"What could we change, add or take away that would make the church more like the church God meant it to be?”

Even the staunchest supporters of the best congregations can usually name changes that they would make if they could, all in the interests of remaining true to Restoration ideals and transforming the church into a body more pleasing to God.

At three youth conferences, we asked this question of 482 high school students who are members of Churches of Christ.

Although some students would not change the church, most offered ideas that were insightful and surprising. Answers tended to cluster around the concepts of worship, study, relationships, action and attitudes.

• Worship: Students overwhelmingly called the church to be more upbeat in its worship.

They call “people to mean it when they worship” and to show more “life and emotion.” Many find the song service to be a matter of routine. Students ask older adults to compromise and allow a better balance of “old” and “new” songs; in any case, worship leaders should lead songs with a livelier tempo.

Students also ask those who plan worship to “simplify” and change the “worship structure” so as to “avoid routine.” Their complaint is not with the elements of worship, but with the idea of worship either as an unimaginative routine or as an improvised collection of impromptu prayers, random songs and a sermon, each disconnected from the other. In their opinion, the worshiping congregation should more often be full of joy.

• Study: Students noted that sermons tended to be routine. Students called for “deeper” study, not less. Sermons should “apply to the young and the old,” be relevant to the life and the current culture of the church and teach Christians “how to face day-to-day problems.”

These students seemed particularly concerned that preachers spend more time attending to the faith formation of those in worship and less time making judgmental statements about those outside of it. They also assert that having more than one person speak from the pulpit might help the church.

These concerns with sermons are consistent with the call to make study in the church deeper and more mature, consistent with Ephesians 4:11-13. They want more time to “dive into the Bible more.” It may surprise many that students want more study to be with the adults of the church. They want more adults to take up teaching responsibilities and to be unafraid to “talk about the tough stuff.”

• Relationships: The desire for more adult teachers emerges from students’ hunger for deeper relationships, especially with adults (Deuteronomy 6).

Some students feel invisible in the church; they long for adults to “act like we exist.” Others call for adults to “tear down the wall between the adults and the youth.” Although students want adults to know their names, they do not want adults to stop there.

They long for relationships with adults where each knows the story of the other. Students hope that adults joining in youth work will build relationships with them and model their faith in action. Yet such youth-adult relationships have high standards; students call adults to be authentic, involved, caring, non-judgmental, open-minded conversation partners.   

• Action: Students don’t want a church where conversations and relationships exclude outsiders, but seek one where an overwhelming desire for reconciliation and relationship sends its members into action in the community.

Such a congregation will “share the love of Jesus with more people outside the church.” This move requires the church to both “share the Gospel” and “go out and serve.” Students believe that the community should see the church as loving, inclusive and compassionate, not judgmental.

Ultimately, students believe in domestic and foreign mission work, but particularly in mission work that requires their personal participation. They want to take part as equal partners in all aspects of the work and worship of the church.

• Attitudes: In their opinion, communities surrounding congregations too often hear the voice of judgment instead of the Good News. Though largely supportive of the church, their most frequently voiced complaint was against judgmental attitudes among Christians.

Those attitudes take shape in the ways some “condemn” students, speak poorly of their peers and demonize members of other faith families. They perceive these negative attitudes to frustrate the spreading of the Gospel and the formation of deeper relationships within the church.
 
FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact dudley.chancey@oc.edu or ron.bruner@oc.edu.


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