Followers Under 40: The journey away from church for Millenials, Gen Z, and Gen Alpha by Rachel Gilmore and Kris Sledge
The church has a problem. We are aging, clergy are aging, and churches are in decline. So, what do we do? How do we reach younger generations? In Followers Under 40, Rachel Gilmore and Kris Sledge take a closer look at the defining qualities and characteristics of Millennials, Gen Z, and Gen Alpha while also exploring why they are leaving the church and what steps any congregation can take to begin reaching young adults today.
One thing I appreciate about this book is that the authors have both been involved in church plants aimed at growing diverse communities that include young adults and young families. Full disclosure, Kris Sledge has been my pastor for the past year and a half, and this has been a time of great personal growth for me.
The sections discussing the experiences and concerns of the younger generations are compelling and thought-provoking. As a Gen Xer myself, I can relate to some of it by recalling my own young adulthood, but there are definitely issues that are different and more complex due to the societal and technological changes that have occurred since then.
Gilmore and Sledge also spend several chapters offering suggestions as to how our churches can connect better with people under 40. They share many great ideas, and I especially like how they give practical examples of how to implement each of them along with anecdotes of how they have used some of these strategies.
This sentence from the closing chapter seems to sum up the call to action:
We are invited to lead and embody a church that can evolve and adapt to become a place of deep hope, healing, and transformation for the new and emerging generations.
May that be a challenge we all accept!
In So Many Words 