Wednesday, May 30, 2018
Based on the findings of my study, here are five strategies that any church can implement today that have proven to be effective in engaging black Millennials.
1. Genuine communityYoung people who are transformed and grow as a result of engaging our ministries become the best advocates and evangelists for us.
Millennials are a hyper-relationally driven generation. The importance of building genuine and loving communities cannot be overstated. In an age of Facebook facades and fickle friendships, it is refreshing for Millennials to find church communities where they are accepted and cared for. Smaller congregations have an opportunity to provide the level of intimacy and personalized care in a way that larger congregations may struggle to achieve. Leaders can take time to know these young people by name and learn about their lives and backgrounds. Congregations may consider organizing small tribes or groups of young adults based on birthdays or zip codes and assigning young leaders to facilitate fellowship and study opportunities among the group. Create opportunities for seasoned professionals in the congregation to be matched with and become mentors for Millennials in the congregation with similar interests. Ensure that greeters and ushers are hospitable and warm from the first meeting on the parking lot and find ways to foster a family atmosphere within the congregation. If your congregation does not have many young adults, collaborate and fellowship with other congregations to strengthen the level of programming provided. All of these things come without a price tag but go a long way toward creating safe space for black Millennials to engage in spiritual formation.
2. Community engagement
The black church has always served as a pseudo-social service agency for the community, ensuring that families have what they need to survive and thrive. Churches seeking to engage black Millennials must continue in this tradition of being the charitable hand and prophetic voice in the communities they serve. Many churches, large and small, are already doing this work. It is not important for congregations to do everything in the community, but it is important that congregations are engaged in something that makes a visible and tangible difference for others. Millennials are world changers and are wired to expect immediate gratification. Churches must provide opportunities for black Millennials to get their hands dirty and serve where they can immediately sense the impact of their work. Moreover, it is not enough for churches to simply do the work. They must tell these stories so that young people are aware and energized about the work of their church.
3. Evangelism and promotion
To be sure, churches must invest in quality websites and online giving opportunities, but how else can churches effectively compel Millennials to come to our local churches? Believe it or not, my study revealed that the most effective way for congregations to promote their programming is not through social media or media at all. Overwhelmingly, black Millennials suggest that the most effective way to pull them in is through the personal invitation of another. In consumer marketing terms, nothing is more effective at driving traffic than a brand ambassador — someone who has engaged with and been transformed by the brand — going back to her peer group to relay the message. Young people who are transformed and grow as a result of engaging our ministries become the best advocates and evangelists for us.
4. Effective Christian education
The same way that I learned the books of the Bible — through weekly repetition — is the same way I am teaching our Millennial students the books of the Bible today. The same way I was able to internalize important Scripture that I would need through my life is the same way I help our students internalize the Scripture. The same open discussion format that my father has used for years so that Bible study attendees could talk through the Scripture together is the same format that is best received by the Millennials I serve today. The more things change, the more things stay the same!
Many of the strategies utilized to disciple me as a child are still useful tools for churches. But be strong enough to ask questions of the young people you seek to serve to see what works for them, celebrating the tools already used by your ministry that work while being unafraid to abandon those that do not. In the end, the goal is not to hold on to our cherished Sunday school or discipleship models for nostalgia’s sake but to seek effective educational models that benefit the Peters who are willing to engage us on the water.
5. The Word still works
My final encouragement to every teacher, preacher, or pastor who is seeking to engage black Millennials in their spiritual formation process is this: continue to preach and teach the Word. As the writer of the hymn “Lift Him Up” suggests, black Millennials have an appetite for the Bread of Life and it is up to us to keep lifting high the name of Jesus! Men and women of God, keep reaching the gospel! Keep lifting Jesus up, and God will continue to draw men and women to God’s self and to God’s church.
The good news, my study suggests, is that the more things change, the more things stay the same! It is likely that your church is already doing some of the things that will optimize the spiritual formation process for black Millennials. Have the tough conversations, make the appropriate investment, create the necessary safe spaces, and bid them to come!
Excerpted from Black Millennials & the Church: Meet Me Where I Am by Joshua L. Mitchell, copyright © 2018 by Judson Press. Used by permission of Judson Press. The book is also available at Cokesbury and Amazon.
Related Resources:
- New Wine, New Wineskins: How African American Congregations Can Reach New Generations by Doug Powe
- Think Bigger: The Challenge of Reaching Millennials by David McAllister-Wilson
- Not Safe for Church: Ten Commandments for Reaching New Generations by Doug Powe And Jasmine Smothers
- Leading Ideas to Reach Young Adults ebook
Read more.
How can we reach millennials? In this episode, Lewis Center Director F. Douglas Powe, Jr. speaks with the Rev. Dr. Joshua Mitchell about connecting with this diverse group.
Listen now.
Listen now.
Ann Michel of the Lewis Center staff outlines six questions that can help reveal whether a particular staff role is likely to be fruitful or burdensome and counterproductive.
Over the past several decades, the trend in many churches has been to add staff with more laity in paid positions. In many circumstances, the addition of staff promotes more vital and effective ministry. But churches can easily find themselves burdened with too much staff if they fail to consider some key factors that determine whether a staff position will be fruitful or counterproductive.
1. Can a volunteer reasonably do the job?The ironic consequence of having too much staff can be increased levels of burnout and the proliferation of marginal programs that struggle to attract adequate levels of leadership and participation.
The ultimate standard of when a church needs to add staff is when a necessary function has grown too large or requires too much specialized expertise for a volunteer to handle. In a small congregation, it may be perfectly reasonable for a volunteer to handle bookkeeping, childcare, certain maintenance tasks, or other responsibilities. In larger congregations or more specialized areas of ministry, it may be less reasonable to expect that volunteers can handle such critical functions. The key question becomes, “Is this job too large or too important to reasonably expect that a volunteer can be responsible for it?”
2. Are goals and outcomes clearly understood?
Many churches hire staff without a clear vision of what the person will actually do, desperately hoping that adding staff will turn around a struggling area of ministry. Vaguely defined job responsibilities can create any number of problems, not the least of which is a possible lack of productivity. Even if there are pressing ministry needs to be addressed, a church with unfocused or unproductive staff members is overstaffed unless and until goals and outcomes are clearly defined.
3. Does the level of staffing contribute to the activity trap?
Churches caught up in the “activity trap” often feel they must add staff simply to keep up with everything that’s going on. The tragic flaw in this logic is that more staff can actually make the situation worse by generating even more activities that compete for people’s time and attention. Unless the church is growing numerically and connecting with new people, the ironic consequence of having too much staff can be increased levels of burnout and the proliferation of marginal programs that struggle to attract adequate levels of leadership and participation.
This risk is most acute in declining membership churches trying to maintain a level of programming that no longer fits their current attendance. Although it is painfully difficult, churches in this situation need to ask whether right-sizing their ministry footprint and doing fewer things well is more appropriate than adding more staff.
4. Are staff spending too much time with one another?
Another symptom of an overstaffed church is when staff end up spending more and more time coordinating with one another and less and less time interfacing with church or community members. Many churches add staff without realizing that they may need to adjust some of their ways of doing things. For example, as a staff grows larger, it may no longer make sense for everyone to report directly to the senior pastor, to participate in a single staff meeting, or to be present at every church event. Clear reporting relationships and efficient lines of communication are needed to avoid the trap of a staff being too inwardly focused on itself.
5. Does the staff build capacity and engage new people?
It’s also important to ask whether the staff is doing things “for” the members of the church or “with” the members of the church. If the role of staff is seen as serving existing members or doing things on their behalf, it can reinforce passivity and inactivity on the part of church members. Ideally, staff should put their focus on engaging and equipping others, especially reaching new people and cultivating other leaders.
6. Are staff salaries crowding out other budgetary needs?
There is no single standard for what percentage of a church’s budget should be devoted to staffing. But churches with too much staff will often scrimp in other areas to avoid painful layoffs. Taken to its extreme, this can create a situation where a church is continuing to pay staff who can no longer do their jobs well because other resources have been cut to the bone. A church that is constantly deferring necessary building maintenance, failing to pay its apportionments, or enduring constant program cuts should ask if it is spending too much on staff.
All churches need to use their staffs as effectively and efficiently as possible to be most fruitful in ministry.
Related Resources:
Over the past several decades, the trend in many churches has been to add staff with more laity in paid positions. In many circumstances, the addition of staff promotes more vital and effective ministry. But churches can easily find themselves burdened with too much staff if they fail to consider some key factors that determine whether a staff position will be fruitful or counterproductive.
1. Can a volunteer reasonably do the job?The ironic consequence of having too much staff can be increased levels of burnout and the proliferation of marginal programs that struggle to attract adequate levels of leadership and participation.
The ultimate standard of when a church needs to add staff is when a necessary function has grown too large or requires too much specialized expertise for a volunteer to handle. In a small congregation, it may be perfectly reasonable for a volunteer to handle bookkeeping, childcare, certain maintenance tasks, or other responsibilities. In larger congregations or more specialized areas of ministry, it may be less reasonable to expect that volunteers can handle such critical functions. The key question becomes, “Is this job too large or too important to reasonably expect that a volunteer can be responsible for it?”
2. Are goals and outcomes clearly understood?
Many churches hire staff without a clear vision of what the person will actually do, desperately hoping that adding staff will turn around a struggling area of ministry. Vaguely defined job responsibilities can create any number of problems, not the least of which is a possible lack of productivity. Even if there are pressing ministry needs to be addressed, a church with unfocused or unproductive staff members is overstaffed unless and until goals and outcomes are clearly defined.
3. Does the level of staffing contribute to the activity trap?
Churches caught up in the “activity trap” often feel they must add staff simply to keep up with everything that’s going on. The tragic flaw in this logic is that more staff can actually make the situation worse by generating even more activities that compete for people’s time and attention. Unless the church is growing numerically and connecting with new people, the ironic consequence of having too much staff can be increased levels of burnout and the proliferation of marginal programs that struggle to attract adequate levels of leadership and participation.
This risk is most acute in declining membership churches trying to maintain a level of programming that no longer fits their current attendance. Although it is painfully difficult, churches in this situation need to ask whether right-sizing their ministry footprint and doing fewer things well is more appropriate than adding more staff.
4. Are staff spending too much time with one another?
Another symptom of an overstaffed church is when staff end up spending more and more time coordinating with one another and less and less time interfacing with church or community members. Many churches add staff without realizing that they may need to adjust some of their ways of doing things. For example, as a staff grows larger, it may no longer make sense for everyone to report directly to the senior pastor, to participate in a single staff meeting, or to be present at every church event. Clear reporting relationships and efficient lines of communication are needed to avoid the trap of a staff being too inwardly focused on itself.
5. Does the staff build capacity and engage new people?
It’s also important to ask whether the staff is doing things “for” the members of the church or “with” the members of the church. If the role of staff is seen as serving existing members or doing things on their behalf, it can reinforce passivity and inactivity on the part of church members. Ideally, staff should put their focus on engaging and equipping others, especially reaching new people and cultivating other leaders.
6. Are staff salaries crowding out other budgetary needs?
There is no single standard for what percentage of a church’s budget should be devoted to staffing. But churches with too much staff will often scrimp in other areas to avoid painful layoffs. Taken to its extreme, this can create a situation where a church is continuing to pay staff who can no longer do their jobs well because other resources have been cut to the bone. A church that is constantly deferring necessary building maintenance, failing to pay its apportionments, or enduring constant program cuts should ask if it is spending too much on staff.
All churches need to use their staffs as effectively and efficiently as possible to be most fruitful in ministry.
Related Resources:
- When Churches Hire Members by Ann A. Michel
- 7 Ways to Invest in Your Staff Culture by Phill Martin
- Synergy: A Leadership Guide for Church Staff and Volunteers by Ann A. Michel
Read more.
The Right Question
Leaders do not need answers. Leaders must have the right questions.
Michael Slaughter in his book UnLearning Church suggests a question for those seeking to reach new generations.
Learn concepts and strategies to welcome and respond to your first time and repeat visitors, reach younger generations, expand your church's entry points, and get new people involved. The New Welcome Video Tool Kithelps you open your church to new people by acknowledging the changing ways that people enter into the life of congregations.
Learn more and watch introductory videos now.
If a new pastor is in your congregation's future, be sure to check out "50 Ways to Welcome a New Pastor." This resource shares tips on how to say goodbye to your current pastor in a healthy way and offers helpful advice on how to welcome your new pastor.
Read now and download free.
Quotable Leadership
The way the next generation tells you that your church has lost touch with them is simple -- they stop coming. (Lee Kricher)
This 10-session study offers a faithful and credible Christian alternative to sensationalist perspectives on the Bible's teaching about the End Times. In God's Time is ideal for your congregation's small groups, adult Bible studies, and Sunday School classes.
Learn more and order now.
Are you a pastor preparing to begin ministry in a new setting? With The Right Start Video Tool Kit, you'll learn how to end your current ministry well, develop a personal transition plan, and make the most of your first days, weeks, and months in your new congregation. The Right Start is available in both Pastor's and Group Training Versions.
Learn more and watch a video preview.
The Right Question
Leaders do not need answers. Leaders must have the right questions.
Michael Slaughter in his book UnLearning Church suggests a question for those seeking to reach new generations.
- What boomer-era practice could you unlearn in order to better reach younger generations?
Learn more and watch introductory videos now.
Congregations can help a new pastor get off to a strong start with these 50 Ways to acclimate a new pastor and make that new pastor feel truly welcome.
Prepared by Robert Crossman
Prepare to welcome your new pastor
- Open your hearts and decide that you are going to love your new pastor.
- Begin praying daily for the new pastor and family, even as you continue to pray for your departing pastor and family.
- Invite church members individually to send cards of welcome and encouragement to the incoming pastor.
- Know that welcoming your new pastor in genuine and effective ways lays the ground work for a healthy and vital relationship and the development of stable, long-term ministries together.
- Plan for the transition. Occasionally important welcoming gestures are missed with everyone thinking someone else is handling these details.
- Appoint a specific liaison person to whom the pastor can go for help and information during the transition.
Say goodbye to your current pastor in a healthy way
- Show love, regard, and even grief, for your departing pastor. This is one of the best things you can do for the new pastor.
- Acknowledge the change in public ways. Especially in the case of a much-beloved pastor, this allows the congregation better to let go and receive the new pastor.
- Provide the congregation the opportunity to say thank you and goodbye to the outgoing pastor, even if things have not always gone well.
- Find appropriate occasions — in worship and at other times — to thank the outgoing pastor.
- Express appreciation in ways that are consistent with what you have done in the past.
- Consider giving the pastor the last two weeks off. This helps the pastor enter the new situation rested and gives an emotional buffer between one pastor’s last Sunday and another pastor’s first Sunday.
- Plan goodbye celebrations prior to the beginning of the two weeks off.
- Provide information to the local media about the outgoing pastor’s accomplishments and future plans.
- Do not invite the former pastor to return for weddings, funerals, or baptisms. This allows your former pastor to engage fully with his or her new congregation, and it establishes your new pastor as everyone’s pastor from the beginning.
Make things move-in ready
- Make sure the parsonage and pastor’s office are clean and ready. Offer to provide help or a cleaning service if needed.
- Determine if the parsonage is in need of repairs or painting. Consult the outgoing and incoming pastors about timing so as not to disrupt the lives of either party. Do not ask a new pastor to move into a parsonage “under construction.”
- Consult the new pastor on any paint, design, or furnishings issues.
- Offer to have someone cut the parsonage grass.
- Make sure the new pastor and church officials are clear on how moving expenses are paid and all matters related to compensation, benefits, and reimbursement policies.
Welcome your pastor on moving day
- Stock the parsonage refrigerator and pantry with some staples.
- Make sure there are kid-friendly foods and snacks in the refrigerator if children are arriving.
- Have a small group on hand to greet the new pastor and family when they arrive and to help as needed.
- Offer child care if there is an infant or toddler in the household.
- Invite children in the household to do things with others of their same age.
- Welcome any youth in the household by having church youth group members stop by and offer to show them around.
Continue the welcome during the entry period
- Take food over for the first few days. Many churches continue the practice of having a “pounding” for the new pastor when persons bring food items.
- Provide a map with directions to local dry cleaners, grocery store, drug store, veterinarian, etc., and information on local options for internet and cable television providers.
- Give gift certificates to several of your favorite restaurants in the community.
- Give the pastor and family a welcome reception on the first Sunday.
- Plan a worship celebration of the new appointment.
- Invite the new pastor to any social events held by Sunday School classes or other groups in the early months.
- Make sure the pastor’s spouse and children, if applicable, are invited to Sunday School and other appropriate small groups.
- Continue to remember your new pastor and family in your daily prayers.
Help the new pastor become familiar with the congregation
- Introduce yourself to the pastor repeatedly! You have one name to learn; your pastor has many names to learn.
- Wear name tags. Even if name tags are not a tradition, the congregation can wear them for a few weeks to help the pastor learn names.
- Provide a current pictorial directory of all the church members, if available.
- Provide an up-to-date list of all church committees and officers.
- Provide the new pastor with a tour of where things are kept inside the church and perhaps a floor plan of the facilities.
- Orient the new pastor to information systems and the way records are kept.
- Make sure the pastor has a list of home bound or nursing home members, a list of those struggling with long term illness, and a list of those still in grief over recent deaths in the family. Better yet, take the pastor for an introduction to each of these households.
- Have an appropriate person offer to go with the pastor for introductions and support if there are particularly urgent pastoral situations (a member near death or the family of a member who has just died).
- Have a lay official offer to take the pastor to meet church members in their businesses or other work settings, if they are easily accessible.
- Offer to help arrange small group sessions to meet and talk with the congregation.
- Create a “church yellow pages’” (a list of people in the church who have specific skills that a newcomer may find beneficial…. auto mechanic, doctor, dentist, dry cleaners, book store, office supply, etc.).
Help the new pastor connect to the community
- Provide local media with information about the new pastor.
- Provide a list of hospitals, nursing homes, and community service agencies.
- Introduce your new pastor to other clergy in the community. Provide information on any ecumenical activities or associations.
- Introduce the new pastor to public and community leaders.
- Ask church members in civic clubs to take the new pastor to one of their meetings.
Dr. Robert Crossman, Minister of New Church Starts and Congregational Development for the Arkansas Conference of the United Methodist Church, is the primary author of this document. The Lewis Center staff and others provided suggestions and editorial assistance.appropriate for self study and for use with groups in your church.
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Read now and download free.Quotable Leadership
The way the next generation tells you that your church has lost touch with them is simple -- they stop coming. (Lee Kricher)
Learn more and order now.
Learn more and watch a video preview.
Editor: Dr. Ann A. Michel
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