Door Holders 2012
I’ve attended Passion Conference before, but only as an observer or guest. But this year I decided to volunteer, primarily because of the investment the Passion organization continues to make in my college-age children. I’m not really sure what I was thinking. It was an impulsive decision I made after midnight while registering one of my daughters online. Before I knew it I had pressed send and I was committed. So, I showed up wearing my hot pink “Door Holder” T-shirt ready to work with a host of volunteers I had never met. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but I have to admit, volunteering at Passion changed me,
as a parent,
as a leader,
and as a Christian.

After four days of various volunteer activities, I am more convinced than ever that every leader should volunteer on a Passion team. Here are a few of the reasons.

1. It will change the way you see college students.
I have always wondered why some churches will spend so much time and energy creating environments for kids and teenagers, and yet fail to make those who are college-age a similar priority. I volunteered in a Community Group Room of 4,500 students. I watched Brad Jones and a team of volunteers take whatever time was necessary to ensure they organized every student into a family group of 8 to 10. Every morning and evening, groups connected and discussed what God was doing in their lives. Meeting some of these students up-close solidified my belief that this is a critical season of life. For example, I met—

Brian:
a senior in college who has a desire to work with organizations planting effective churches

Kevin:
a musician who became a Christian a few months ago and can’t wait to use his technical skills to help a church or ministry

Ashley:
an education major who wants to devote her life to working with special needs kids

Morgan:
a Kansas City girl studying cosmetology who wants to leverage her training to help underprivileged families

Tyler:
a UGA student who is searching for an internship with a non-profit organization because he feels called to invest his life in ministry

Thousands of college students showed up with similar stories, ready to redefine the role of church in our culture. They challenged the stereotypes most of us have about this age group. They came hoping someone would hand them the keys so they could do something significant. If you volunteer at Passion, you will be confronted with an entire generation determined to “BE” the church.

2. It will expand your definition of worship.
I have heard Louie Giglio warn numerous times that it’s easy to become infatuated with experiences of worship and never really get to the heart of worship. Worship is more than an emotion, a feeling, or an event. Louie defined it this way, “Worship is . . . me in His hands and my life in His plan.” Although the music at Passion is some of the best in the world, authentic worship happens when people connect their daily lives to the mission.

I was drawn into the worship at Passion, not simply because I was inspired by what I heard, but because I was moved by what I saw. Worship at Passion wasn’t something programmed at the beginning or end of each session. Worship was something that happened continually throughout the day. Passion leaders don’t just try to establish a context where worship can happen, but instead they strive to establish worship as the context for everything that happens.

3. It will renew your passion as a parent.
I was reminded this week that what happens to my children during their twenties is just as important, if not more important, than what happened when they were ten. That’s just another reason I’m personally grateful for the staff at Passion. My four children are between the ages of 20 and 26. As a parent, I still want the same thing now that I wanted for them when they were first born—a personal and authentic passion for God.

While I was at Passion I found myself wondering about the parents of the college students who were there. I tried to imagine how they would feel if they could see their own sons and daughters responding with a willingness to radically sacrifice anything for God’s mission and glory. I’m sure it would have made some parents nervous, but most parents I know would have been overwhelmed with a renewed sense of hope for their kid’s future. If parents volunteer at Passion, it will prompt them to remember what they are leading their kids to become.

4. It will move you to “do something now.”
“Do Something Now” was one of the primary challenges to those who attended Passion. It was more than a slogan. There were numerous practical ways for students to engage in specific opportunities. The stories of real people around the world who are still victims of modern-day slavery were sobering. But it wasn’t just talk. Students were led to become personally involved in a mission to help people groups worldwide experience freedom.

The last night, I watched my 22-year-old daughter disappear into a crowd of 44,000 college students to light a candle and declare war against sex trade and human trafficking. She later explained to me that she wanted to figure out how to be trained so she could counsel girls in crisis situations. I guess that’s when it started becoming personal for me. There seems to be a chain reaction when people are willing to respond to what God is prompting them to do. It will be impossible to measure the ripple effect that will result from this year’s Passion conference.

5. It will affect how you think about serving.
I‘ve spent most of my life trying to convince people that they need to serve, not because God or the church needs them, but because they need God. Okay, I know it’s hard to imagine that God can do something without your help. But the reality is Passion did not need me to volunteer in order for God to show up. There were plenty of people who could do what I did a lot better than I could do it. But I desperately needed to engage in something that God was doing so my faith could be stretched a little further.

I happen to believe that worship, discipleship, and service are intricately linked together. You can’t really separate them. Show me someone who doesn’t serve, and I will show you someone who is stunted in their spiritual growth and who is confused about the meaning of worship. The point is you need to give people opportunities to serve each other because that’s how God tends to shape our faith. That’s why I will always be grateful for a volunteer leader named Chuck who invited me to be on his team of 12, and for the other 2,000+ volunteers who were visible reminders every day that we all desperately need God.

So volunteer for Passion if you ever get the chance. It will change the way you perceive college students, expand your idea of worship, renew your hope as a parent, move you to do something big and give you a new perspective on serving others.

We’re getting ready to continue the Orange Tour in 2011- with not one, but two days outside Dallas, TX. To get us excited here are a couple of quotable answers from people that attended in 2010.

What is the ONE THING you want people to walk away with today?

“One exciting thing that was related to me today involved a pastor who has been encouraging Senior Adults to connect one-on-one with teenagers in their church. Asking these Senior adults to tell their story of an exciting moment in their faith to connect inner generationally. What it is doing in their church is kind of magical as they are both discovering on at both ends of the spectrum how they need each other.” – Reggie Joiner

“I want to see Children’s Ministry Partner with Families from the very beginning. Knowing that we need to close the back door on the 80% of kids that are walking away from their faith. I want Sunday to be the best hour of every kids week and I want to see us partner with parents and give them every tool we can.” – Sue Miller

“Even though I work with Children’s Ministry the ONE THING I am going to do is to go back to our pastoral staff and share the need to reach the 18 – 24 year-olds. I came to Orange because I am always looking for new and exciting thing to make Sunday morning the best hour of every child’s week!” – Jamie Curley

“Until today I never understood the difference between a Small Group Leader and a Sunday School Teacher. Today it was described to me the relational side of the Small Group Leader vs. the Teacher who is simply giving out information.” – Roger Stephens

Why did you come to the Orange Tour?

“I came to Orange because I am new to Children’s Ministry and desire to learn as much as I can and network with other CM directors.” – Bev

“I came to Orange to promote a better Children’s Ministry and hopefully for me to get better as a teacher.” – Mark

“I am here because I love Orange and I believe in families working together with us. I want to learn more about how to teach families to teach their kids about Christ.” – Brent Peak

At the Orange Tour in Phoenix this week, Reggie talked about an important issue and Keith Tsuing of CMBuzz took great notes! And here’s the recap video so you can see some of what took place first-hand. Next stop: November 10th in Atlantla, GA!

According to an America’s Research Group
95% of 20 to 29-year-old evangelicals attended church regularly during their elementary and middle school years.

Only 55% went to church during high school.

And by college, only 11% were still attending church.

The most recent research from Lifeway shows that “among young adults ages 23-30 who stayed in church during ages 18-22, only 6 percent do not currently attend church.”

We need to make college age 18-22 young adults a priority.

The church is programmed to draw a finish line at 12th grade.
“a list of those who graduated.”

There are specific indicators when late adolescence transitions to adulthood, and not one expert says that it happens at high school graduation.

You transition to adulthood when you develop a healthy sense of …
…identity
…autonomy
…belonging

What if we move the finish line from high school graduation to college graduation?

As a team we need to protect our investment!

Myths about “college ministries”:

That’s what campus ministries should do.
There is a need for intergenerational relationships.

This is not a college town or community.
An estimated 25% of 18-24 year-olds attend a four year college full time.

We’ve tried doing it before and it doesn’t work.
Maybe you did a program, when they need leaders.

We don’t know how to appeal to college students.
It’s less about your ability to appeal, and more about your authenticity.

There is not enough budget.
Yes there is. It doesn’t take money to build relationships.

We can’t hire another staff position.
This is not really something you can hire.

This is not a long-term investment. They will leave as soon as they graduate.
This is bigger than your church.

These are the years they should solidify their faith on their own.
Owning faith and doing faith alone are two different issues.

“We’re putting together a puzzle and we want to figure it out without someone telling us how to do it.”

Kristen’s conclusions:
We are disconnecting from teenagers at graduation, when the stakes are the highest.
We are not tapping into our relational influences when the felt need is the greatest.

Ask the graduating Seniors: “Who was the most influential person in your life here at church?”

What is your church doing to invest in the lives of those who are college-age?

-how to visit a church
-enlisting those who influence

What are YOU doing to invest in the life of someone who is college-age?

Phoenix Highlight from Orange on Vimeo.

Watching dozens of children playing in fountains in downtown Portland a few weeks ago re-confirmed in my mind that they are naturally curious and adventurous. I believe they are eager to learn, discover, and experience something new. But how does that relate to discoveries about God? On the flight home, I listened to a recent CNN report regarding a “religious” exam given to Americans that indicates Agnostics and Atheists know more about religion than Christians. Everyone seemed surprised when Agnostics and Atheists ranked the highest on religious knowledge, followed by Jews, then Mormons, then Evangelical Christians. It is an interesting finding in a culture that is becoming increasingly diversified in their religious beliefs.

Christian leaders are scrambling to suggest reasons why Christians scored lower. Of course there are a number of issues that could be debated, including what kind of questions were asked. Here were a few of the questions posted in a pop quiz on CNN.

*What was Mother Theresa’s religion?

*What is Ramadan?

Regardless of the kind of questions asked, there is a continued perception that Christians are not keeping up intellectually with the rest of the non-religious and religious population when it comes to what they know about God, the Bible and other religions. As leaders and parents, this seems to be a challenge related to what and how we teach our children about God. The conclusion CNN seems to make is that Christians may know God, but they don’t know a lot about God.

Although I do believe knowing about God is not the same thing as having a relationship with God, it is critical that we understand both are important. One leader when interviewed on CNN suggested that, “knowledge without experience is meaningless and experience without knowledge is confusing.” I agree. It makes sense for Christian leaders and parents to become more intentional about making sure their families learn about God. It just seems like there could better ways to appeal to the curiosity that exists in all of us about the God who supposedly created our universe. So I hope you’re not offended when I suggest that maybe we take our cue from Agnostics, and become learners about our own faith.

If someone asked you what your plan is to teach your kids about God, could you explain it? I’m grateful to be surrounded by a team of writers and researchers who wrestle with the question every day. What are some things you do to tap into children’s natural inclination to discover more about God and His character?

(Do you like to hear about the latest research, but feel short on time? Check back Thursday of this week for some more ministry-impacting stats on the OrangeLeaders blog- this will be a new monthly feature. And in our free month of YouLead, you can read 2 different book reviews and an outside-the-church case study focused on prioritizing families in less time than it takes to watch your favorite TV show!)

I passed by these cows this week. I was taking a couple of days off while in California to speak to leaders. The herd sits off the famous Hwy 1 that runs along the West Coast overlooking cliffs on the majestic Pacific. They have a perspective of life that most cows just never get. The grass they are eating is worth millions to the right developer. But it’s their grass. If they would just stop what they are doing and look at the bigger ocean, they would find out the grass is greener than they ever imagined. I know they are just cows, but they get to see everyday what people fly from all of the world to catch a glimpse of for a just a few moments. I suspect that their routine has affected their view more than they realize. They have seen it so much, and repeat the same patterns so frequently, the beauty seems to go unnoticed by them.

Okay, I’m not really talking about cows, but I am talking about my problem. I think I’m identifying with the parent who is scheduled, hectic, and trying to keep up with their daily routine. Instead of working on how to become more efficient, maybe just stop and take a look at the view. See how green the grass really is and soak up some of the scenery. I fight work-a-holism like a lot of people, but the point is unless you get as determined to take a break as you are to complete your tasks, you are going to start missing some important scenery.

This is part of a post from our sister blog, Orange Parents. The next paragraph talks about prioritizing time away from our kids to refuel– that it will make us better parents. Read the rest here. Also check out the brand new Church Finder feature there. Parents (or leaders like you) who relate to our values and philosophy can search for a nearby church that embraces at least one part of our strategy. Is your church listed? Check it out and plan a field trip to see an Orange ministry in your area.

How often do you get out to learn from and partner with other churches trying to reach the next generation? You need to get serious about taking a break, having fun, taking some time off, and seeing other ministries– not simply because you deserve it, but because your MINISTRY needs you to appreciate how green your own grass really is.

Changing form does not mean changing function, but the shape of the church at any time should be what God needs at that moment in history to accomplish His mission. Jesus came to challenge the system of His day, not to suggest there should not be any kind of system, but to emphasize that every system needs overhauling from time to time for the sake of a bigger mission.

We have to be willing to step back and realize why this is so important in today’s church. We need to look at our churches and programs and see them as wineskins. We need to make sure everyone knows the difference between what is TEMPORARY and what is TIMELESS. What are we going to do to make sure that we continue to demonstrate what is transcendent to the world? If our wineskins are old and not able to contain new wine, then we need to change the wineskins.

I sometimes hear people say, “The churches that are changing and innovative are abandoning what is timeless and sacred.” Maybe the churches that aren’t changing and innovative are the ones abandoning what is timeless and sacred. Over time, your responsibility is to make sure you are changing the wineskins and doing whatever you have to do to spotlight what is TRUE.

If you don’t upgrade along the way, a timeless core principle might be lost. An entire generation may not hear or understand TRUTH because you weren’t willing to pay the cost to make changes. (excerpt from p. 17-18 of The Orange Leader Handbook)

What needs upgrading in your church system or ministry?

Live Simulcast Event Featuring Francis Chan–
Hosted by Reggie Joiner
BASIC. FEAR GOD
Tuesday June 29- 6pm Central

What is church?
Who is it for?
Is it broken?
Can it be better?

Trends come and go in our culture and the church seems to follow.

Francis Chan asks these questions about the church. Francis puts it this way:

“If I only had this as my guide… if all I had was the Bible… and I was to read this book and then start a ‘church’ what would it look like? Would it look like the thing that we’ve built here and all refer to as church? Or would it look radically different?”

BASIC is a seven part series of short films – from Flannel, the award winning creators of the NOOMA film series – that challenge us to reclaim the church as Scripture describes it to be. This series will speak to those who have questions about the church and to those who may have lost interest in the church.

What is church?
You are church.
I am church.
We are church.

Join us for this Live Simulcast Event
Tuesday June 29- 6pm Central
http://live.basicseries.com/

There is a lot of buzz about the latest book by Reggie Joiner with Abbie Smith and Chuck Bomar, who wrote: The Slow Fade: Why You Matter in the Story of Twentysomethings. You can buy them online at the reThink store or at the Orange Conference in less than 2 weeks! Available from David C. Cook. All 3 of the authors are leading breakouts. Look for them here.

Q: In your book, The Slow Fade, you relay that statistics show somewhere between 65 and 80% of people who grow up in church will drop out of church when they become college-aged. How long has this been going on?
A: The trend of eighteen- to twenty-five-year-olds disengaging from church and faith has been a growing problem for more than twenty years. While those who are college-aged are increasingly fading out of the picture, mainstream denominations and independent churches are slowly graying and declining in attendance. The sad news is that churches’ strategies to reach these twentysomethings have not significantly adjusted to respond to this issue. When you ask the average church what their plan is for college-aged people, you usually get confused looks. Frankly, twentysomethings are perceived by most leaders in churches as a transient demographic, people who don’t tithe and who need to solidify their faith on their own.

Q: What is happening in the lives of these young people as they begin the “slow fade?”
A: The one thing they have in common is they all are becoming disconnected from their communities of faith. At a time in their lives when their faith should be accelerating, it has begun to dim. At a stage when they’re developing a new network of friends, there is a relational gap. At the moment they are beginning to wrestle with what they thought was certain, they are missing voices they know they can trust. They are fading off the radar of those who were their Christian leaders during the very season when they are trying to solidify what they really believe. It is not intentional on anyone’s part. No one is deliberately orchestrating the fade. It is just out of sight, out of mind. And some of the most influential and promising leaders of faith for the next generation are being ignored and gradually fading from view.

Q: So what is the answer? Is it to simply to create more effective college ministry programs? Or a new breed of college ministries in churches across the country?
A: Not really. The issue is not to reinvent college ministry in the local church, or this book would have simply been written to church staffs or student pastors. Although there are some principles here that translate for the local church, our desire in writing this is to appeal to a different audience. If you are an adult who is interested in influencing the slow fade, we hope this book will mobilize you to build a relationship with someone who is college-aged. The real question is, who has the greatest potential to influence the faith of those who are in their late teens and twenties? Yes, we think it is the church, but more specifically Christian adults who are in the church who have a passion to invest in this age group.
The strategy is simple: Recruit a new breed of mentors to invest time in those who are college-aged.

Q: You write about the value of belonging. What is the importance of helping college-aged people feel connected, feel that they belong?
A: Honestly, most college-aged people don’t know where they belong—especially in the church. If I don’t know why I belong to something, or how I bring unity to some degree, there’s little reason to stick around. To know that we belong—ultimately to God—is arguably the end we were made for and the beginning of being made whole. Though acceptance is often an external (or felt) craving, belonging is the layer that lies beneath. Acceptance is fleeting and arbitrary, whereas belonging is grounded in something more permanent. Belonging stems from the knowledge that I am intrinsically connected to a place, or people, beyond myself. I can dress stylishly, speak eloquently, or excel at something enough to find acceptance. But my acceptance will always be based on something about me—and thus up for grabs when that something changes or falls short. What I need is to be loved based on simply being me.

Q: You make this concept of mentoring sound extremely important, but I’m sure some readers will feel intrigued by the idea but not qualified.
A: Most people we’ve talked to about investing their lives in college-aged adults don’t feel comfortable with the idea. When pressed for a reason, they generally feel the task of mentoring someone is too daunting, that they are underequipped for such an overwhelming responsibility. We believe that is because Christians haven’t defined the role of a mentor very well, or possibly because we never defined it, and someone drew his or her own unrealistic conclusions.

As mentors, we have to be careful that we don’t develop a messiah complex. We can’t start with the self-imposed duty to carry people to a point of completion, a point where we know they will be invincible because they were under our care. If we are honest, that isn’t true of us, so why would it be true of them? We know that we ourselves need the grace of God to become who we need to be, and the same is true of every college-aged person. Ultimately, they need God, not you. And fortunately, God is the one who bears the responsibility to carry someone to completion, not us. So let’s breathe a sigh of relief.

Reggie and Carey have teamed up to write a book on Parenting– orange style. They are also leading a breakout on the same topic. Click here to read a description of this time. Parenting Beyond Your Capacity will be for sale at the Orange Conference. Why not get it signed by these 2 dads and pastors? And here is a sneak peek from the introduction to give you a sampling of what’s inside:

When Carey and I first started talking about writing a book on parenting, it wasn’t because we believed we were parenting experts. We are simply dads who constantly try to remind each other about the important stuff related to our families. We both openly admit that we are
• somewhat dysfunctional,
• a little insecure,
• more stressed than we should be.
Oh, and there is one other fact that we will occasionally hide from strangers we meet. We are both pastors. That means we have spent most of our adult lives working in churches to help people grow in their relationships with God.

We don’t really consider ourselves to be experts on God or relationships. But we are both committed to a lifelong pursuit of figuring out how to love God and our families better, and to help other people do the same.

The ages of our children add up to nearly 120 years. That means we have collectively parented for over 43,500 days. So we have had a lot of time to experiment on our children. We have made a host of mistakes, but we have also had quite a few accidental discoveries that led to powerful and positive memories. Now that all of our children have turned out practically perfect, we are both comfortable writing a book about our parenting skills. (Not really … just checking to see if you were actually reading.) Let us rephrase: Now that we have realized there is something more important than getting your kids to “turn out right,” we are compelled to write a book about what we are learning.

Today’s video of Reggie Joiner starts with him bantering and bragging about a reverse “punking” during Catalyst with Brad Lomenick. For the first time at Catalyst West, (the week before Orange Conference on April 28th-30th), Reggie will be one of the main communicators, sharing his passion for churches to partner with families and their communities from a different stage.

In these short six minutes, Reggie focuses on the strategy- how all the pieces of Orange- help transition kids (and their parents) through different ages and stages in the church. He talks about the stewardship of a life- what an amazing phrase. Another thing Reggie got excited about was the progression of Orange Leaders over the last year and how leaders are beginning to share and network in this space. Besides partnering with churches and families, Orange has also started to develop academic partners, like Baylor University, so we can continue to learn from others who are researching, as well as encourage ministers these institutions impact to begin with a different mindset, rather than reThink things later. At the end, Reggie admits that it’s much easier to connect with him through Facebook than email. Ask to be his friend- he answers all of his Facebook messages personally- so that he can give his daughter a hard time about having more friends (even though she was the one several years ago that helped set up the account).