"We need more young people"

It is no secret that many churches are struggling nowadays with declining membership and a lack of funding needed to sustain ministry. For years now, participation in organized religion has been dwindling. More and more people define themselves as "spiritual but not religious" or consider themselves among the nones and dones. 

As a pastor, the weight of this problem is not lost on me. I see it playing out right before my eyes on pretty much a daily basis. And I get it - the reality of the church's decline is overwhelming and scary, especially since we don't know how to reverse the narrative. I have lost a lot of sleep stressing out about how to lead the church in these changing times. 

People in the church today are navigating a changing landscape. The church that exists today is not the one that existed 30 years ago. And no matter how much we might wish it would, the church is never going to go back to being just like it was 30 years ago. Times have changed, family dynamics have changed, our cultural and societal landscapes have changed. So, the tools and methods the church has always used will not be the ones that lead us into the future. We need innovative and creative ideas to fuel us into becoming the church God is calling us to be.

But how do we get there?

What exactly does getting "there" even look like?

The most common response I get when talking to my church congregation about our hopes and dreams for the church is without a doubt "we need more young people in the church." It is truly the most repeated statement when talking about a vision for the church's future.

As a young person myself, I understand that desire, and I certainly wouldn't mind having more people my age in the congregation. In fact, I would love that!

But, as a young person, I also understand why young people aren't streaming into our church pews. Here are a couple factors at play that have been on my mind: 

1. It takes a lot of courage to visit a new church, and it takes even more courage when there aren't necessarily people in the church who look like you. Sometimes it makes you feel as if you stick out like a sore thumb. And for introverts like me, that can make you feel like you are in even more of a spotlight than another visitor.                                                                                             
2. Even though the world has changed a whole lot in recent years, the church hasn't adapted to meet the changing needs of the people in its community. As much as I love many of the church's traditional elements, if I were seeking out a church to call home, those wouldn't be my top priority. So many in my generation are hungry for authentic and vulnerable community, and the ability to grow in discipleship. But that can be hard to find in the traditional hour-long worship on Sunday morning. So how can the church grow and adapt to meet this hunger for genuine, deep communities of discipleship?                                                                                                                                                                             
3. The last factor that has been on my mind a lot has to deal with the tension that can develop across generational divides. For example, my congregation right now is primarily older individuals, with an average age that is probably over 65. And I love them. It is like gaining this huge family of grandparents and friends who are so caring and kind. One of my favorite parts of my week is leading a Bible study that many members attend. We talk about a variety of different scriptures and topics every week, and there is always interesting discussion. But there have been many weeks where the conversation strays to talk about all the problems with "young people nowadays." There's often mention of a lack of discipline, no work ethic, over dependence on technology, lack of responsibility, poor financial management, not caring about going to church, and so on and so forth.                                                                                                    As a young person who falls in the millennial age-bracket they are talking about, it can be hard to listen to these conversations without becoming defensive. Sure, a lot of these points might be true of some young people, but I feel like it is never fair to paint an age-group with such broad brushstrokes. Plus, if you think about the root desire to have more young people, this type of conversation and stereotyping doesn't feel like the most fruitful way to foster new relationships. If anything, it would probably turn young people off from participating if they are always being blamed for the declines and changes the church is experiencing.

Clearly this is not a comprehensive list, nor is it a solution to the challenges facing the church today. I guess it is just one contribution to the ongoing conversation about where the church is and how they might adapt for the future. The problem of church decline does not have any easy answers or one-size-fits-all solutions. And I don't think the church needs new 5-step plans, books, or theories to solve our problems.

We need conversation.
We need honest dialogue.
We need to broaden our pool of conversation partners.
And most importantly, we need prayer and the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Within our own power, reversing the narrative of church decline is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.