Discipling the Next Generation

 

Reflecting on my years in youth ministry, I must admit I was more often motivated by numbers than I was in discipling teens.  Cutting myself some slack, there were some members of my youth group with whom I had a close relationship.  I was very intentional when it came to equipping them to live out their faith.  Still, I was very aware that in the eyes of others, especially the pastor and church leadership, I was going to be evaluated on the level of participation.  I also must confess that self-pride was involved when I met with peers and we started comparing numbers. 

These thoughts came to mind as I read a recent article published by the Barna Group.  Barna identified five measurable characteristics of a holistic and active faith.

 

Spiritual practice - Praying and reading the Bible regularly

Evangelism – Sharing faith with others

Service – Volunteer and use talents to serve others

Belonging – Spend time with church friends

Calling – Feel called to integrate their faith with future career plans

 

As I considered the list, I was drawn to the reality that those are the same characteristic. we look for in disciples across the generations.  I need to be striving for the same goals in my ministry to older adults.

In the case of the Barna report, while over half of Christian teens participate in youth group, only one in four (18%) showed signs of a holistic and active faith.

The unfortunate reality is that we, as a church, usually do a poor job of discipling people of all ages.  Again, we still are drawn to evaluate our ministry in terms of numbers.  These days, if we can just keep the pews full and the budget balanced, we feel we are doing okay. As a result, often our goal is to just keep people happy and maintain status quo, rather than reaching the lost. 

We must be discipling people of all ages, but especially the next generation, it needs to be a community effort.  While we might add staff members to coordinate youth and children’s ministry, we must be ready to partner with them in the effort.  Discipleship is a community responsibility. 

 

 

The Catholic Archdiocese of Metro Detroit is facing a situation that is too familiar among church bodies.  They are looking at declining numbers, combined with increasing costs to maintain decaying urban cathedrals.  The situation was recently the focus in an article by sociologist Ryan Burge.

For clarification, that Archdiocese includes six counties in the Detroit Metro area.  Four of those counties are experiencing growth, while the other two, including Wayne County, which includes the city itself, are in decline.  When you look at the numbers, the church should be poised for growth, but that is not the case.

In 2011, 238,000 Catholics attended mass on a regular basis.  By 2024 that number had declined to 138.000.  The report also notes that since 2000 the number of infant baptisms has shrunk from 18,300 to 5,300 in 2024.  At the same time the number of funerals has declined from 9,700 to 6,000.  Did you catch that, at the current rate, the number of births is not keeping up with the number of deaths. 

From a business perspective, this is not sustainable.  Too much money is being spent to prop up aging urban cathedrals and not enough to invest in growth in the suburbs.  Additionally, there are fewer parishioners to support the ministry. 

My own church body, The Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, is facing a similar situation.  Today, the LCMS is half the size of what it was at its almost three million members in 1979.  Across the board, most urban congregations are struggling.  So are most rural and small-town churches.  The average congregation has less than a hundred people in worship on a typical Sunday.

In my opinion, too much attention, time and money is being spent to maintain what we have and not enough on growth.

In our case, the church’s leadership has shown through recent decisions, it is more interested in preserving tradition than it is on growth.  Notice I said traditions and not doctrine.  From my perspective, Lutheran theology is not the issue.  It is more an issue of practice, and how the Gospel message is presented. 

One reality is common among both the Catholics, the LCMS and other mainline denomination.  While maintaining our doctrine, we must become more focused on equipping the people we have to reach the lost around us. 

 

When someone recommends a book, I usually say thanks, but unless it is a topic that really excites me, I move on. When two or three people endorse a book it gets my attention. Such is the case with Joe Manchin’s new book, Dead Center: In Defense of Common Sense.

When someone recommends a book, I usually say thanks, but unless it is a topic that really excites me, I move on.  When two or three people endorse a book, it gets my attention.  Such is the case with Joe Manchin’s new book, Dead Center: In Defense of Common Sense.  To be honest, I have avoided most books written by politicians, but my friends insured me that this book was different. 

I admit that going in I knew very little about Senator Manchin.  I knew he was a democrat who had a reputation of being fiercely independent.  What impressed me early on in the book is how grounded and highly principled Joe Manchin is.  Raised in the Catholic tradition, he is also anchored in Christian principles.  I also valued the insights he provided on how we as a country can begin to heal from the current polarized environment.

At the close of the introduction, Joe Manchin shares his rules of the road that continue to guide his life.  One in particular caught my attention because I believe it holds the key to how our country might find its way again: “Listen with an open mind, embrace different perspectives and lead by bringing everyone to the table.”

During his time in Washington D.C., Joe Manchin made his home on a 65’ houseboat moored in a marina in the Potomac River.  He was known for hosting other members of congress from both parties.  Often over pizza and beer they would swap stories and share insights.  Joe Manchin wanted to hear all sides and never considered those from the other party to be the enemy.

Many years ago, on a visit to Williamsburg, Virginia I had the opportunity to have a meal at Christiana Campbell’s Tavern.  Early in the day, a tour guide had told us that it was George Washington favorite evening gathering spot.  Indeed, after all days debating foes in the Capital, Washington would hold court at night discussing the issues of the day informally with those who opposed him. 

It seems to me there is a powerful lesson here.  Our country just celebrated our 250^th Birthday, but to be honest my personal celebration was a bit subdued.  From my perspective, we are a divided nation.  We have established camps and find our greatest pleasure in hanging out with those who are like us.  The truth is we are a diverse country, but at the same time know very little about each other. 

We owe it to the next generation to learn from Joe Manchin and listen with an open mind, embrace different perspectives and making sure everyone has a place at the table.”  We need to find a way to be the United States again.