Three keys for reaching twentysomethings

6911891944_3143f04733_z

While on vacation in Portland, Oregon a few weeks ago, a friend and I spent a Sunday visiting ten churches. I realize how potentially dysfunctional it is for me to do that on vacation, since visiting churches is part of my job—but the fact is, I passionately love the local church, so this was a blast for me (and my wife and kids enjoyed a quiet day by the pool with friends).

We experienced something absolutely amazing: thousands of twenty-somethings who were really engaged in church! The services spanned styles and times—one 8am service was packed with nearly 500 young adults, as was an 8pm service across town. Most of the churches fell on the theologically conservative spectrum, though we enjoyed congregations that were large, medium, and small; Pentecostal and Evangelical; Reformed and…well, not-Reformed.

After worshipping, hearing sermons and taking notes all day, I reflected on what might have drawn so many young adults to church. As I interacted with people and asked questions, I got the impression that many of these church-goers didn’t come from church backgrounds—it seemed evident that the congregations were reaching a generation of Portlanders. Since I’m praying for the same thing to happen in communities of faith all over Los Angeles, I wanted to find the “secret sauce”.

Turns out, the sauce wasn’t so secret. The common thread wasn’t production values, stellar communication, Alpha-male (or alpha-female) leadership or smoke-and-mirrors/lights-and-lasers that attracted all the hipsters, gangsters, and families from the neighborhoods. Many of these churches had foregone some of the expectations of church (out of ten churches only three even had bulletins; two had “powerpoint” sermon presentations), and it was also clear that though they weren’t sloppy, a tightly run ship wasn’t their highest aim. So what was going on in these places that not only seemed to attract young adults, but that also had them engaged?

1. Humble: Whether the pastors were leading large congregations or small ones, they functioned as if they thought God was primary there, and they weren’t trying to reach for second place! The church wasn’t the main event, Jesus was, and the leaders were pointing people to Him and not shining the spotlight on themselves. Humble doesn’t mean that the leaders or churches lacked confidence, but that they had a good sense of themselves, not thinking more highly, or more lowly, than they ought to (Rom 12:3).

2. Authentic: Each of these churches and pastors seemed to be comfortable in their own skin. I’ve visited churches that try so hard to be something that they are not; whether they are imitating Willow Creek, Mars Hill or TBN, these churches and pastors are wearing armor that just doesn’t fit (1 Samuel 17:39). Most of the ministries I witnessed that day seemed to be a really good representation of themselves, not a poor reflection of someone else; the 50 year old pastor wasn’t wearing skinny jeans, the acoustic worship team didn’t have a laser-light show, the energetic preacher wasn’t trying to appear “emo”, and the churches weren’t there to entertain, but to honestly display God’s life using the unique DNA God had given them.

3. Prophetic: I’m not specifically talking about the gift of prophesy here, but about a prophetic orientation operating through the church; these pastors and congregations were living out the good news of the Word of God to their city and neighborhoods, not just in their messages, but in their actions as well. In some of these services I also heard truth spoken to culture that irreligious young adults might generally reject, but because these churches stood alongside culture (authenticity) and did not come down harshly on people in that culture (humility), they could also differentiate from the culture while communicating—and living— God’s heart in a language that it could hear, understand and respond to (prophesy—Acts 16 & 17).

I’m looking for opportunities to function with and encourage these three traits, too, as I pray for a spiritual impact among the young adults of our region.