Disciplemaking in the U.S. has become a major challenge in recent years, especially among the Millennial Generation (adults born after 1980). The Pew Research Center reports that Millennials are much less likely than prior generations to embrace Christianity, and more than one in three Millennials now say they have no religion – a 10 point increase since just 2007.

The declining number of young Christians and the growing ranks of the non-religious are due largely to higher losses of young adults raised in Christian households. Evangelicals, like Catholics and mainline protestants, have seen heavy recent losses among young adults. According to the Pew research, there are about one-third fewer evangelical Christians among the Millennial generation compared to their grandparents’ generation.

The Next Generation Project of Indianapolis, Indiana, is actively working to meet this growing challenge. Larry Barnett, director of the Project, wants to help congregations be effective in making disciples of the next generation. He hopes to help the next generation thrive and grow in their Christian faith as they transition into adulthood.

The Next Generation Project is a research initiative to understand why so many young adults are now leaving Christianity. Over the past five years, through three large national studies, the Project has explored the reasons behind the higher recent losses of young people from Christianity. Barnett is now applying the insights from this research to training U.S. Christians to become more effective in discipling the next generation.

Next month, through Sunday School and Discipleship Ministry International’s the Discipleship Place, Barnett will host two webinars based on his research. On July 7, he will host “Why Younger Americans are Leaving Christianity,” where he will discuss the major drivers of the recent decline of Christianity among younger Americans. On July 21, Barnett will host “The Hidden Key to Effective Disciple-Making,” which will detail practical insights from this research for helping the next generation thrive and grow in their faith.

The webinars are offered free of charge. Registration is available through thediscipleshipplace.org.

--SDMI USA/Canada