Mission Studies

IMAGINE — Youth and Families

The Christian Education Commission conducted four meetings on October 13, November 10, 15, and 22 to elicit feedback and input on the various opportunities available to children, youth and families in the church. One set of meetings was held during Open Cave to encourage members of the junior and senior high youth groups to participate.

The commitment of the youth in our church to mission is very strong. They see themselves as “o rdinary kids with an extraordinary mission.” There is a strong focus on spreading God's love and doing God's work through action and deed. The current programming is seen by the youth as highly relevant and meaningful to the world today.

The initial turnout for non-youth group aged parents was very small so a second meeting was offered on Sunday morning between services. The discussion centered on the current offerings for younger children and families in the church. Low attendance at family activities and decreasing attendance at VBS was discussed as well as the wide range of attitudes regarding intergenerational family worship services. There was general consensus that the increasing demands on a family's time made evening and summer activities more difficult to schedule and attend. Particularly helpful was interest around increasing the mission focus for Sunday School aged children. A plan is now being created to increase the exposure of the children to age-appropriate mission projects, especially during the summer months when the regular Sunday School curriculum is not used.

Overall, response was not high to these meetings. This is not reflective of Sunday School attendance and youth group attendance, however, suggesting general satisfaction with the core offerings of the church for children and youth. While caution should be taken on interpreting the responses due to the small sampling size, the emphasis and importance placed on mission-focused activity seems clear.