Table of Contents
- Importance of Engaging Youth in Church
- Understanding Today's Youth: Adapting to Their Needs
- Innovative Youth Ministry Activities
- Creating a Welcoming Environment for Youth
- Integrating Technology into Youth Ministry
- Examples of Successful Digital Initiatives
- FAQs
Finding ways to connect with youth can be a crucial undertaking for churches of all sizes. When it comes to building a community and fostering a sense of belonging in the church, it’s often important to remember that younger individuals will carry the church into the next generation. That’s why connecting with the youth of today can carry profound importance in growing and maintaining our church communities.
But how can churches foster a sense of community for young people? The truth is, there are a lot of great ways to engage with youth in the modern age. That’s why we’re exploring some creative ideas and activities for youth to engage this important population in the church community. Let’s jump in.
Importance of Engaging Youth in Church
The importance of engaging youth in the church is difficult to overstate. When it comes to building a sustainable community within the church over the long term, it’s important to consider not only long-standing members and congregants, but those who will step up to lead the church into the next generation. Youth can be an important part of this equation. Embracing the youth in our churches can be a crucial part of preparing the church for the future and ensuring that as older members age, the church continues to grow or maintain its size. And finding ways to connect with youth outside the church can be important to help us connect with those who are seeking spiritual growth, guidance and support.
Vanco's Commitment to Supporting Church Programs
At Vanco Payments, we’re committed to supporting church programs. We know that they are often integral to the growth of the church and fostering long-term engagement with the community. This article explores some great ideas for youth ministry and exciting youth church service ideas. And if you’re looking for the ultimate guide for church leadership, we’ve got you covered. Visit this link and get your free eBook!
Understanding Today's Youth: Adapting to Their Needs
As with every new generation, today’s youth share many common characteristics with those of yesterday, but they also carry their own distinct worldviews, preferences and even values — not to mention they exist in a wildly different technological landscape. It’s important for church leaders and youth pastors to not only understand that today’s youth carry their own values and views, but to embrace them for who they are.
Today’s youth also may operate differently than those of yesterday. With a vast world of technology at their fingertips, the way today’s youth engage with others, communicate and live day-to-day has shifted rapidly and dramatically. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with new technology, and each generation embraces the technology of their time, but it’s important for church and youth leaders to understand that this shift has led to a change in the way youth today engage and what they might need from their church.
The Shift in What Today's Youth Seek in Ministry
In many ways, the things that youth might seek out of ministry are the same as they were for many of us. The world can appear very large and very scary, especially to young people. We often turn to our faith when we face challenges in our lives. In this regard, the youth of today are similar to the youth of yesterday. Still, there are some important differences.
What has changed, perhaps most dramatically, is the specific challenges that young people face today. While older generations faced personal challenges, today’s youth often face unprecedented challenges brought on by an increasingly digital world. They may face cyberbullying, comparing themselves and their success to others on social media, low self-esteem, difficulty finding suitable employment or education opportunities, economic woes and a growing world that is increasingly seen as impersonal and cold.
It’s here where church communities can go to work, offering solace, comfort and community to these weary youths just as they were offered to many of us when we were younger and facing our own unique challenges. But how can church leaders and youth leaders communicate most effectively and engage with a generation that exists — more than ever — online and on social media platforms? That’s where the role of technology and social media in youth engagement comes in.
The Role of Technology and Social Media in Youth Engagement
Today’s youth are plugged in. There’s no two ways about it. While it may be easy to dismiss young people’s affinity for digital communication as their choice, we must remember that they often have no say in the matter.
Whether they’re applying for jobs, taking tests in schools or even carrying out basic tasks like making payments, they’re often required to sign in and log on. Many of today’s youth are simply doing their best to exist in an increasingly digital world. In other words, they don’t have a choice. In many ways, this puts the onus of engagement on church leaders, who must embrace digital communication to reach out to today’s youth effectively.
Innovative Youth Ministry Activities
Fortunately, there is no shortage of amazing youth activities for church. Let’s explore some to get a better idea of how we might connect with today’s youth in our churches.
The Bible Maze
A Bible maze is a fun activity because it can be so versatile. Whether you rely on a physical maze that players can walk through or use a simple paper maze where participants trace their paths, creative activities like this can be a great way to get young people engaged, start conversations and learn more about the Bible.
What you’ll need:
- A list of Bible lessons or quotes
- A maze (either physical or on paper)
- A Bible
How to play:
The rules are simple. First, establish a maze (remember, this can be either a maze on paper or a physical maze). Next, identify a set of Bible quotes, lessons or events to learn about or review.
Using these knowledge points, create checkpoints for the maze. Then, divide the youth group students into teams and have them navigate the maze, stopping at each checkpoint to receive instructions on how to reach the next one and prompting a discussion about the Bible lesson. Whichever team finishes the entire maze first is the winning team.
Ready, Aim, Starburst!
Ready, aim, Starburst is another great activity. This one combines the fun of candy with the importance of understanding the Bible.
What you’ll need:
- Individually wrapped candy (such as Starbursts)
- Rubber bands
- A Bible
Like the Bible maze, this can be a suitable indoor or outdoor activity that you can customize to your needs. The general format of it is this:
Divide the youth group students into teams. Give several rubber bands to each team. Organize the teams at one end of a hallway, room or pathway (if you’re outdoors) and then organize the candy at the opposite end — reasonably far that hitting the candy will be a challenge, but not one that is insurmountable.
Next, have the teams take turns firing rubber bands at the candy. For each piece they hit, stop to discuss the next Bible lesson. At the end of the game, tally up how many hits it took for each team to hit all the candies and distribute the candy to wrap up the activity. To celebrate, join together in prayer or song.
Other Activities That Promote Learning, Teamwork and Spiritual Growth
While we’ve explored a couple of ideas, there is no shortage of great activities and icebreakers for youth groups. Some examples are activities that involve group gatherings of all kinds, such as movie nights, trivia games or musical events that can be specifically tailored to a church environment and Bible lessons. Others might be more specific to churches to begin with, such as Bible study nights, worship activities and even missions.
The key to making any activity engaging is often taking the time to listen to the youth, exploring what they like about these activities and leaning into the kinds of group activities they’re particularly interested in. Even those among us with the toughest exterior shells often find that we soften and engage with those who take the time to listen to us. This brings us to our next section — creating a welcoming environment for youth.
Creating a Welcoming Environment for Youth
Of all the challenges of engaging with youth, creating a welcoming environment can be one of the most crucial. We can hardly expect the youth of our community to engage with our place of worship when we haven’t taken the time to create an environment that is conducive to their success and comfort.
One of the reasons why the church is so important in many of our lives is that it offers us a place of community, where we can reflect on our faith, help lift one another up and give praise in a safe environment.
While today’s youth may face different challenges in their lives and they may be more active online and on social media than previous generations, they still often find themselves seeking comfort, community and meaning. That’s why it’s vital that we offer them a welcoming environment to foster their engagement with the church.
To boost engagement, often the most critical thing we can do is help make our youth feel valued and heard. Modern society already does a great job of making young people feel isolated and unheard, so as church leaders, it’s important that we offer the opposite. Let’s look at how.
Tips for Making Youth Feel Valued and Heard in Church Settings
Making our youth feel valued and heard starts with us. While we may wonder how to convince young people that we’re listening to and value them, sometimes the answer lies within. Can we do more to truly take in what they’re saying? Do we truly understand and appreciate their value? How hard do we work to see where they’re coming from?
Tip 1: Take youth’s concerns seriously.
Young people often face challenges that we overcame a long time ago. It can be easy to dismiss their struggles as temporary roadblocks that we know they will overcome, but we need to remember that, for them, these challenges are new and often very scary.
Tip 2: Establish a time and place specifically for sharing.
Take time to listen to your community youth. Establish space where they can share their challenges in a safe place. It isn’t easy for everyone to speak up, so it can be important to gently encourage our youth to share their thoughts with us. It can be helpful to establish youth group meetings just for this sole purpose, where everyone is encouraged to share their thoughts, whether they’re challenges they’re facing, new ideas for the church or anything else worth sharing. Even if you don’t hold meetings for this purpose, a strong youth survey can help you focus on the kinds of things youth might want to share.
Importance of Fostering a Safe and Inclusive Space
The importance of fostering a safe and inclusive space in the church for today’s young people would be difficult to overstate. The truth is, it is often crucial to establish spaces where they can thrive and engage.
An inclusive space allows those who engage with the church to feel comfortable and welcome and accepted for who they are. What’s more, a truly inclusive and safe space often becomes a beacon to those who have considered getting more involved with the church or are coming to worship for the first time.
Integrating Technology into Youth Ministry
As we’ve discussed, today’s youth are often increasingly plugged in and online. So for many churches, it can be important to find ways to integrate technology into youth ministry. How? Let’s explore.
Apps and Social Media
Using apps and social media can be a great way to engage with today’s youth. Often, young people are already plugged into smart devices, so it’s important for churches to establish a presence in these spaces.
Social media is an important part of life for many young people. It enables them to keep up with their friends and loved ones, learn about local events, share their thoughts with their circles and get involved in new things. For these reasons, churches that can establish a welcoming presence on social media often have an immediate leg up in their challenge to engage with the young people in their communities.
Apps, refer to applications — or programs — that are typically found on mobile devices, though they can often be found on desktop and laptop computers as well. The difference between an app and a website is that an app is installed directly on a device, while users access a website through a web browser, which is a type of application. While most churches already have websites, establishing an app that congregants and members can download on their devices can take engagement a step further. Apps can offer additional functions and can be used to do everything from scheduling church events to sending reminders about upcoming services.
Examples of Successful Digital Initiatives
So, what might a successful digital initiative look like in practice? Let’s explore some hypothetical examples of what one might look like and how it could work.
Example 1: Use an app to establish dynamic scheduling.
Suppose your church has a fairly active community of young people who are struggling to find ways to get more involved with the church. Implementing an app that enables them to propose meeting times could help them get more involved at their own pace. Through such an app, users could propose meetings and other users could receive notifications that such meetings have been proposed. If enough users are interested, the meetings could then be scheduled and held.
Example 2: Create a robust online community through social media.
Suppose your church is struggling to find new younger members, but you’re in an area with plenty of local young people who might be interested in your church. Here’s where social media can play a pivotal role. Creating an online community on social media where others are encouraged to engage online can increase your church’s online visibility, which in turn can help those nearby who are beginning their spiritual journeys find your church more easily.
FAQs
Q: What are some effective ways to incorporate technology into youth ministry?
There are several ways to incorporate technology into youth ministry — and the great thing is that young people are often already familiar with the systems you might use to do so. These can include taking advantage of mobile apps, social media and even online social media trends. For churches that are struggling to figure out where to begin, it can be helpful to simply ask! Chances are that some of the young people already involved in your church will have ideas on how to get more technologically integrated.
Q: How can youth be encouraged to participate more actively in church activities?
This can vary between churches and communities, but the first step is often establishing a dialogue with the young people in your church. Rather than asking them to be more involved or asking yourself why they’re not more involved, try asking them how they want to be involved.
Q: What are some unique youth group games that combine fun and faith?
There are a ton of great and unique youth group activities that combine fun and faith! For example, a Bible maze or having a session of Ready, Aim, Starburst are both great places to start. For more activities, consider those that can be tailored to a church setting. For example, movie nights can feature faith-related films, trivia nights could center around Bible trivia and musical get-togethers could feature hymns.
Q: What role can social media play in youth ministry?
It’s difficult to overstate how important social media can be in youth ministry. Many young people today are online and many already love social media. When we can meet them where they are and offer a welcoming and friendly online presence, it’s often possible to raise awareness about the church and create an atmosphere that appeals to new members.
Q: What are some creative ways to teach biblical lessons to youth?
There are a number of great ways to teach biblical lessons to youth. It’s helpful to remember that while different generations have faced their own unique challenges, we have more common than we realize. Even in biblical times, people faced familiar challenges. When we’re able to draw these parallels, we can often begin to engage with young people in a way that feels relevant and compelling to them.
Q: How can we build a stronger sense of community among our youth?
This often begins with us. Not only are church leaders and older members of the church important examples to the youth, but we can establish systems that enable them to thrive and get involved. When we focus on fostering community among ourselves, the youth around us may feel a stronger sense of community as well. Remember to leave space for their concerns and ideas and take every opportunity you can to affirm their value to the church and community.
Everything You Need to Know About Church Growth
Download our free eBook to learn everything you need to know about church growth. By following the guidelines and tested strategies outlined in our eBook, you’ll have the framework needed to give your church a necessary jolt.
