Why We are Losing Ground with Young Adults By Marty J. Cauley

I have the amazing privilege of working with spiritually sensitive and passionate young adults from across the southeast. I am also charged with understanding why the church is losing ground with young adults. After hundreds of conversations with young adults, I have identified some common strands running through their decisions to leave the church, or at least our version of the church.

One reason is the perception that worship is passionless. This is not because young adults do not care for traditional worship or liturgy. There is actually resurgence in older forms of liturgy among young adults, but the churches they flock to for this type of experience do it very well and are clear about why they do it. Young adults just will not tolerate watered down, unexplained ritual or poor quality, half-hearted worship. This generation desires to experience God in wholly different ways than did their parents – with their hearts as well as their heads.

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Tips for Welcoming Young People

• Thanks be to God; you are family with young people in your church!
• Young people bring unique gifts to the family, both as a generation, and as individuals. Take the time to talk about what those gifts are and how to incorporate them into your church life! Ask young people about their experiences with worship, study, and mission!
• Young people, inherently, bring changes. Change can be scary, but often brings vitality and new life!

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Leaders do not need answers.
Leaders must have the right questions.

A youth ministry adopted as its theme one year a question instead of an affirmation. Throughout the year they explored sources of living water that inspire and guide persons their age.

Where do you get that living water? John 4:11

Editors:  Lovett H. Weems, Jr. and Ann A. Michel
Production and distribution:  Joe Arnold

Copyright © 2008 by the G. Douglass Lewis Center for Church Leadership. Leading Ideas material may be freely distributed with attribution (exclusive of material protected by separate copyright).