Pastor Pusch

The title to this blog post is actually the title to one of the articles you can find in the premier issue of The Brink magazine. What is The Brink? The Brink is the newest magazine for young adults. Coupled with 13 weeks of five day devotions for the young adults, The Brink magazine focuses on three areas in which we hold as valuable: belonging, growing, and serving. The Brink magazine is the newest addition to the D6 Curriculum provided by Randall House Publications, Nashville, TN. If you’re looking for a new and fresh approach to young adult ministry, let me suggest that you order your copy of The Brink magazine.

Turn The Brink into your next Sunday School class or Small Group study with leadership resources located on TheBrinkOnline.com website. TheBrinkOnline.com is an interactive website designed especially for young adults. Interact with articles, post your comments, or check out the Blog written by The Brink editor/creator, Jacob Riggs. You can also meet up with your small group or connect with other YA’s with TheBrinkOnline.com.

Articles added weekly. Join a small group online. Preview upcoming issues.

*TheBrinkOnline.com is looking for article writers! To receive article guidelines, send an email to thebrink@randallhouse.com.

In recent days I have been asked to lead the young adult ministry at our church; a request I wasn’t totally excited about at first. Being a young adult myself causes me to ask questions regarding my own ability to lead a large group of my peers. Having served as an associate pastor and then lead pastor at a local church years ago, I’ve always enjoyed ministering to Senior Adults, Mid-Lifers, Teens, and Children more so than tackling the ministry of young adults (my own peers). Even now, as I have been given the opportunities to speak across the country, I still enjoy speaking to/with those outside my own age group as I seem to just find it easier for me to communicate with them. Today I welcome the opportunity to minister to such a unique population. Our church has been blessed with a wide range of young adults. We currently have 5 young adult connection groups that meet regularly with a 6th, maybe 7th, group on the horizon. The view from the stage during corporate worship is certainly a beautiful sight as you gaze over a congregation full of young adults. We are truly blessed as this is not the case in most churches.

According to Thom Rainer and the Lifeway Research and Development group, the numbers concerning the church and young adults are very discouraging. Research indicates that 70% of 18-22 years olds leave the church during that 5 year time frame with only 35% of those actually making their way back at some point (source: Sunday School in HD Conference, Woodstock, GA). Lifeway isn’t the only research team to discover such devastating numbers. The Barna Research Group indicates that 75% of those who were involved in youth group will leave the church within the first 5 years (Barna Research Group). Young adult ministry for years has been overlooked with most of the church’s time and resources being utilized elsewhere. While I understand that this may not be an issue with your church, the reality still exists that we are losing our young adults and it is to the detriment of the church. 

The question out there for us to answer is, “What are you doing to reach young adults.” Much attention has been given to children’s ministry (as it should as I believe this ministry to be among the most important in the church), youth ministry, and maybe the senior wild cats ministry (senior adults). The challenge is there, but be careful. Young adults are not the easiest to reach. It will take more than a visitor’s card in the offering plate or a generic phone call or letter laying out the 3 points as to why it was good to see them. Young Adults desire something real; something authentic. They desire a real relationship, not their grandmother’s religion. It doesn’t matter how young, hip, or “cool” you are. Young adults do not care.  If you have a heart for God and a desire to build real and authentic relationships, then you possess the beginnings of a well laid foundation to reach young adults.

Do it.

I hate math. No, really. I hate it. You hear it said that ‘hate’ is such a strong word and that is why I think it very fitting here. I hate math. I went to Bates Elementary School where Ms. White served as my 3rd grade teacher. I really liked her as she helped me transition into a new school. She was an older lady, but had a sweet spirited way of dealing with her students. As I recall, I had no real problems with 3rd grade. That was until the devil showed up. The devil was known then as Mr. Multiplication Table. Have I mentioned yet that I hate math? Well I do! It was the dreaded “times table” that about ruined my elementary career. The multiplication table was like a rite of passage in 3rd grade. In my school, as I am sure is the case in many others, one must master the multiplication table in order to move on to the 4th grade. When the Board of Education for the State of Michigan came together, they sat down and determined all that it would take for a 3rd grader to become a 4th grader. This happened with all grades, that when a student completed their senior year in the MI school system, the student would be well equipped to move on into college or, in many cases, the real world.  They mapped out what I would consider to be the desired results for the Michigan State educational system. Let’s just say I made it to the 4th grade by the skin of my teeth.

Many of us, if not all, would agree with the actions of the School Board to determine the educational course of a student as he moved about the program. A Grade ( 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.) is nothing more than a dash on a measuring stick. It tells us what a student should know and what will be required of him as he continues to move on through the system. We all would agree that this is a good thing. The concern falls in the area of Christian Education and local church. Do we as local church leaders come together and determine the course of our Christian Educational program? What are the desired results as our students pass from one class to another? Upon completion of the 1st grade class, what would we like for that student to know? The books of the Bible? Psalm 23? The Fruits of the Spirit, etc.? What about completing the 2nd grade class or the dreaded Junior High boys class? In state school systems, the Board of Education says that if a student cannot fulfill that which is expected of him for that certain grade, the student is to be held back in order to complete what he should know. The student cannot move on to the next grade until he completes the one prior to it. While it may not be a good idea to completely hold back a student in the C.E. program, there must be a system in place in order to help that student catch onto what he or she needs to know. What about the 4th grade student that comes to church for the first time, having never attended Sunday School before, is there a system set up in the Christian Educational program that will take on that student and help bring him up to speed?

The truth is that many churches do not give much attention to their Sunday School and/or their Christian Educational system. In most churches, students are simply passed on from one class to the next without really ever accomplishing anything. One might find it easiest to blame the student when the real blame falls on the part of the church and its lack of organization in the area of Christian Education. For too long, Christian Education has been treated as a “step-child” ministry. Sunday School is treated merely as a filler in order to say yes, we have Sunday School. Christian Education is the most important ministry in the church. It is a ministry that leads more into the development of one’s life spiritually than most others, or at least it should. Corporate worship services are important, but it is in the church’s Christian Educational program where the rubber really meets the road as it lends itself more to one on one time with students. It is a place where one can go deeper into the Word of God and find their place in the Kingdom. Forbid it Lord that we treat this ministry as secondary or not that important all together. This is real time we have with students to make real disciples.

So, where do I start? Begin with sitting down with those experienced in field; those who have seen success with their educational program. Then, sit down with your leadership and explore the thoughts of those who are actually leading your students, and determine with them what should be the desired results of a student as they move throughout the ministry of the church. Dr. Jonathan Thigpen, Christian Education extraordinaire, would label what I call “desired results” as “outcomes”. Regardless as to what you may call it, the challenge remains the same. What are the desired results in your Christian Educational program? What outcomes would you like to see  your students possess as they move throughout their lives in your church. I learned long ago from one I consider a giant in the area of Christian Education who said that “Christian Education successes and failures are dependent upon three criteria: quality of teachers, content taught, and the ends sought.” In order to have success in the area of Christian Education we must concern ourselves with having good teachers who can connect with their students, solid content, and a plan that covers the ends sought and really answers the question, what are our desired results?