Lost In Transition, a Research Reflection by Mark Lydecker
There it was. My brand new Pontiac coupe. Shiny and spotless--except for the bubble in the factory paint. Ugh! I was so disappointed. But with my workmanship warrantee in hand, I was confident the dealer would fix it. Eighteen repair trips later I gave up. My view of "Mr. Goodwrench" was changed forever. From that time on, I vowed NEVER again to purchase a Pontiac. However, about 14 years later I did buy a 'pre-owned' GM product but only for two reasons. First, it was sold to me below market price. Who can resist a good deal! Second, any guess? It wasn't a Pontiac. Could there be any connection between their current marginal auto market share and the way they have responded to their customers understanding and desires? See here.
Unfortunately, the local church has been ignoring an unsightly blemish on the face of the church hoping the problem will just fix itself. No one is going to be shocked by the newest LifeWay research released on the dropout rate of 18- to 22-year-olds from church. If anything, I suspect that many will be surprised that the numbers are not higher than 70%! But do we really need numbers to tell us that we've had and do have a serious issue that desperately needs to be addressed? No, not really.
Amazingly, we know we have a problem, yet we rarely address it. I'm saddened when I think about the cost this loss brings on the spiritual formation of these young adults and on the body of Christ. How can we have let this go unaddressed so long? That is a huge question which makes me wonder what other issues we're overlooking.
Dropouts not only affect themselves and their future but also bring great shame, sorrow and grief to the body of Christ. One has to ask how we could spend so much energy, time and financial resources on the lives of our young ones and teenagers yet have so little influence over them when they turn 18.
In the fall of 2005, the campus ministry I directed sponsored a one-day seminar to train college students in the sharing of their faith. In preparation for this meeting, we called over 200 churches in Florida to invite their collegiate ministries to participate. The secretary of one church said they didn't have any college students. However, she did mention that they had a large youth ministry. We asked her whether or not they had any recent high school graduates and if so, didn't they then have college-age adults. I will never forget her seemingly indifferent attitude when she answered, "Yes, but we don't keep them."
So we know there's a problem. We know it has devastating effects on believers. We know it negatively affects local churches and may create a future of empty pews. But what can we do? What should be our thoughts on addressing the matter?
First, I'm not sure we can 'fix' the dropout matter, at least not easily. The LifeWay study reveals that there is little difference in the dropout rate of college students or college-age adults. So, this isn't a university issue but one of life change. Nowhere in this study do we read that Greek parties or liberal university professors are the cause behind our high dropout rate. What we do know is that those who stay in our congregations see the church as welcoming, authentic/real and caring. Of course, the flip side of that coin goes with those who drop out.
Second, we can probably put some patches on the problem but altering the dropout rate is going to take some serious change. Remember my Pontiac experience?! LifeWay's study tells us that less than half of the dropouts had a positive view of church members between ages 18 and 22.
Unprecedented and painstaking change must take place if we really expect to reduce the college-age church dropout rate. These major adjustments would include the following: Pastors seriously changing their preaching styles and content so they don't come off as too judgmental, especially toward their homosexual and liberal activist friends. Churches must become a truly important facet of life during high school and beyond. As well, the church must abandon an event-oriented mindset and focus on the mentoring of individuals. Are we prepared to do all that?
I want to suggest that 'recovery' action may not be the solution. Let's do as much mentoring as we can, connecting with ministry as possible and reforming congregational character as is achievable. However, do the math with me. I doubt pastors will change their preaching style or content (and I am not suggesting they do!). Nor do I think the church is prepared to deal firmly with the member and leader integrity issues it so often encounters. I also am not sure how our over-programmed and overworked congregations can be more caring than they are attempting to be now.
My favorite show on TV is "Man vs. Wild." In one episode survivor Bear Grylls is hungry and soaking wet. He gathers some kindling and chunks of wood but it's too damp. After about 20 minutes of trying to light a fire he looks into the camera and tells us that he can continue this fruitless effort for another hour or move on and deal with his condition another way. He then drops his sticks and runs off to forage for food. Like Grylls, we can try our best at recovering the dropouts through certain methodologies or try something else. Let's try something else.
Do we really believe we can step in with a few new or retooled methods and stop the drop? Unlikely. I believe a viable option to 'recovery' is to think 'rescue.' So, as mentioned above, we must do all we can to recover our dropouts but we need to start thinking about addressing dropouts as we do those who don't know Christ. After all, 64% of our dropouts never return to regular attendance as young adults (unless I'm mistaken, that's 45 out of every 100 high school graduates) and of course, we don't know which ones they are until later in life.
To think rescue means to seek them just as we would any non-Christian. To care for their souls more than we care for the loss they represent to our church membership or programs. They are in deep need of the renewal of their mind and conformity to the will of God. We must seek to engage them with the same care and sensitivity that we do to our non-Christian friends and co-workers.
Recently I heard an NPR program that said postmodern Americans identify with three major life issues--Social Injustice, Racial Reconciliation and Indigenous Autonomy. All three share one commonality...caring for people. This is the overall issue related to this study. Do those who consider dropping out feel like they've been cared for? And has that care transformed their thinking and life? For this to happen, we must care for their souls like they are ours, care for their life issues for they ARE ours and engage with them so that their faith makes sense. If we are to change the dropout trend then we must change.
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