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Why Your Church “Brand” Matters to Millennials By Chris Abel You may be uncomfortable with the idea of a brand, but whether you like it or not, you have one. In your community your brand might be “that church with the steeple.” It might be “the church for rich people.” It could even be “the church that has the food pantry for the poor.” Don’t think of your brand as a bad thing. It’s simply the identifying factors that people think about when they think about you. And you have the ability to impact that brand. One of the biggest hurdles I’ve seen for churches is their challenge in building their brand. Every church I’ve ever been part of has strengths. Even if there is trouble, brokenness, morale problems… there is also community or a great sermon, or people who love one another. Every church has a gift to bring the world. But are you telling the story? Because a brand is the result of the story you tell about you. And the churches that are reaching millennials are the churches who tell a compelling story. You can work to help people articulate your brand by telling them your story. Tell the story. And be excited about it. Be proud of how God is using your community. And parade it. Shout it from the rooftops. Embrace the story that God is telling through you. Because people don’t want advertising. They want to know what magic is happening in your church, and if you tell the story well… they’ll want to know how they can be part of 3 it.
GIVERS & KEEPS, BY GENERATION By Barna Millennials are more generous with their money in some cases than older Americans, a new report says. The study by the Barna Group examined motivations behind giving to various causes, including family needs, charitable giving and serving God. The findings led the Christian research organization to break Americans into two groups: Givers and Keepers. “Millennials are more likely than other generations, by a significant margin, to prioritize providing for a family above other financial goals,” Barna said in an online summary of the research titled “Christians’ Financial Motivations Matter.”
Overall, Millennials lead the givers category at 56 percent, with Elders at 55 percent. They are followed by Boomers at 50 percent and Gen-Xers at 46 percent
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BLACK MILLENNIALS AND THE CHURCH Meet Me Where I Am Joshua L. Mitchell With a unique mix of humor, illustrations, and research findings based on a nationwide study of black young adults, this practical resource equips church leaders with a profile of black millennials that will help churches continue to effectively attract and make disciples of this emerging generation of young adults. Drawing on the biblical narrative of Matthew 14, where Jesus invites Peter to come meet him on the water, this book includes specific ministry principles and programming proposals for use in the local congregation.
Joshua L. Mitchell, MDiv, DMin, serves as Minister to Youth and College Students at Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church in Houston, TX, where he provides leadership for more than 1,500 African American young people, ages 1424. An ordained Baptist minister and contributor to Urban Faith magazine, Rev. Dr. Mitchell holds a bachelor's degree in Communications, a Master of Divinity, and a Doctor of Ministry, earned from the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University in Richmond Virginia. His nationwide research in black millennials and discipleship has made him a respected speaker, preacher, and teacher.
According to Barna Research, Millennials Aren’t to Blame for New Age Philosophies Creeping Into the Church By Joshua Pease
“What stood out most to us was how stark the shift was between the Boomer and Gen-Xer generations,” Hempell remarks. “We expected Millennials to be most influenced by other worldviews, but the most dramatic increase in support for these ideals occurs with the generation before them. It’s no surprise, then, that the impact we see today in our social fabric is so pervasive, given that these ideas have been taking root for two generations.” For leaders in the church, it’s an ongoing reminder of the need to train our church communities to both understand biblical truth and be able to relationally and effectively engage a culture less sure than ever what the 7 message of Jesus truly is.
By Truth on Tap
Listen, Millennials are just like every other group of humans that have ever existed on this earth. Stop trying to cater to them, and simply preach and teach the unfiltered Word of God. Stop acting like it’s your responsibility alone to convert and save the lost. God will bring His sheep into the pasture, and your responsibility is to simply feed those sheep. If you want shallow consumer driven people to attend your Church, then by all means, keep giving away cars, keep preaching prosperity, and use gimmicks as much as possible. The real reason people are leaving the Church (not just Millennials) is because we have somehow bought into articles like this, rather then simply faithfully doing what the Bible tells us to do. The Goats will come and go, but the Sheep will come and stay. Please hear me clearly: Being winsome, exciting, and welcoming are all good things. However, the Gospel itself should be the main event. The drama of the text, sacraments, and liturgy are more then enough on their own. When you feel like you have to dress up the Word of God in order to make it more attractive, you have officially lost the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If your true desire is to actually seek and save Millennials, then give them the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Don’t water that biz down, and don’t pander to them. Tell them to repent of their sins, and to cling to the cross. Tell them about a God that so loved the world, that He sent His Son to die in order to save the lost. Oh, and let them know that they are lost. Follow it up with the fact that they can be found, and loved, and accepted, and forgiven once and for all. Let them know that if they are in Christ, then their sins are forgotten and remembered no more. Let them know that it is finished. 11
PHOTO CREDIT/GOOGLE PHOTOS
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Church Community Engagement Strategies for Millennials By One Touch
While Millennials may not be the next “Greatest Generation” they will certainly become one of the largest in history. Experts expect Millennials to surpass Baby Boomers by 2019 with 74 million – and swell to 81 million by 2036. However, declining church membership among Millennials is a huge problem for the church community. 59% of Millennials who grew up in the church are opting out Only two of ten Millennials view the church as important 35% of Millennials take an anti-church position, believing the church does more harm than good Frustration with an institution that Millennials cannot influence or change is one of the driving impacts on declining church attendance. But despite the drop-off in Millennial attendance, most ministries have continued with business as usual. Millennials primarily value personal connections and receptivity. When a church forges ahead without ever asking for input from Millennials the message is loud and clear: This church doesn’t care what Millennials think. However, some simple solutions do exist. Churches that want to better engage Millennials should try: Creating authentic communities with a shared purpose focused on service Inviting younger generations to serve on leadership teams or advisory boards. Hiring a young adults pastor who offers spiritual guidance that Millennials can connect to. Millennials are very socially conscious and want to make a positive and lasting impact on the world. And the Church can serve as the perfect springboard for younger generations to throw themselves into a life dedicated to compassionate service. You just need to get across the right message. 17
THE NEED FOR HUMAN LEADERSHIP - BLACK MILLENNIALS ARE LEAVING THE CHURCH! By Joy 105.com
“My pastor never talked about his life or his dreams, he criticized women, gays, young people, and the community.” Many pastors have been taught to “let me decrease and You [God] increase.” While this serves well to keep the ego in check, it is also a severance point. For us, there is a non-negotiable need to be deeply rooted and connected by shared experience. We desire leaders whose humanity authentically reflects our own. We can accept that you are flawed, but we cannot accept that you are fraudulent.
Far too many pastors are relying on the emotionalism of the charismatic church tradition that has fallen on deaf ears. Leaders cannot provoke a praise or shout from Black Millennials with haughty judgment laden in sexism, classism, and homophobia. We need tools for survival in a world that seems to hate us. We don’t need the world’s hatred reinforced in the church. Black Millennials are also unwilling to commit themselves to a stagnant, stale church. Many of us feel disconnected from churches that have not grown and matured with us from our youth into our young adulthood. With many churches showing open hostility and disdain for the movements that matter to them, Black Millennials feel no need to connect to churches that do not support them or their 19 needs.