abstract |
There is a concern within Grace United Methodist Church that attendance and participation of millennials within our worshiping community is relatively
non-existent, at best, disconnected. The purpose of this project was to ascertain the reason(s) why millennials choose not to become an integral part
of our church community and what will be required to attract them. The scope of the project was limited to identification of the factors affecting
millennials and finally piloting an activity that will reconnect them to Grace United Methodist Church. The data gathered revealed a dominant narrative
that our millennials are absent because our churches have failed to offer different access points and to be pliable and flexible in addressing their needs.
Likewise, the churches' failure to create media for expressions of creativity or the churches' inability to reciprocate an authentic response to the
millennial's community have allowed them to find comfort living on the fringes. This project provided an opportunity to assure transformational leadership
to our community. It enabled our community to be ever cognizant of the opportunities and experiences for people, especially our millennials to encounter
Jesus Christ so that transformation may occur. We dare to envision that this project had the immediate potential to reset ministry to be driven by an
evangelism emphasis that is locally mission oriented; this is a different narrative to what we have known in the past. As part of the reintegration
process, our millennials embraced the charge to be to others what they would like the community to be to them.
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