Thesis #5 - Fathers Are The Future Of Our Church

Well meaning church leaders and members frequently state, “Our children (or our youth) are the future of our church.” This axiom sounds logical, but it fails to account for an observable fact: we’re losing the next generation at an alarming rate! Even as we pour all our resources into children and youth programs, our late-teen and twenty-something members abandon church in droves. Polls commonly report a 70% to 80% attrition rate of those entering the college and career age. The fact that our congregations' median age is moving toward retirement rather than college and career is proof that children really aren't the future--at least not unless something changes drastically. Why do the young people leave? Several suggestions are proffered 1) They think the Bible is irrelevant--maybe they weren’t taught that God’s word is inerrant, factual and able to deal with scoffing evolutionists. 2) They think church is irrelevant--maybe church wasn’t presented as essential to one’s worship of God. Perhaps a more important question is, “Why do some young people stay actively engaged in church?” A european census may point to the answer. Folks all around the WEB still talk about a 1994 Swiss study that identified fathers as the greatest influence in the next generation’s church attendance. Michael Craven, founder of the Center for Christ and Culture refers to that Swiss study in his article, Fathers: The Greatest Influence. Craven sums up, “In short, if a father does not go to church, no matter how faithful his wife's devotions, only one child in 50 will become a regular worshipper." Does an outdated Swiss report reflect trends in the Southern Baptist Churches in the United States? Take a look around your congregation and evaluate the retention of young people. Were strong Christian fathers present in the lives of young people who no longer attend church anywhere? How about those who remain? Craven continues with an uplifting statistic: "If a father does go regularly, regardless of the practice of the mother, between two-thirds and three-quarters of their children will become churchgoers." You might say, “But there is still a 25 – 30% drop-out rate.” Yes, but the study apparently looked only at the father’s church attendance record—and we know that a church attending man may not necessarily be a redeemed, regenerate, transformed disciple who in turn is actively training his own children. What if we discipled young fathers to be spiritual leaders in their homes?
Against the failed axiom “Children are our future church,” let me propose a new hypothesis: Fathers are our future, if we reach them for Christ, teach them the essentials of Christian living, and equip them to train their children.