[continued from part 2]

To continue my rant. Here’s the other side that needs to be viewed. The hearts of the youth today are broken. They feel the sting of abandonment and need the rescuing arms of a Savior and Lord. They are are lost, but not unreachable. They want to be rescued. We just have to go there and offer them Christ. But for some reason, more often than not, no ones goes searching for them.

Sure we open the doors of the church, expecting them to be drawn to us, but it is us that must go to them. The church, the building and programs, offer then nothing. If you have a drowning man, you don’t tell him to swim to the boat so he can get a life preserver.

We must go to where they are otherwise we run the danger of pitting ourselves against the will of God. Jesus when out to reach the unreached, he got dirty and on their level. The Great Commission doesn’t state “I send you out to the edges of the building to open the doors and the lost will find their way in and hopefully fit into a program we have, accept the Lord, start wearing sweaters, serving in the nursery and tithing faithfully.” That’s not what we are commanded to do. That’s not the state of the church that Christ is returning for. We are called to go out, boldly proclaim the Gospel of Christ.

“All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth. Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world” (Mt. 28:18-20 ASV).

We’ve forgotten the whole concept of “GO” and now expect them to “COME” to us. It just doesn’t work that way. I will never work.

[continued from part 1]

To best sum up their state of being, their hurts and pains and need for something more… I refer to the lyrics from Sanctus Real’s song “I’m Not Alright”.

If weakness is a wound
That no one wants to speak of
Then “cool” is just how far we have to fall
I am not immune
I only want to be loved
But I feel safe behind the firewall
Can I lose my need to impress?
If you want the truth, I need to confessI’m not alright
I’m broken inside, broken inside
And all I go through
It leads me to you, it leads me to you

Burn away the pride
Bring me to my weakness
Until everything I hide behind is gone
And when I’m open wide
With nothing left to cling to
Only you are there to lead me on
Cause honestly, I’m not that strong

I’m not alright
I’m broken inside, broken inside
And all I go through
It leads me to you, it leads me to you

And I move, and I move, and I move…closer to you
And I move, and I move, and I move…closer to you
And I move, and I move, and I move…closer to you
And I move, and I move, and I move…

I’m not alright
I’m broken inside, broken inside
broken inside, broken inside
And all I go through
Leads me to you, leads me to you

I’m not alright, I’m not alright, I’m not alright…that’s why I need you

[continued in part 3]

Recently several publication, both Christian and secular have noted the growing erosion of youth from the churches. Many things are blamed on this, but there is a general disgust and frustration amongst adult Christians towards the youth because of this. There is a belief that there is something wrong with the youth culture today or that they are just simply broken.

Many factors contribute to this problem, break down of the family unit, our culture, liberalism, and George Bush (why not him, he’s blamed for everything else going on in the world today?). But I believe it is this simple fact: the church has become so consumed with itself as an organization/institutional/business that it has forgotten why it even exists.

The youth of today (as well of any age) have a keen sense of weather or not you’re BS’ing them. They don’t see it’s purpose. They don’t see that it has anything to offer them. They see it as a system of ritual and tradition all of which does not connect with their hurts, problems and struggles. The church becomes distant from the youth because they don’t openly beg to be apart, after all, if you deny the church you’re denying Jesus… Aren’t you?

What the church has forgotten is that its sole purpose for existence is to spread the message of hope and redemption in Christ to the lost world. Does the world still need Christ? More than ever. Does the world still need the church (in it’s current institutionalized state)? That’s yet to be determined.

This generation is no different that the past. Still born into sin. Still have a Christ shaped hole in their hearts that only He can fill. So if this is still the same, then has the church changed?

[continued in part 2]