You don’t need me to quote statistics to know Christian young people are fleeing the church at an alarming rate. But not only the local church…they are walking away from their faith altogether. Just to make sure we’re all on the same page, humor me and read this next part carefully.
According to a pre-COVID study, Barna Group found that teenagers were walking away from the church AND their faith to the tune of 64%. Stop and read that again. Before COVID, an average student ministry with 10 students, would see 6–7 of those students quit attending church — any church — and walk away from Jesus after high school.
My question for you is simple. At what point does this crisis keep you up at night? At what point do those numbers cause you to hit your knees in desperate prayer? What would it take for you and others at your church to take action to make sure your students aren’t part of that statistic?
I’ve dedicated my life towards reaching young people with the Gospel. From my personal reflections and prayer over the last few years, I believe the answer to reaching this next generation is only found in relationships. First and foremost our own relationship with Jesus, and then our relationship with the young people of today. We can’t share Jesus if we don’t know Him, and we can’t share with others if we don’t know them.
I trust if you’re reading this, you can probably share the basic tenants of the Gospel in multiple methods. You’ve got your acronyms, tracts, roads, brochures, and bracelets; but can you make the Good News of Jesus relevant and applicable to a teenager? For many of us, our content is on point; it’s our delivery that needs adjusted.
Sure, you have a ping pong table and video games in your youth room and just purchased the hottest new curriculum, but do your leaders genuinely engage with teenagers? Because the Gospel shared through authentic relationship is likely to be the life changing spiritual connection they need — not another piece of curated curriculum.
This current generation is biblically illiterate and needs to be taught the Gospel and how to engage with God’s Word. But they are also the first generation born into a world of technology and AI…which is a lonely world leaving them desperate for relationships that are trustworthy, real, and authentic. They must engage in these kinds of relationships long before they consider whatever message the other person might want to deliver. And just like you might not know their slang (“Bet. Don’t gaslight me bruh.”), they don’t understand your Christianese (“Sister, you need to do your devos in order to be sanctified in Christ”). But they will understand your genuine and authentic care for them.
I assure you, your students are researching and discussing the tough topics of our world today. They are forming their own thoughts and opinions. Many have been heavily informed by social media, YouTube influencers, and their peers. Our churches and student ministries should not be another place that talks at them. Our ministry spaces should be the safest places for them to ask hard questions, share their thoughts, be heard, and know they are valued by the adults around them. Only then will we see receptivity to the Gospel and to understanding biblical principles.
This relational tenant must start with the right leader — God. I’ve seen a lot of student ministries built more around the youth pastor than on the Trinity of God. I’ve seen churches look for the “right person” to hire, the one “hip and cool” young adult to draw a crowd, with the ultimate hope that students will bring their parents on Sunday mornings to give financially and save a dying and aging church. That’s too big an expectation for one student ministry leader. If your church is looking for a youth pastor, or any leader, to serve students, the number one question should be, “Do they love and trust Jesus more than everything else?” We can teach leaders to partner with parents, lead small group discussions, plan games, put out snacks, choose curriculum, and create a budget. But if they aren’t in passionate pursuit of building relationships with Jesus and students…they aren’t the “right person.”
Statistics show students are more likely to stick in their faith and stay connected to a local church when another adult outside of their parents remains connected to them beyond their high school graduation. But that relationship must start before graduation. So, your leader(s) needs to be someone who wants to build relationships with Jesus and students to be successful in connecting the two. Leaders need to create genuine relational environments to see students cross from spiritual death to new life in Christ.
I believe these environments start with God-fearing adults sharing their lives and modeling discipleship. Helping students understand how to be convicted by sin and obedient to the Spirit’s leading doesn’t have to be an in-depth study of John 16. It’s more likely to come when students see us wrestle and are allowed to wrestle too. It comes when students see faith as a journey and know that they have trusted adults who are willing to walk that journey with them.
I’m in your corner as you wrestle with this. I’m faithfully praying for our students and leaders and would love to be a resource to you and your church as we work together to help students experience a growing faith in Jesus.
Written by Eric Miller for the Year in Review 2023–2024. Eric has served as the executive director of ministry for Momentum Ministry Partners since 2020. Prior to that he served on a pastoral staff for 16 years.