Your Sunday School Program is Working…But Does it Work? (Check out the Quote from a Millennial!)

Last updated on: May 24, 2016 at 3:43 pm by Tim Wright

Your Sunday School Program is Working…But Does it Work? (Check out the Quote from a Millennial!) 2016-05-24T15:43:31-07:00 Tim Wright

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If you run Sunday school/Children’s Church concurrently with worship, it may be working well. The kids have a place to hear the Gospel at their level. The adults have a place where they can hear the Gospel at their level…and without the interruptions of over-sugared and/or antsy kids. If your congregation is like most who run Children’s ministry concurrently with adult worship, your program is probably working very well!

Portrait of pupils and teacher interacting at break together

But does it work?

Does your Sunday school/Children’s Church address the issue of assimilating kids into “big people worship” at some point?

Do you want to know (one of the reasons) why millennials aren’t attending your church? Here goes…Millennials aren’t attending your church because they’ve never had to attend your church. Think about it. From the time my generation was born we were thrown into nurseries with other babies. Then we went to children’s ministries to be entertained while our parents went to “big church.” Then we had middle school ministry. Then we had youth group. Then we went away to college and found a church with a stellar college ministry. It wasn’t until we graduated college that we were expected to be a part of the intergenerational community called “church.” We’d been segregated by age for the first 22 years. And you not only allowed this. You encouraged it.

In our Lutheran Denomination (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America), 75% of those confirmed leave the church.

Does your Sunday school/Children’s Church provide opportunities for families to do faith at home?

Only 12% of youth have a regular dialog with their mother on faith and/or life issues
Only 5% of youth have a regular dialog with their father on faith and/or life issues
- Yet, the greatest faith shapers by large margins in the life of kids: Mom and dad, followed by grandparents

Does your Sunday school/Children’s Church foster a multi-generational Body of Christ mindset throughout your congregation?

Or is your local expression of Christ’s Body segmented and siloed?

Does your Sunday school/Children’s Church grow disciples passionate about Christ and his Church—expressed locally through the congregation?

2 out of 10 Millennials believe the Church matters
In list of top 10 Faith Influencers for Millennials, Church doesn’t make the top 10

Does your Sunday school/Children’s Church teach kids how to worship with adults? Does it teach adults how to worship with kids?

Does your current program work? What may be the unintended consequences of separating kids from weekend worship with their parents and other adults?

For more see: Sunday Schooling Our Kids Out of Church: The True Story of How One Congregation Dropped Sunday School to Save it’s Soul!

Children's Church

Multi-Generational Worship

Mult-Generational Worship

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Sunday Schooling Our Kids Out of Church

Tim Wright

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