We’ve all heard the statistics. The number one time people walk away from active involvement in church and their own personal walk with God is following their years in high school.
A wealth of research is out there (and I cite a great deal of it in this book) that provides the proof for this alarming trend, and there are almost as many voices blaming youth ministry for this epidemic. Some blame youth ministry for being entertainment driven, others fault churches for segregating generations, and others criticize youth pastors and youth workers for trying to take the place of Christian parents.
I advocate a balanced view of connecting the generations. In fact, I believe that this philosophy is essential for the church! I believe in youth ministry and have spent the majority of life as a youth ministry “insider.” My children are all actively involved in reaching and ministering to emerging generations; and through my ministries in Christian colleges and Christian organizations I have invested my life in the training of youth workers and future youth pastors. Obviously, church youth ministry is very, very important to me. I don’t believe it is time to eliminate youth ministry in favor of doing something else. There are far too many Biblical and practical reasons not to do that.
I absolutely and wholeheartedly believe in youth ministry - and pastors and other church leaders must make reaching and ministering to the next generation a top priority for the church. Not because the future of the church is in trouble (read Matthew 16:18, “…I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will overcome it”); it’s not! As Christ tarries, the church will survive, and it will, in fact, thrive. That’s not the point. It’s the future of individual kids that is at stake. Youth ministry has long been a priority, but is a sound, Biblically-based, and inter-generational youth ministry a top priority for the church? I think not.
It’s time that we make our young people’s life-long walk with God our emphasis in the church and in Christian homes. It’s not time to abolish youth ministry. However, it is time to give up on traditional youth ministry in favor of a new paradigm and a new model. Tradition is defined as, “a long established way of thinking or acting; a continuing pattern of behavior; a customary or characteristic method or manner; the handing down of customs from generation to generation.” So, traditional youth ministry (as in this “continuing pattern of behavior”) has been characterized by isolating teenagers from the overall life of the church.
Certainly, there is some value to this approach. It allows for youth ministry specialists to concentrate on reaching one particular segment of the population and it provides an opportunity for the church to develop culturally relevant methodologies for ministering to future generations. But, perhaps this strategy has inadvertently led to a generation of church drop outs once the kids become young adults.
It’s time to call for a balance in the church. We must balance the advantages of peer ministry with the importance of connecting the generations. Young people and older people alike need each other. We would fight not to segregate our churches over racial or social issues, but we have practiced generational segregation. We must change that tradition in the church. And the way to do that is to develop a balance – build effective youth ministries within a greater context of growing inter-generational relationships and ministry in the church.
I appreciate this comment from Missional Youth Ministry: Moving from Gathering Teenagers to Scattering Disciples, by Brian Kirk and Jacob Thome, “Most teenagers’ primary church experience is a series of segregated activities, most of which bear little resemblance to the practices of the rest of the church. Consequently when teenagers graduate from high school and youth group, they feel like their most meaningful church experiences have ended. In short, the program-driven model of youth ministry has failed to help young people find their place in the church.”
Let’s be intentional about helping the next generation find their place in the church.



