Sunday School Lessons are Failing
Ken Ham of Answers in Genesis commissioned America’s Research Group to investigate why young people leave the church. The findings are published in Ken Ham’s new book Already Gone. Some insights include:
Among 20- to 29-year-old evangelicals
- 95% attended church regularly during elementary school
- 95% attended church regularly during middle school
>> 40% first had doubts about the Bible in middle school - 55% attended church regularly during high school
>> 43.7% first had doubts about the Bible in high school - 11% attended church regularly during college
>> 10% first had doubts about the Bible in college
Oddly, the study discovered that those who attended Sunday school (61%) are actually more likely than non-attendees (39%):
- to not believe that all the accounts and stories in the Bible are true
- to doubt the Bible because it was written by men
- to defend keeping abortion legal
- to accept the legalization of gay marriage
- to believe in evolution
- to believe that good people don’t need to go to church
Clearly, most children’s ministries are failing at producing long-term disciples. So what will it take to change this?
On the one hand, I believe that every children’s ministry can absolutely improve what they do. There is always room for improvement, but I also think these failed children’s ministries are the byproduct of failed churches.
If you want to reach and disciple children, you must reach and disciple their parents. Church going kids spend only 1% of their time at church, 20% at school, 30% sleeping, and much of the rest watching TV and playing. Children’s ministers can determine the 1%, but it is the parents who have the power to decide what reaches their kids during the other 99%. If you disciple the parents, you disciple the kids.
For Discussion:
- How can children’s ministries better disciple kids in the Sunday school classroom?
- How can churches better train parents to disciple their kids during the rest of the week?
This info was found on churchrelevance.com
i don't think its the failing of the children's ministry, i think its the lack of getting college kids plugged into a church, we have NO WHERE TO GO. we are in a transition of kid to adult, but WE are DEFINITELY not adults yet. we need guidance and no one can figure out what we need because we dont know what we need.
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