Alarming Realities in the Church

Date
July 7, 2020
Author
Robert Berghorst
Category
Family Life

I always try to stay connected to current trends among youth and families. Surveys are great resources for understanding the mindset of people. As many of you are likely aware, there are currently some alarming survey results concerning youth and young adults. One survey that is continually referenced in Christian circles was published in 2017 by LifeWay Research.

The main emphasis behind this research is that 66% of young adults had dropped out of worship services. Specifically, these individuals attended services regularly for at least a year as a teenager and then attended services no more than once per month for at least a year between the ages of 18-29. Yes, be aware that headlines can often be misleading, and you must search for specific definitions to understand the study. That can be a tedious task but it is necessary in order to fully understand the study.

More intriguing than the numbers is the reasoning behind the numbers. Herein lies the value of a survey. What are people thinking? Our ability to minister more effectively should correlate with an increased understanding of people. The same is true for parenting. Are we seeing only the actions of our children, or do we know the reasoning behind the actions? The latter is extremely important.

What can we learn from this study? Nearly all (96%) stated that a significant change in life affected their decision to drop out. For example, 34% stopped attending services when they moved to college. Scott McConnel, executive director for LifeWay research, offered the following summary of the research. “Most of the reasons young adults leave the church reflect shifting personal priorities and changes in their own habits.”

Barna Group, in 2016, released a 2013 study titled, “The Priorities, Challenges, and Trends in Youth Ministry.” The entire article is worth reading, but I want to focus on one particular point. They listed their top three common challengers of youth ministry and they are as follows: busyness of youth (86%); lack of interest from parents (41%); breakdown of families (31%). I want to contrast these with number five on the same list. The fifth greatest challenger is a lack of interest among youth (20%). Please reread this paragraph slowly and as many times as necessary for you to fully understand it. Do you see anything that seems odd with it? If not, compare the lack of interest in parents with the lack of interest in the youth.

This brief sampling of research points emphatically to a very biblical truth—FAMILY MATTERS. Priorities and habits will be significantly forged in the family. What exactly are we teaching our children concerning the purpose of life? Is it about the American dream? Is it about ensuring financial success by prioritizing education above everything else at this stage in life? What exactly are we conveying to our children in word and action? From this research a general question must be asked: can families become a hindrance toward creating kingdom priorities for our children?

This is a hard question to ask, but we must ask it. Having served in full-time ministry for over a decade, I can say that we, as Christians, are long overdue for a critical evaluation of God’s plan for the family, which includes an understanding of personal responsibility for parents. I know this is hard. I am in this category, and I must come face to face with my shortcomings. But if we are truly heartbroken at the number of young adults who walk away from God shortly after graduation, then we must be willing to look deeper.

There is one more thought from Barna Group that is worth our attention. When these survey responders were asked about what makes their faith grow, “church” was NOT one of the top ten factors. Please meditate on the potential implications of that reality and I will be following this up with related thoughts.