The Church has Missed a Cultural Shift

This is the final post in the series on changes I feel the church must make if it is to effectively minister to millennials.  In the case of this issue, I sincerely feel the future of the church itself hangs in the balance.  I fear that many mainline churches, and perhaps whole denominations will disappear if we don't wake up to the changes happening around us.  Look around you; how many established churches in your community are on the decline.  Once dynamic churches are now facing dwindling attendance and decreasing financial resources.  Why?  Because the church has not grasped the extent to which millennials have impacted and changed our culture.  The culture has shifted and we've been left behind.

When it comes to young adults the expectation has always been: they graduate from high school, go off to college, finish their educations and get jobs.  Along the way they might drift away from the church.  They might still show up with their families at Christmas, but for the most part they are not connected spiritually.  No worry: They will get married and when they start their family they will come back.  That is the pattern we've seen for generations. 

That no longer is the case.  Consider:

Even though teens are socially engaged, some of them have already check-out on the church before they graduate from high school.  In many cases it is because they do not see the church as relevant to their lives.

Campus ministry is not a high priority for many denominations.  Hence, college becomes a spiritual wasteland.  They are being taught many theories that run counter to their Christian upbringing but there is no support system to help them grapple with the questions.

They are graduating into a job market that is not real open.  Many colleges graduates are unable to find jobs in their field of studies, furthering their disenchantment with our society.

More millennials are choosing to live together outside of marriage.  In many case that already began during college, where co-habituating is an acceptable behavior. 

Many young adults are delaying marriage until much later.  In many cases they have no desire to have the church involved when they do decide to get married. 

Then there is the gay/lesbian issue.  Most millennials consider being "gay" OK.  Some are even choosing that lifestyle themselves, again putting themselves at odds with many traditional churches.

And as for starting a family: that is probably going to be delayed too.  If they are waiting until they are in their thirties before beginning a family, there is probably less of a chance that they are going to gravitate back to church.

Yes, it is a changing world and we must adjust not only our way of doing ministry, but our way of thinking. 

Youth ministry must focus on confronting the issues of the day and equipping young people to respond to them. 

We must recommit to having a presence near college campuses. 

We must reach out to young adults, instead of waiting for them to come back to us.

It is a difficult and challenging time, but our God never changes and through the power of the Spirit, we can overcome the world together.   The Gospel message is still relevant, and boy does this world need it.