Investing to ensure the gospel goes forward long after we’re gone

Since we planted Redeemer in 2008, we have reached many young people—which means we have had lots of young leaders. Roughly half our Sunday attendance is in college or just out of college. 

We try to keep things as simple as we can. We have pretty straightforward services with worship, expository preaching, and weekly communion. Then, we have small groups during the week. Here are three principles I’ve observed along the way while we’ve engaged younger people in our church:

Young leaders need relationships

When I was a 22-year-old youth minister, an older church member took me out to lunch regularly. I valued those lunches more than he probably realized. Right before that, I worked as an associate in youth ministry while I was in college and the youth minister and his wife had us in their home regularly. I never turned down a chance to talk in the church office or come over to their house. 

Pastors, don’t miss an opportunity to engage relationally with younger staff members. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a formal mentoring relationship or another meeting to add to your calendar. Working with an open office door and walking around the office and talking briefly can go a long way when it comes to building relationships with younger leaders. When I was on staff at the church that planted us (Southcrest Baptist Church in Lubbock), we had a weekly lunch after our staff meetings. That was a great idea.

Young leaders are drawn to opportunity

From the start, we had young people leading because they were our only people. If all you have are college students and young adults, you have to develop college students to lead other college students in groups and discipleship. It’s the same thing with young adults. 

If you are at a place in your church life where you are trying to reach families and younger people in your community, the young people in your church will be your greatest asset to reach their peers. Call them to it and help them develop the character and competencies to not only share their faith and invite friends to church, but make disciples and grow as leaders.

Plant churches and be open-handed with your best leaders

When Southcrest planted us, we started reaching a younger, different crowd that was new to church and served as a good complement to the reach Southcrest already had in Lubbock. A strategic way to reach younger, unreached people is to plant new churches. For the sake of the unreached, we have to engage young leaders. Every church plant needs not only a lead guy, but a core team of members who will make disciples and engage people with the gospel. 

Often, they are some of your strongest and most faithful leaders. You’ve likely invested in them deeply, and sending them out leaves you with some gaps in your church’s leadership. In fact, their best and most fruitful years of leadership and ministry might not directly impact your local church. I’ll be honest, it can hurt to send them out. 

But it is also a reminder why we need to engage and empower young leaders—we want the gospel to go forward long after we are gone.