a call for young adults

In my former post - Theophilus ;) - I seemingly argued in defense of the young adult community. Sure, I can, and feel that I should, respond being that I fall in that group and can relate directly with the struggles. However, I also feel that all things being equal, there is a burden to be shared by all sides in order to address the apparent shortcomings of modern Christian communities. From the young adult crowd, we need people to stand up and be counted. We need young adult Christians, regardless of their current faith situation, who are willing to make a commitment and show some leadership in furthering the kingdom of God. From the church leadership side of the house, we need new levels of understanding and willingness to be courageous and different. When these young adults do stand up and volunteer to lead, the church needs to be ready to back them up even if their proposals seem a bit strange or bleeding edge. You probably heard the phrase, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it," well sorry people, but there are some traditions out there that are definitely broken in the eyes of young adults, and they desperately need fixing. Let's go point for point on some issues (some misconceptions, some generalization, some stereotypes)...

• Young adults have a tendency to church-hop.
• Church leadership has a tendency to play aggressive numbers games with membership.
• Young adults can be overly flexible in their Biblical interpretations.
• Church leadership can get bogged down in being right, rather than being loving.
• Young adults won't make a commitment to the church.
• Church leadership focuses too much on growth and finances, instead of message and impact.

Let's face it, young adults are looking for more in the way of spiritual experience blended with scriptural knowledge that impacts their life and those around them. Many churches are still focused on having the right scriptural interpretation and catering to the immediate Christian community. We need more from church than visiting nursing homes to sing once a week, being a communion server, leading/attending worship, leading/attending devotionals, leading/attending Bible class, having "bring a friend" days, and all those stereotypical, boilerplate outreach and church service programs. Shouldn't it be "Be a Friend Day" everyday? Isn't there more to being a Christian than Sunday worship and having some form of Bible study a couple of days a week? How much impact does having a community outreach effort a couple of days a year really have? How much good is done by constantly switching from church to church? Do you have any impact with your visits and do you even know what it is you are looking for? Once you find what you are looking for, what are you doing there besides warming a pew? It time for all of us to sit down and remember what it is we are here for.

We are coming swiftly to a crossroads... one road leads towards unity, two roads leave some group wounded in the ditch, and we can't go back the way we came.