Flashy worship services are not attracting the millennial generation to church.
In fact, the authors of the new book, Growing Young: Six Essential Strategies to Help Young People Discover and Love Your Church, say the younger generation is exchanging “cool” for “warmth.”
“When we spoke to more than 1,300 young churchgoers, ages 15 to 29, they told us what they want: authenticity and connection. In a word: warmth,” an excerpt from the book reads, published in The Washington Post.
Terms that young adults used to describe their ideal place of worship included: welcoming, accepting, belonging, authentic, hospitable and caring.
The findings are called the “warmth cluster” and it’s more important than having a lot of ministry programs, which can be a turnoff. For many Millennials “busyness does not equal warmth,” the authors say.
Young people are not only looking for those in the church that treat them nicely, they are looking for a place that is “like family” where the environment of the church and worship center is more like a family room.
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