Why 2020 Might Be Good News for the Church

Over the past week, Barna has presented church leaders with four essential conversations about next gen ministry, including why Millennials aren’t watching digital services, what will happen to young people’s faith during the pandemic, how pastors may be aiming at the wrong target in next gen ministry and why it’s important to have conversations about mental health in church.

Today, in the final installment of the series Five Essential Conversations About Ministry to the Next Generation, David Kinnaman and Mark Matlock wrap up their discussion with a hopeful note: looking at the positive outcomes and opportunities presented to the Church, even in the chaos of of 2020.

Past Barna research support Kinnaman and Matlock’s premise that “screens disciple“—for instance, the typical 15- to 23-year-old spends an estimated 2,767 hours using screen media each year. And while many pastors were hesitant to take their ministry online before the pandemic, the response to COVID-19 has forced everyone into the digital space where younger generations were already spending a lot of their time. Kinnaman and Matlock agree that this disruption is also an opportunity to innovate, to meet Millennials and Gen Z where they are and to invite them into reimagining what the Church could be in this new era.

Interested in learning more about Five Essential Conversations About Ministry to the Next Generation? Get the extended videos in a Barna Access Plus subscription, which gives you unlimited access to Barna Next Gen content, including Barna courses, labs and emerging data on younger generations to fuel your next gen ministry strategy. An Access Plus membership also includes access to all our research reports and six additional curated content channels for just $19 a month.

Or, get the Making Resilient Disciples course, now just $99 (or free with a Barna Access Plus subscription), and receive the extended video conversations as an added bonus—this week only.

Five Essential Conversations About Ministry to the Next Generation:
Part 1: Why Millennials Aren’t Watching Your Streamed Worship Services
Part 2: Will the 2020 Pandemic Accelerate Loss of Faith Among the Next Generation?
Part 3: Why You Might Be Aiming at the Wrong Target in Your Ministry to the Next Generation
Part 4: How Mental Health Is the New Domain of Ministry to the Next Generation
Part 5: Why 2020 Might Be Good News for the Church

Photo by Clay Banks from Unsplash

© Barna Group, 2020.