Five Millennial Cultural Nuances Effecting the Church

The studies on the distinctives between generational cultural nuances are in abundance. Beginning with the Builder generation, we have defined each group right up to the present Gen Z which populates our student ministries. Millennials are no longer students in our ministries, they are now the leaders of those ministries and the church.

I mean this as a classification, not as “profiling,” because obviously this is not true of everyone in this age group.

Millennials must be understood if we are to effectively guide and develop them to minister both here in the church locally and globally. I want to offer five observations (not dogmas) to consider as we view the world of the Millennial generation.

1. They really want to make a difference but often are doing so with a broken moral compass. For some, social activism is an appeasement of conscience. They see that the world needs to change and they do not want to be told to wait. – They want to do it now even if it is outside the boundary markers which have been comfortable and safe in the past.
2. They are comfortable with contradiction. They sneer at materialism while possessing more disposable income than any other generation in history. They are mosaic in religion and spirituality and often are peacemakers even if it requires compromise.
3. They may view the Church as fictional or irrelevant. They can’t find it, so it must not exist. They see it as negative, argumentative and inwardly focused when they are looking outward at a lost and needy world.
4. They are often unwilling to detach from the umbilical cord. More and more are moving back in with their parents because they don’t really have a post-college plan. One of the issues that may arise as a result of this is struggle with long-term commitment.
5. They demand authenticity, which is interesting in light of #2 above. They trust people not institutions. They are attracted to and will follow transparent leaders.  If you are less than totally genuine, they will know it.

None of the “Five Observations,” are meant to be millennial bashing. This generation has much to teach us. Let me share three things we can take away from these observations and learn from this generation.

1. We must be definitive in our message. A watered-down version of the truth will not be attractive or compelling. Often the church has been so concerned about relating, we have focused more on program than principle. We have allowed the culture to drive truth rather than the culture serving as a vehicle for communicating it.
2. Our churches must have an outward vision. We can no longer just look inwardly thinking about ministries within our four walls. We must demonstrate our commitment for ministries which are concerned with the community and meeting people where they live.
3. We must be authentic people of character. We have got to realize that who we are, is the foundation for what we do. Every generation is simply looking for someone to follow whose life is worthy of imitation.

I think the future is bright for leadership of the church and global missions because of this generation. But it is never enough to sit back and do nothing: we must speak into the lives of our Millennials and give guidance.