what’s next?

Not sure how many of you saw this article from Christianity Today [http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2006/october/20.74.html#related]
but the juicy bits (if one can call them that) and challenges are…

“There are a lot of people who’ve had this nagging sense that we’re missing the mark somehow,” said Mark Oestreicher, president of Youth Specialties. “That kids seem happy and willing to attend, and engaged in our ministries, but five years from now, when they’re in college or post-college, they just really aren’t connecting with real faith, let alone church.”

***I recognize that drawing increasing numbers to youth groups equals job security and indicates health, but isn’t real success measured by transformation? I used to have a nagging feeling that I was doing a dog and pony show when I led an entertainment based ministry – even though we reached nearly 100 high school students every Tuesday night!

“We have treated kids as a separate species, which has had the effect of marginalizing them in church life,” said Kenda Creasy Dean, associate professor of youth, church, and culture at Princeton Theological Seminary. The result, she said, is that older teens and young adults may have trouble feeling connected to the larger church.

***I have often compared youth ministry to cross cultural missions. Kenda’s comment makes me think that such a view is not wrong but not complete either. What is the other part that will draw kids from a foreign culture into the church family?

Solutions involve creating a sense of community for teens, then sharing the premises of faith, said Ginny Olson, co-director of North Park University’s Center for Youth Ministry Studies.

***community has long been my mantra, but do we risk creating youth ghettos (known to many as EYC) that don’t connect to the whole church?

It’s still important for teens to have a place of their own. “You need a place where kids can meet with their peers, and they can grow, and they can hear the gospel in a way that makes sense to them,” said Ron Luce, president of Teen Mania. “But you don’t want that to be a substitute for being involved in church.”

***So, I am wondering why Ron pours his energy into creating events (ATF)
that cannot be replicated in the average church and provide kids with a buzz that is nothing like what they get in the church?

Your thoughts on the article? What thoughts does it stimulate?

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