A Mad Multi-gen Strategy that Works, Dude
Bring generations together and reduce 20-something dropout.
Mike Breaux
April 1, 2005
Fannie Hamilton sat among teenagers during the Sunday service. She used her left hand to hold up her stroke-affected right hand in praise, belting out the words to "My Glorious" by Delirious. A few minutes later, she stood next to a 16-year-old, who joined her in belting out the words to "Great Is Thy Faithfulness." She was a small group leader in our youth ministry—at the age of 82. She embodied my vision for the church as real and relevant to all ages. I had envisioned a church with young and old and in-between learning from one another, deferring, serving, praying, working, worshiping together—one heart, one mind, one church (Acts 4:32). I long for a church where teenagers don't leave as soon as they turn 18. According to George Barna, there are 8 million teens active in student ministries now but who will no longer attend church when they're 30—a 58 percent drop in church attendance during the 20-something years. That shouldn't be. In my 12 years as a youth pastor, we equipped our students for lifestyle evangelism; we created fun, authentic environments of grace; we discipled young people; and we passed the baton of leadership to the next generation. Student ministries were inspiring and captivated young people. I remember making a silent vow, "God, if I ever get to be a senior pastor, I'm going to do youth ministry for big people." At Fannie Hamilton's church, that's exactly what happened. How to "keep it real"
My first opportunity to try this YM4BP strategy came when a church of 150 in Harrodsburg, Kentucky, called me to be their pastor. In my first year, we made many changes ("I'm just a youth pastor," I told them, "I don't know any better"), the most important of which was to get real.
One of the first ...
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