How do we disciple millennials? This is the second part of our 2 part series dedicated to answering this question. Millennials have much to offer the kingdom of God, but just like all of us, they need discipleship. In Part 2, I give 4 more tips to help church leaders and other Christians as they attempt to disciple the millennial generation. Make sure to check out Part 1 .
“Will millennials be the death of the church as we know it?” This was a question I saw someone ask online. No generation is going to kill the church. Jesus promises that. But the question itself suggests that millennials may arguably be the most criticized generation to date. Ministering to a younger generation can always be challenging, but I believe the future is bright not in spite of millennials but because of them. Let’s talk about how to disciple the millennial generation.
Pastor Andy Stanley’s influence and standing in North American evangelicalism are a matter of public record, but where he excels and, by his admission, is most passionate, is in the area of communication. I believe that part of the effectiveness of his approach to preaching is that it shares similarities to well-known homiletical approaches. These similarities may not always be obvious because Stanley’s writing about preaching (or as he prefers, “communicating”) is non-technical and jargon-free.
When I walked into Maranatha Worship Center in Wichita, Kansas seventeen years ago, there were many challenges, but I was fortunate to find a group of people ready to face those challenges. Soon I realized that while I was the 13th pastor in that church’s nearly nine decades of ministry life to that point, I was given a gift that perhaps none of my predecessors had received. People were ready, and even desperate, for change.
As we have looked at the metrics that drive church health, we have seen the “nickels and noses” measures of local church life aren’t truly the best measures of church health. In fact, in the U.S. Assemblies of God today, a slightly higher percentage of large churches are plateaued or declining than are smaller churches. So if bigger isn’t always better, what is better?
Once again, we continue our look at the metrics that drive church health. As we have seen, the “nickels and noses” measures of local church life aren’t truly the best measures of church health. Just because something is bigger doesn’t mean it’s better. If bigger was always better, then doctors would stop bugging us about expanding waistlines.
Numbers are a somewhat controversial topic when it comes to the local church. Some chase them, believing the size of the crowd will speak volumes about their own effectiveness. Others simply insist that Jesus wants to reach everyone, so everyone is the goal. Still others focus their energies on smaller gatherings, searching for an intimacy the crowd can seldom achieve. Church isn’t a numbers game, and yet it really is.
