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“... I am your God and will take care of you until you are old and your hair is gray. I made you and will care for you; I will give you help and rescue you….”
Isaiah 46: 4 (Good News Version)
I often hear from congregation members two phrases named together: 1. We want to grow, and 2. We want young people to join us. Of course, we see the church aging and declining in membership and we understand that one way to change that is to bring in the next generations; however, we are up against some cultural norms that we cannot ignore, including Sunday sports, decreasing numbers of young people growing up in churches, and parental distrust of institutions that work with youth.
Many of us remember when church growth was easy. We can remember a time when almost everyone we knew belonged to a community of faith. We counted church membership in the hundreds and youth by the scores. As our churches have aged, we have turned toward youth as the saviors of our churches, youth who will come to youth group and confirmation class and then stay into adulthood, bringing their children with them. Our hopes, however, are not borne out by our experiences of young people graduating from confirmation whom we never see again.
In our culture, we almost worship youth. We have sayings like, “Stay young, stay active,” and, “Age is only a number.” Both Rod Stewart and Bob Dylan each recorded a different song named “Forever Young,” which are blessings for young ones as they grow up. We celebrate youth and forget that our elders are the ones with time, money, and wisdom. Our churches are mostly made up of elders; why are we not focused more on ministries with elders?
God did not abandon our elderly ancestors. Sarah and Elizabeth and Anna were all elderly when they were called by God into the story of our faith. In our contemporary world, there are many people studying the effects of spirituality on aging. Two studies are Lewis Richmond, a Zen practitioner, who has written Aging as a Spiritual Practice: A Contemplative Guide to Growing Older and Wiser, in which he uses spiritual practices as a way to be intentional about aging, and Richard Rohr, a Franciscan, who reframes aging in Falling Upward: A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life to claim the gifts– rather than the losses– of aging.
Church growth is possible with ministry focused on elders rather than youth. New widows may find new community in a church. New retirees may be looking for that one thing that helps them understand the loss of purpose and meaning around leaving a career. Empty nesters may also feel untethered and unmoored and the church could ground them in worship, community, and service. Each of these people may have more money than our younger families, and they may be more used to the idea of tithing.
Church growth is not easy. It requires evangelism, invitation, perseverance, and meeting people where they are. Church growth does not occur because we hope for it; like all things in the Kingdom of God, we must see ourselves as co-creators with God, and as we do the physical work we rely on God to support our spiritual work. If you want youth, you need to go to them, rather than expecting them to come to church. If you are “of a certain age,” you may feel more comfortable around peers whom you could invite to church on a Sunday. If you want growth, try reframing growth of your church in terms of deepening your spirituality and faith, or growing a ministry, or investing in an endowment for long-term growth.
God is still the God of our elders; may we not forget that, and may we see growth in new ways.
Lenten blessings to all of you.
Peace,
Pastor Tony
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