Young People Abandoning Church

I've written about this before, but it bears repeating. Young people are leaving the church in droves. And even among those still attending, many are living lives that don't reflect a relationship with Christ at all.

One of my many favorite blogs is Lifeway. This blog has many great articles about faith issues in everyday life. This article about youth leaving the church really caught my attention and heart.

Although I no longer have children at home, I am burdened by what I see around me. Many of these young people have broken homes, bad neighborhoods, negative peer pressure and media bombardment that eats away at any resolve they may have to try to live for God. Add to that the typical rebellion or challenging of rules that comes with this age group and you have a formula for disaster.

Some say that it is a stage they are going through and many of them will return to the Lord and the Church when they get older and have children of their own. But I believe this generation is different. The information and technology age has created an environment of pseudo-intelligence. Never before has a generation had more "facts" to challenge the existence of God. As a result many young people are making an "informed decision" to reject God. The enemy of our souls has found the perfect recipe for cooking up doubt and unbelief while looking and sounding respectable.

What can be done to encourage young people to have and continue having a relationship with God? Although I am grateful that our own children are pursuing God, I am not content with watching this generation drift away. There is too much at stake.