How Young People Connect to Church

What are the things that help young people connect to church? I sometimes talk about why people leave the church, including that they find it unChristian. But what connects them?

David Kinnaman, author of You Lost Me (why young Christians are leaving church) also did some research into things churches can do to engage young adults.

The article goes into more detail. But it covers 3 main areas. 1. Connection to Jesus. 2. Connecting faith to real life. 3. Allowing meaningful relationships with other Christians.

The research interviewed young people still involved with church ("Active") and those not currently attending ("Dropout"). While I'm not a big fan of those terms, the difference in the two groups is stunning. There's a clear connection between experiencing these things at church, and staying connected to church.

Also, it turns out the 59% of young people leave the church in their 'first decade of adulthood'. That's a strong reason to consider addressing this issue.

More ideas can also be found in the book You Lost Me.

Article Link: 5 Reasons Millennials Stay Connected to Church
Barna Resource: The Barna Millenials Project

Why young people leave the church

I love reading Rachel Evans' article Why millennials are leaving the church, and I feel her pain when invited to describe it to church officials.

She relates how young adults find church "too exclusive, old-fashioned, unconcerned with social justice" and how young Christians feel forced to give up both intellect and compassion. Young people are looking for a safe place to ask tough questions, and wrestle with doubt. A place that's less about "sticking to a set of rules", and less obsessed with sex.

What happens when she presents all this to the church hierarchy?

Invariably, after I’ve finished my presentation and opened the floor to questions, a pastor raises his hand and says, "So what you’re saying is we need hipper worship bands..."

And I proceed to bang my head against the podium.

Her article goes on to say that this most-advertised-to generation has been somewhat innoculated to the whole consumer-church idea, and are craving authenticity more than coolness.

You can’t hand us a latte and then go about business as usual and expect us to stick around. We’re not leaving the church because we don’t find the cool factor there; we’re leaving the church because we don’t find Jesus there.

You Lost Me ... Get It

Previously i gave you the stat that 70% of young adults will leave the church within 4 years. Now here's something for those interested in fixing that.

The book You Lost Me is accurately described by it's subtitle... "Why young christians are leaving church and rethinking faith". David Kinnaman (author of unChristian) analyses the ways church has failed young adults. A host of contributors provide 50 positive ideas to address the issue - including Jon Acuff, Francis Chan, Shane Claiborne and many more.



I heartily suggest you get your hands on a copy. If you're in doubt, read the free preview. If you want a quick summary of the problems, see the article 6 Reasons Young Christians Leave Church. Check out some of the ideas that didn't fit in the book, or get the free leader's resources.

PS. There's also a new article 5 Ways to Connect with Millenials

70% Loss by Age 22

This ad landed just landed in my inbox.


Millenials (called 'Generation Y' in Australia) are definitely disappearing from the church landscape. I have my doubts as to whether this can be changed by a downloadable word document. Perhaps the church needs to download a change of heart.


70% by age 22 is an astounding stat, and there are two main reactions to it:

1. Church is perfect. These stats show just how [insert negative stereotype] young people are. It just proves how right we are to ignore this generation in all we do. End of discussion.

2. Hang on. 7 in 10 young Christ-followers will leave church in their next few years? What does this say about us as a church? Are we fully following Jesus? If we are turning off young Christians (with a different culture) then how much of what we do is Gospel and how much is cultural? Do we value what Jesus values, or or just the things that older generations value?

Option 1 is more comfortable, with less self-examination required, but i think option 2 serves us (and God) better.

Younger Christians

John Cleary (ABC Sunday Nights) interviewed some of the organisers of the Surrender conference, and there was some discussion about young people and the future of the church. There was a great quote from Viv Benjamin, when asked about how Surrender goes across 'denominational lines'

Those lines that you speak of - they're not so relevant for us as Christians today. The message is the heart of Jesus' call for us, and i don't think we need to add extra identities on top of that... particularly young Christians - we just want to know what it means to follow Jesus.

There might be something in that for denominations beating their chest about how great their denomination is.

There was also talk about church reluctance to connect with people who need Jesus.

The church is confronted with its being so separate for so long, that perhaps that engagement now may bring them the kind of challenge they're no longer prepared for.

And some disappointment was expressed with "the bubble" the church keeps young people in.

They (young people) are trying to find something real. They're trying to match the stories they've heard with the world. And they do match actually - if you read the gospels properly. But i think the church has made this world a little cushy. We like to know that we've got these 4 walls that protect us, and we can visit once a week, and we can sing pretty songs, and we can relieve our guilt by saying some prayers and giving some money.

[Link: Full Interview]