If your ministry education is well behind you and are now a leader in a Christian organization, it’s easy to assume that the way ministry preparation worked for you is the same way it will work for the next generation of Christian leaders. But several factors in the culture and the church are colliding to make a perfect storm for the young adults currently considering ministry. If we're serious about the continuation of our mission, it’s important that we understand the times we face and the ways we can help.

1. Ministry education models are unsustainable.

The news has been filled with concerns about student loans outstripping inflation and those going into ministry are not immune from these factors. However, in addition to the usual concerns about debt, the field of ministry itself is in incredible upheaval, meaning that students entering ministry education often have little hope of paid or full-time ministry work to pay back those loans.

A 2014 Atlantic Monthly ...