to endure.

This.
All of this.
This is for you.
And for the One who made you, you.

Tanner would love to come share poetry and stories of hope at your church, school, or conference. Click the button below to learn more.

Night 2 Poem - Let Hope Interrupt the Story

Slow down and stay awhile.
I’d like to share this with you.

I once read on a painted sign hanging from chicken wire in a church kitchen that, “God don’t make mistakes.”

He don’t.

He made you, and you are not a mistake.
You’ve never been a mistake.
You and I have made mistakes,
but we are not a mistake.

God’s soft and holy hands knitted you together as He sang a song of love.
He picked out your shape and size, and skin and soul.
He picked out your walk and talk.
He gave you your weird and different, beauty and dreams.
He put a heart in your chest, and life in your bones, and stars in your eyes.
He filled you with love, and tapped you on the nose, and called you very good.

You.

He called you very good.

But I know you have days where you feel far from very good.

I’m just like you. I feel it too.

There are days when I feel lost and alone, far from home.

There are days when my insecurities scream, and inadequacies seem to multiply, and my fear goes sky high, and I am left feeling empty as I wonder… why.

There are days when I feel the earth crack beneath my skin, and anxiety shake me like a hurricane does a house.

There are days when my past catches up to my present and whispers in my ear all the things I wish I had never done, or said, or thought, or heard.

And there are days when the heaviness tries to steal away my hope. It pulls down the shades and blocks out the sun, and the darkness sits on my chest as I feel like I am about to break and bend. But hope says this is not the end.

Hope grabs my hand, puts my eyes on Jesus, and invites me to endure until the end.

Hope interrupts the story and shines a light, reminding me that by God’s grace, everything will be alright.

After all, I have been knit together by God’s soft and holy hands.

Let hope interrupt your story.

Let hope slow you down as you stay awhile.

Slow down and stay awhile.

Want more spoken word poetry from Tanner?

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And make sure to check out Tanner’s books …

Night 3 - Love of Christ

You and I are not too different.

I once sat where you are sitting.
I was half my age, 17-years-old,
Insecure and nervous, just like right now. 

Pimples were a problem and like my math homework,
I didn’t know how to solve them.
I thought it was okay to use too much Axe body spray
and when it came to life’s problems, like the prodigal son, I tried to run away. 

I had a crush on a girl who didn’t know my name.
Two parents who loved me even though I drove them insane. 

I had questions and concerns,
big dreams and big fears
and the attention span of a puppy.
I still do.

I was trying to find my place in this world
I went left and right, up and down,
searching all around, forgetting that in Christ I had been found

And if I could go back and tell my younger self anything, it’s this:

Make your home in the hands of God, rest in the Holy Spirit, and let the love of Christ move you.

Let the love of Christ wash you clean and make you whole and keep you close to hope. 

Let the love of Christ empty your hands and fill your heart, let it spill over and into the lives of the people around you. 

Let the love of Christ give you confidence to step into the unknown with faith. 

Let it guide you through storms and valleys and Mondays and decisions you don’t want to make. 

Let it remind you of peace and goodness and mercy and grace and all the words we love, but have a hard time believing. 

Let the truth be true: that you, you are invited to sit at the table, welcomed home, no longer alone. 

Let this lead you to sing and confess and trust and may it give you ears to hear that there is nothing … nothing that can separate us from the love of Christ.

Let this good news bring you joy and may that joy slow you down to see the beauty that surrounds you and me. 

Let the love of Christ meet your grief and your sorrow and your secrets. 

Let it send you to places you never thought you would go and bring you into conversations you never thought you would have. 

Let Christ’s love break down your walls and grow your gardens.

Let it soften your heart and keep you going. 

Let the love of Christ open your eyes to see that you and I are, well, we aren’t too different. 

We’ve been met by the unconditional, everlasting love of Christ. 

A love that endures forever.

Make sure you’re following Tanner on Instagram, Facebook, and Substack.

Night 4 - Along the Way

Along the way it will not all be okay.

You already know this.

There will be death and sadness and fear.

There will be bumps in the road and bruises on your soul.

There will be brokenness and moments that feel as though they are beyond repair.

There will be pain and failure and unwanted changes to your story.

But with every step you take, you never walk alone.
God is not far, but here.
He is not blind, but sees.
He knows your name and your needs,
Your past and your future.
The God of the universe,
the One who sets us free,
stretches out His hand and says, 
“Trust me.”

And through it all,
God - God can be trusted.

As you trust
Slow down and look around,
Go ahead, tuck your phone away, along with your worries.
Right now, you don’t need to busy yourself.
You can just be.  

Open your empty hands, feel, and breathe in deep.
Fix your eyes forward on the world in front of you. 

See the trees shake their leaves,
Get lost in the rising sun and the shadows it makes.
Hear the birds sing their song for anyone who will listen, listen.

Take a moment and sit with what is,
even if what has come to be feels incomplete. 

Maybe you feel this way, too.
I tell myself life is not a race and you are not behind.
I tell myself life is not a puzzle to complete, but a gift to enjoy. 

Even when change finds us
or life becomes what we never thought it would be.
Even if something or someone is missing.
And something is missing,
but hope is not.
And someone is missing,
but Christ is not.

So, with empty hands and a full heart we keep singing
Holy, Holy, Holy
We continue to run with endurance,
To wait with hope,
To be not afraid as we follow Christ along the way 

And along the way it will not all be okay,
you already know this,
but God brings light to the darkness
and mercy to the madness
and reminds us that one day
Christ will make everything okay,
because everything isn’t okay today.

Book Tanner today!

Tanner blends humor, faith, and wonder to deliver unforgettable poetry and a message that resonates. Whether he's on stage at a conference, in the classroom, or behind the mic at a local church, Tanner shares spoken word and stories that stir the heart and spark meaningful conversation.

He has presented at schools, churches, conferences, and organizations on a wide range of topics—from purpose and identity to creativity, healing, and hope.

Available for:

• Evenings of Music & Poetry with singer songwriters Blake Flattley and Matt Doering

• Author Visits at Schools

• School Assemblies & Workshops

• Conferences

• Church Events & Fundraisers

• Community Gatherings

Each event is tailored to the audience and designed to encourage, uplift, and connect.

Want more information about working with Tanner?

Tap the button and send a quick email. Tanner will respond after the Gathering.