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Hoosier United Methodist News Archives
| Hoosier United Methodist News |
May 2002 |
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Hoosier UMCs address the needs of young adults |
By Lisa Schubert
Singles race to Indy |
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The 2002 United Methodist Single Adult Leaders Conference will be an opportunity for networking, training and celebration. Single adult lay and pastoral leaders throughout the country will gather at Indianapolis' St. Luke's UMC from July 18-21 for a weekend of learning, activities and fun designed to help sharpen skills and "rev up" the motors of single adult ministries. Scheduled to appear: Terry Hershey, founder of Christian Focus and author of several books; Jean Deeds, adventurer and author of There are Mountains to Climb; Harold Ivan Smith, founding member of the Network of Single Adult Leaders; Lynn Shaw, speaker, trainer and author; Kent Millard, pastor of St. Luke's UMC. Registration prior to June 1 for members is $145; June 2-July 17, $175; at event, $195. Registration prior to June 1 for non-members is $165; June 2-July 17, $195; at event, $215. There are discount rates for groups of three or more. To register or learn more about this event, contact Terri Coe at 317/846-4826, coet@stlukesumc.com. |
There is no cookie-cutter shape for young adult ministry. In some churches, it takes the form of a coffeehouse. In others it looks like a series of small Bible study or fellowship groups. For others it involves Sunday school classes, worship services and mission outreach.
Church members in this 18 to 35 age bracket also lead a variety of lifestyles -- single, married with no children or married with children -- and may be college or career-focused.
So when the two Indiana Annual Conferences attempt to assist churches in developing young adult programs, they often find themselves in a quandary: How do we define young adult ministry? How do we reach out to this very diverse age group?
"It feels like we're trying to wrestle a whale -- slippery, big and bulky," said the Rev. Sandy Harlan, the conference staff representative to the SIC Board of Young Adult Ministries. "There's no good place to get ahold of it."
Wrestling the whale
In fact, it's impossible to determine how many church members fall into the young adult category because most churches do not keep statistical records that break down adults by age range. So when church leaders claim that the majority of the unchurched are young adults or that youth who graduate from high school are leaving the Church, their notions are based upon observation and not hard-core facts.
"It's an interesting and challenging group to reach," said Ed Fenstermacher, associate director for church development and revitalization in the NIC. "There does not seem to be a model that fits that group."
Consequently, those who work with young adult ministry on a local church level are forced to develop their own programs tailored to meet the diverse needs of their specific congregations while those on a conference level must serve as a resource that connects these churches.
On the church level, Harlan said the ideal young adult program would be a "patchwork quilt" that would target various interests without blending into youth or adult ministry. For example, at St. Luke's UMC in Indianapolis, the New Beginnings group for young married couples offers a Sunday school class and fellowship group that have done small mission projects. At the same time, the St. Luke's singles ministry program will be hosting a leadership conference for 300 to 500 individuals this July (see sidebar). McGrawsville UMC has established a young adult ministry team that has planned parties, a ski trip and a work camp project. And Southport UMC in Indianapolis responded to young adult needs by providing a Christian aerobics class.
"The 18 to 35 age group is the meat and potatoes of the church," said Kevin Raidy, a member of New Beginnings at St. Luke's. "Young adults give new energy, breath and life to making the church (what) it is and what it can be. . There's a place for all age groups in the body of Christ, and we need to minister to those."
Yet the greatest challenge comes in identifying and reaching out to those young adults, said Sherry Davis, education coordinator for Southport UMC. She believes that their attention often gets diverted from church activities to other things happening in their lives.
"We do not have continual contact," she said. "And if they do not come to us, how can we reach out to them?"
Getting out of the church building
Bill Crenshaw, director of the General Board of Discipleship Young Adult Ministries in Nashville, Tenn., emphasized the importance of small groups, along with a congregation's willingness to host young adult activities away from the church building.
Where there are two … |
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Erin Butler had always searched for opportunities for Christian fellowship with her peers. So last August when she and her husband joined with another couple to start the Roaring Twenties group at Castleton UMC in Indianapolis, she assumed others would be flocking to it as well. "It's been a little frustrating," she said. "We felt there was such a need. … People my age are starting careers, planning weddings, traveling, dating and doing social activities that pull them away from wanting to get involved in church." At this time, Butler said the Roaring Twenties has a "fantastic" core group of nine that meets together regularly for a Sunday School class and social activities like bowling, a fondue party and a progressive dinner. The Rev. Sandy Harlan, the conference staff representative to the SIC Board of Young Adult Ministries, said it is important to remember that young adult ministry focuses on small groups and that five people at a gathering is normal. "Be there, hear them out, help them identify their gifts and find their place in life," she said. "Show them how they can live out their faith. Help them to get plugged in." |
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"Young adults are not as comfortable with the building and structure," he said. "We need to be intersecting their lives in places they're already present rather than dragging them to places they do not want to be. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is portable. … Nothing confines it to the church." |
"Young adults are not as comfortable with the building and structure," he said. "We need to be intersecting their lives in places they're already present rather than dragging them to places they do not want to be. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is portable. . Nothing confines it to the church."
With this idea in mind, members of St. Luke's UMC have joined with several other churches to establish a Christian coffeehouse at Glendale Mall in Indianapolis. Through service, fellowship and music, The House hopes to attract young adults who normally pack Borders or Barnes and Noble on weekend nights, and it will serve as a non-traditional and informal way to spread God's love, said Kelly Weaver, a member of the board of directors.
Finding worship styles that appeal to Generation X can be equally difficult, said Fenstermacher. Some prefer "high church" services centered on the liturgy while others desire praise bands and an "off-the-wall, on-the-edge" atmosphere. Granger Community Church experimented for a period of time with a service geared specifically toward Generation X. But after surveying the general congregation, the church realized that its 18 to 35-year-old members preferred to be integrated in the standard worship services.
The complex mixture of activities on a local church level presents a complicated picture for the conferences. The SIC Board of Young Adult ministries hopes to serve as a resource for churches who want to start young adult programs. It plans to send out a survey to find what churches need and how they would like those resources provided. In the future, it would also like to host town hall meetings to bring young adults together and give them a voice.
Likewise, the NIC Council of Young Adult Ministries (CCYAM) is working to bring more unity and awareness about young adult ministry to its churches. Last year, it gave grants to three local churches to be used for young adult programs. At the Annual Conference, it made a video presentation about its dream for the future of young adult ministry. And in January, it sponsored a leadership retreat to give 18 young adults from various churches the opportunity to bond, brainstorm and share ideas for ministry.
"Those who were there were very enthused and ready to jump into it," said Brian Cherry, a member at Kokomo UMC and a new member of CCYAM. "As of right now, it's growing but not as fast as we want it to. There's big, big potential once people find out what we're doing."
The future of young adult ministry depends upon the willingness of churches to create a place for it outside of children's, youth and older adult programs, said Jason Gross, senior pastor at Pleasant Chapel UMC in Roanoke and conference coordinator for CCYAM. He believes they need to be willing to make financial sacrifices, step out of their comfort zones and reject the status quo.
"Young adult ministry will transform this conference if we focus on it and work harder," he said. "In 10 years, Lord willing, our conference will not be a bunch of gray-haired people, but a more diverse group. . We'll see the Kingdom of God more of the way it was supposed to be -- with age diversity."
Last updated on 01/14/2004Lisa Schubert covers the South Indiana conference "beat" for the Hoosier UM News. She is a student at Indiana University.