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Where are your young adults going after they finish school?
Addressing the shift in young adult church attendance
For decades now, there has been an unspoken expectation that young adults — 18 to 24-year-olds — have a gravitational pull back to the church after college, or whatever they do to further their education.
It has been a given that as soon as they settle down and have families, they’ll come back.
That is no longer the case.
Instead, after students graduate high school and leave for the next chapter of their lives, they disappear from the congregation.
Even though the number of young adults living at home has increased from 55% to 71% since 1968, they’re not coming to church with their parents.
Why?
Because we haven’t built a support system for them.
The elephant in the room: churches are not adapting to young adult needs
People are getting married later and later — they don’t need a young couples group. People are also having children later and later—they don’t need a young parents group.
If you’re lucky, these young adults will show up to holiday services on their breaks—Easter, Christmas, New Year's, etc.
They deserve more than a guest seat on major holidays. They should have a place in the community that does not revolve around marriage, dating, or child-rearing.
If that place isn’t present in the church, they will find that belonging elsewhere, and it may not provide the same fulfillment and alignment they would otherwise enjoy within a home church.
There is a separate category of young adults outside of “college student” or “married,” looking for where they belong, and where they can go to find community and relevant guidance.
Spoiler alert: It’s not in a young Christian dating group.
Young adults are more than future husbands, wives, fathers, or mothers — they’re entire individuals who deserve to belong just as much as their married counterparts.
“Have fun at college!” shouldn’t be the last thing they hear from you
You don’t have to live in a college town to have a thriving young adult community in your church. As we said, the majority of 18-24-year-olds are living at home after graduation.
That means ample opportunity to craft an environment that speaks to their situation — they’re right in your neighborhood.
If you celebrated them going off to college, why not celebrate them coming home? Or, even better, why not have systems in place to stay in contact with them as they complete their education, whatever form that takes?
It may feel far-fetched to think of a college student being glad to receive any communication from their home church while at school, but that does not mean the effort would be wasted.
What sounds better to you:
Coming home after graduation and knowing that at least a few people in your church have kept up with you and may even be anticipating your return, praying for you, and showing genuine interest?
Or, feeling disconnected from your home church to the point where you’re not confident anyone even noticed you were gone, let alone returned home, or would even notice if you did or didn’t pop in on Sunday?
We know which we prefer.
This distinction is a crucial point for maintaining connection or losing them to the sea of young adults searching for belonging.
Action Items:
Address your congregation directly about how to support young adults
Kara Powell says that if a young person has five different adults within the church, of varying ages, that have some degree of relationship with that young person, they are more likely to return to that church or continue attending church elsewhere.
This doesn’t have to be complex. Something as simple as asking, “Who has Ashley? Who has Issac?” after you’ve sent them off to college can make a world of difference.
A text, a note, a care package — don’t be afraid to get creative, as long as it’s consistent and intentional.
Help them find places to worship in their new environment
Helping a new student navigate how to plug into local places of worship, prayer groups, bible studies, and more can ease the transition and keep them connected to their faith.
This could be as simple as doing some research about the state/city/town they’re studying in and alerting them to local opportunities with an encouraging message.
Keep it simple (young adult outreach does not have to be “epic”)
Young adult ministries do not have to be extravagant. Making space for 18-24-year-olds who are still at home could be as simple as restructuring the way you assign small groups, programming, and events to better speak to their needs.
If it’s coming from the right place, it will get the job done. Stay in touch with your young people — they are crucial members of your community.