Copyright © 2019 Dr. Anderson Henry Ruffin

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without prior written permission from the author.

Dr. Anderson Henry Ruffin/Book Baby Publishing
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Author’s Notes: The book will focus on teens and share a view of traditional and contemporary churches services. It will focus on African-American churches in the United States of America, through survey, case studies, lifetime standards, and devotional practices. This book will offer an assortment of writing, questioning, and critical thinking about the essence of teens leaving my church.

Teens Left My Church/Dr. Anderson Henry Ruffin

ISBN: 978-1-54395-301-5 (print)
ISBN: 978-1-54395-302-2 (ebook)

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I am grateful to my family for giving the place that enabled the origination of this book, and their understanding during the time of research and writing. I thank those who shared their time, emotions, and knowledge with me because they believed doing so would make a difference in encouraging young people. Their input, support, and interest kept me going. I appreciate and acknowledge their contributions and support.

Special thanks to an incredible team of professionals who have inspired me along the journey. Leading the team is Dr. Charles Lett, Dr. Liz Cotton, Dr. Allam Baaheth, Dr. Aaron Dobynes, and Pastor Greg Voss. They willingly sacrificed their time, contributed faithfulness, intelligence, patience, encouragement, and motivation during the challenging times of engagement in the writing of this book. All these beautiful people shared my desire to pass knowledge and wisdom to the next generation.

The sacrifices and offering of prayers enabled me to complete this book to the glory of God and for the advancement of his kingdom. My intention in drafting this book is to pass on the blessings of my generation to the next generation. All praises and glory be to God for giving me the strength and patience to complete this book.

INTRODUCTION

The Church has been a central figure in the lives of Americans as a place of worship. When segregation was being enforced, the Afro-American church became a beacon of light for freedom. The Church was a place where mass meetings were planned to fight against the oppression of African-Americans during the 60s and ‘70s.

The Church was the glue that held communities together. It has been a central figure in the lives of the younger generation as a place of worship. When the family unit began to break down, many families turned to the Church for help and guidance. The Church would step in as a source of aid to mothers in need, care for its elderly, and engaging the community in programs that would keep teens involved in the Church.

The Church has gone off into the sunset. Talk about the youth obtaining an everlasting life with Jesus Christ has disappeared from traditional institutions. The Church needs to reestablish its claim on a robust scriptural approach to going after the young generation to instigate a return to the Church. The arena of life continues to introduce a challenge of trials and tribulations for them. Victory is difficult.

The younger generation needs some practical and spiritual knowledge so there is a balance towards living a faithful life. We are living in times when the world is attacking the absolute, that in the latter days to come, the evil spirits of the world are contending to destroy the traditional doctrines of faith that were delivered to our ancestors.

In recent years, the Church has been under extensive scrutiny. Many of its leaders have come under fire for being duplicitous in the care of the flock to gain personal status while its members struggle to make ends meet. Another problem of conflicts in the African-American Baptist Church is the interactions between the younger generation and the older generation, because they feel the Church is a place that opposes their contemporary views.

The Church no longer keep up with a fast-paced, fast-moving, ever-changing world. Many young people feel the Church offer no answers towards their problems, and they share the belief that it is not a safe place to express doubts.

The modern generation is exposed to technology, casual sex, violence, drugs, and alcohol more than their predecessors. The Church has failed to respond. The Church proved its value during my teen years in meeting stiff opposition from outside forces, like freedom of choice, technology, and the media. The Church looks not to give logical, analytical, and investigative reasons for these challenges, but continues to face stiff opposition from outside forces.

When young minds are being destroyed in this present generation, society is in trouble. The argument or excuse used against society tries to say that government guarantees individual inalienable rights, but in its fullest essence has caused decay. The loss of young lives has become, a perplexing problem.

Many “teens or youth” have walked, crawled, and run away from the Church. Across the United States, these young people have disengaged by not actively attending church, reading the Bible, or attending Bible study. They offer little financial support and are ceasing to volunteer for church activities. Young people between the ages of fourteen and twenty-one are leaving the Church and have created a deficit of talent, energy, and leadership in many congregations. If the Church continues this pattern, “teens and youth” will disappear from the Church within the next decade.

As I reviewed the problems of conflicts in the African-American Church, I found signs of life in a wilderness, compared to the interactions between the younger generation and the older generation.

The typical reaction to faith was once a high trust in Christ because the youth believe that they would be led to greener pastures. Researchers have shown that the Christian faith is fading rapidly among “teens or youth.” Teens whose faith became integrated into their lives are now leaving the Church in alarming numbers.

The modern generation shares the belief that the Church is not a safe place to express contemporary ideas. Teens believe their religious experiences are different from their mom’s and dad’s. Many feels the Church offer no answers towards their daily problems.

Religious leaders must look to give logical, analytical, and investigative reasons for the dropout problem. The paramount concern is to help teens or youth continue to serve Christ throughout their lifetime. They believe the Church no longer represents what Jesus had in mind. Fewer than one in ten teens mentions faith as a top priority, even though many attended church at an early age.

God gave us these hours to do gentle work that will frame young minds forever. It is time to realize that those moments are here. Whether we are noble or dishonorable, Satan is taking up arms against our youth and has formed a sea of troubles. Do not sit and relax, glazing at the stars, but become a star before that eternal sleep. Do not let the destiny of our young people come before their mortal coils are cut loose. To die is the end of life without Christ. Through heartache, backaches, and despair, let us not let Satan consume our youth. We must bear the whips and scorns of time to be successful and get them ready to face eternity.

Why are teens leaving my church? We live in the land of the free, where knowing the past makes it our best choice to construct the future. It is my goal, to voice sentiments about merging tradition and with a contemporary approach to get the youth to return to the Church. We can do this one soul at a time. This book will focus on teens leaving my church, will investigate the problem through surveys, case studies, lifetime standards, and devotional practices and offers a delicious assortment of writing, questioning, and thinking critically to the essence of restoration.

Today many young people have their moments of imperfection as the season’s change. The leaves fall and turn yellow, and the snowfall forms on mountain caps and shows the glory of God. The doors of success breathe and are sealed with a kiss, encouraging us to live in the wisdom and beauty of the Lord. There is a need to teach sound doctrine, fashioning godly minds in young people. The author’s intent is to provide a collective work of facts, along with tasty morsels of proof.

CHAPTER ONE

Changes In Youth Ministry

The traditional model of worship in the Baptist Church is quickly fading. Within a decade, the Church will lose youth participation. The area of concern is youth ministry. The Church needs research in what’s relevant to teens, and restoration in contemporary times. The practical strategies of youth ministry will not enable the Church to evade the predicament.

Throughout the Church’s history, conformity to traditional practices of worship have remained the primary stumbling block to spiritual growth, and evangelistic progress for teens. When teens come to church, they conform to the traditions of our forefathers. The same schema of worship service has not changed over the past one hundred years. The order of service originated from the Southern Baptist Convention which had a singular purpose of eliciting, combining, and directing the energies of the Baptist denomination of Christian, for the propagation of the Gospel.

Many teens experience attending Church as tedious, and there is a clash between the ideologies of the contemporary and traditional Church. Significant numbers of teens have disengaged from actively attending Church, participation in the choir, attend Bible study, little financial support, and ceasing to volunteer for church activities.

I have noticed in my church that young adult’s involvement in church activities has become less attractive and more annoying. Most churches tend to focus on traditional worship, which excludes the participation of teens. The leaders are deficient in the understanding of the emerging trends.

Youth or teens are groups in progress. It may be helpful to note the different words the Church or Christian circles use to describe age groups. The terms, “Teens, youth, or young people may refer to younger adolescents (13-16) and to those who have graduated from high school (17-19).”

Mary C. Lewis, author of Her Story: Black Female Rites of Passage, consistently uses the terminology. “Young Black females are characterized into three stages of adolescence, which includes early adolescence, 10-14; mid-adolescence, 14-17 and late adolescence ranging from years 17-20.”

Jawanza Kunjufu tells us the age for youth are divided into three patterns: children (9), youth (9-13), teens 13-19), and young people (20-30).

When young adults enter moral training, they conform to the mindset of modern practices, rather than to traditional methods. The Church must embrace its traditional heritage and recognize it has moved into a new epoch.

We live in a highly commercialized culture. Youth programs in some churches no longer exist, and there is nothing to offer the youth. If the Church, the school, and the community had done their jobs, many young people would know how to be the best they can be. Pride, disobedience, rebellion, and compromise lead to losing supernatural power.

An example of this reality is founded in J. Childers, J. D. Foster, and J. Reese recent book The crux of the matter: Crisis, tradition and the future of Churches of Christ:

When the Churches of Christ developed this traditional mindset, they become victims of repeating history. Far from ending tradition, this attitude force tradition underground, where it runs freely, become an oppressive traditionalism. Traditions that grew out of specific circumstances are presumed to be significant, making it difficult to practices the will of God’s purpose for a Christ-centered church. Such attitudes have led to sectarian divisions, displaying an arrogant rejection of any who different. Traditionalism has overshadowed and caused us to cling tightly to traditions without recognizing them to be dangerous for a progressive Church. The Church becomes traditionalists in times of cultural change, retreating instead to a memory of the good old days making worship as stale and inexpressive.

Ken Ham and Britt Beemer’s book, Already Gone critiques the trends that many churches are facing the future with the possibility of closing the doors. A typical scene in American churches on Sunday morning is when the faithful walk through the front doors of the sanctuary sharing in the timeless rituals of worship, prayer, and proclamation. The large wooden door shuts with a loud, heavy thud. Outside, the incessant river of life jams the sidewalks and rushes toward unexpected destinations. Inside, the sanctuary carries the aroma of ancient stones and old books. Rows of ornate pews seating more than three thousand are empty. The small congregation is ushered into a small foyer where around thirty people are seated. Humbly and faithfully, those seated are engaging in prayers and listening to a brief message by the pastor, who speaks of hope. Missing from the congregation is the youth, which has gone and is not expected to return.

The older generation disbanded and shut the doors of the sanctuary because the younger generation was missing in action, and the Church growth was continually declining. The candles will never again be lit. The resounding anthem of great hymns of our spiritual ancestors will never again echo in the chamber of this sanctuary; it could happen in the future. It is not the funeral of an individual; it is the funeral of an institution.

The Church continues to offer traditional worship services without moving toward a modern frame, which continues to influence the youth to leave the Church. The Church needs a focus on contemporary education and participation. The Christian educational part includes training in Sunday school, Bible study, and leadership training that needs to refocus on religious character-building. Freeman Russell said, “Involving the youth in spiritual activities is a means by which depth of discipleship, faith formation, identify with Christ, and spiritual maturity occurs.” When children are taught, encouraged, and inspired to understand God’s love, they choose to put God at the center of their lives. Frank Viola makes the following assertion in his work showing the challenges of renewing a declining church.

For those who threatened by the idea, the Church needs reimagining in a prompt and much-needed perspective, delivering a modern vision for the body of Christ. The body of Christ has stifled by human traditions for too long. The tribe is increasing every year. Many teens have stepped out of the institutional church.

Youth are on a quest for a church experience that better fits the deepest longings of their hearts. Indeed, a revolution is brewing today. The revolution goes beyond Church reform and renewal. Instead, traditional ideas continue to go straight to the root of practice and ideology that wants to engage teens in church and in the New Testament Church.

Habakkuk states, “Write a vision and makes it plain upon a tablet so that a runner can read it” (Hab. 2:2). The vision was a new society of believer’s, old and young, living in the community together. David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons argue that the Christian community needs a modern mind, a new way of thinking, a new way to relate, a new vision and role to pass their faith to the present and future generations.

The Africa-American churches must remain true to the principles of restoration while showing the relevance of the gospel to youth. They must continue to do so without compromising the composition of the gospel message. Jesus Christ must be at the forefront, but as was in the first-century Church, his ideas and teaching must continue to intersect with culture. Many church leaders hesitate to wholeheartedly embrace the youth. Young people feel rejected across the country, and many are leaving the Church. The Church must renew its vision of empowering young people to live in the world, the family, community, and as disciples of Jesus Christ. Society and culture neglect youth and their well-being. It prioritizes false images of success and wealth rather than the welfare of the youth.

Among teens, J. Oswald Sanders said, “Just as Jesus called individuals to be a leader in biblical days, he still calls teens to build his church. It does not make the calling any better than anyone, but it does magnify that the Church still a responsibility to train the youth.”

J. C. Ryle believes, “A man in religion is pre-eminently a man of one thing; he sees only one thing; he cares for one thing; he lives for one thing; swallowed up for one thing, and that one thing is to please the Lord. Whether he lives or dies, whether he has health or sickness, whether he is rich or poor, whether he pleases man or gives offense, whether he is wise or foolish, whether he gets honor or sham for all of this, man cares for God and the things of God.”

The hallmark of one’s calling is to obey Jesus as the master of your life. A man may be called to teach, preach, or become a missionary around the world. The Lord said, “Go ye, therefore, and teach the Gospel” (Matt. 28:19). Teens or youth can also accept the challenge and dedicate their lives to Jesus as servants in their church.

The competencies of a person expand by God to become whatever he calls you to be. Success in any ministry needs some degree of competencies. Joseph’s calling did not mean a comfortable life. Abraham moved to where God asked him to go. Ester was exiled in Persia to save her people from slaughter. Peter was a disciple, and denied the Lord three times, and still became the greatest writer in the New Testament. The remarkable responsibility of any calling is to be available for God’s purpose.

Greg Schneeburg, author of Reforming Ministry To Youth In The Postmodern Context: Archetypes, Reactions, and Solutions From A Biblical-Covenantal Perspective, tells us, “The passion for youth ministry in this culture is not inherently negative. Far too often the gospel is lost and replaced with pedagogy and programs that tickle the ears and fill the pews.”

Jesus’ care includes loving the whole flock, which gives warmth, security, love, strength, and hope for all believers, including children. Luke tells us, “They were bringing babies to Jesus for him to place his hands on them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them” (Luke 18:15). Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Anyone who will not receive a little child into the kingdom of God will never enter it” (Luke 18:16-17).

Teens leaving my church is a challenging problem. The relationship between teens and the Church is often neglected. Youth ministry is diverse, challenging, and productive. Attendance, church divisions, leadership, and cultural changes have adversely affected youth training. It must be made entertaining and exciting! It must look to answer the spiritual problems of the world and meet young people’s spiritual needs.

Ministering to teens is going to need methodologies and programs that appeal to the youth. Church leaders must consider what they can do differently to continue to minister to teens while increasing the likelihood of their still being in the Church throughout adulthood. Youth ministry must be useful in the spiritual maturation of teens.

In a world of divorce and broken homes, not every teen comes from an intact family. A considerable number of teens attends church with their peers who have no parental involvement or support. Roger L. Dudley observed, “Teens who have parents involved in the Church are more likely to remain involved themselves.” Three contributing factors are significant to teens in the Church:

1. The parents are committed to the church.
2. The parents were intentional about passing on their values to them.
3. The parents and children have a strong relationship.

Teens are looking for stability, substance, and a network for spiritual growth blended into the ultimate single understanding of church with conventional concepts, methods, and ideas that challenge young minds. B. B. Brown, R. W. Larson, and T. S. Saraswathi tell us:

Change many times, is a painful experience for the Church. The machinery of denominationalism and tradition are usually the restrictive forces during the shift. There is no doubt that ministering to teens has changed merely by the fact that what it took to reach teens twenty years ago, no longer works today. Not only have methods changed, but the philosophy of ministering to the youth has also changed. Youth ministry is not a part-time ministry that a church perceives as being easy to administer. Teens need real attention. Teens are the Church of today. They can be trained to become faithful witnesses of Jesus Christ. They are as valuable as any adult members of the church.

What can the Church do to recapture teens who have already gone and keep those who remain? The Church must be a place to learn about Jesus Christ. Kenda Creasy Dean and Ron Foster, The Art of Soul Tending for Youth Ministry recommend, “Churches need to be in the right places teaching a passion for God and love for teen-agers. There must be a presence of concerned, caring loving adults who love teens is a critical part of the equation.” If the Church overlooks the development of youth ministry; the Church will become ineffective in the twenty-second century. The Church’s survival needs to have a relevant concern for the spiritual development of the youth, “Teaching them diligently the ways of the Lord at all times” (Deut. 6:7).

Young people’s spiritual development is a high priority in the Scriptures, most notably beginning within the family unit. The biblical charge to parents is to discipline their children and employ spiritual training as the primary concern (Eph. 6:4).

Roger L. Dudley writes, “Teens who make a personal decision during their teen years remains in the Church tend to stick with the commitment into adulthood. Second, teens who attend a Christian academy are more likely to remain involved. Third, teens who have developed a personal prayer life and was involved in youth ministry is more likely to remain in the Church. Fourth, teens who strongly agree with the doctrinal standards of the Church remain active. Fifth, teens who were in the youth ministry were more likely to remain involved.” These factors implied the teaching of godly knowledge as a high priority for teens staying in the Church.

F. Yeakley’s book entitled, Why They Left: Listening to Those Who Have Left Churches of Christ states, “The Church must be willing to reverse the current trends of decline and perform some self-reflection.” The Churches of Christ surveyed 325 former youth members. The finding was significant. Among the youth who attend other schools rather than a Christian college or university, 85 percent stopped attending church services as soon as they left home.

Group personalities affect the prevailing culture of the Church. Churches that do not have a youth ministry and lack models of evangelism in which conversations continue with former youth members will suffer a great decline. These issues are prevalent in both white and African- American congregations.