“Deech” Kirk has made an important point here in suggesting that the reason kids drop out of youth groups is not the drivers license.
In consulting with churches through Youth Ministry Architects and CYMT, I hear over and over again about how students become less active or drop out of youth ministry around the age of 16. I’m sure you are aware of the culprits: sports teams, jobs, and…wait for it…the driver’s license. These are certainly factors related to youth participation, but the bigger issue is that the majority of youth ministries offer flatlined discipleship.
When it boils down to it, the depth of discipleship at all of the programs offered by a church are not that different from each other which prevents youth from being able to grow deeper in their faith. Churches, youth ministers, and especially parents like to place the blame on external issues like drivers’ licenses, but it’s a much deeper issue: we don’t offer our students anything that continues to make a difference in their lives.
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