Ever been to a church service where the style and flavor of the service was not connecting or relating at all with the people sitting in the audience? Have you ever felt that the people leading a service were more concerned or equipped to serve a denominational style than the audience that God placed in front of them to connect with at that given moment?

Well, unfortunately I and about 4,000 other college students and young adults experienced one of these services just a couple of weeks ago. All I could think was…How sad can this be? 4,000 college students unengaged with the service and bored out of their minds. It’s sad when very smart and gifted leaders who have been called by God to preach the Gospel, still choose to minister through a denominational filter instead of an understanding of the audience he or she is about to minister too.

Let me say this. Church and ministry are changing. Why? Because the millennial generation is getting older and more influential in today’s culture. And, because of this fact it will and in some ways already is beginning to affect how church will be done in years down the road. So, buckle up and get ready, it will be an interesting ride.

When you begin to plan a church service and your audience are millennials, please, put aside the language or the style of your denomination. And, try to connect in relevant ways with the language of this generation. 1990’s worship music, a stage that looks like it just came out of a Christian TV set and a sermon that would make you fall asleep is not the language of the millennial generation.

Most of the time, this generation don’t want to hear another sermon, they just want to be a part of a conversation surrounding Biblical truths about what it means to be a dedicated Christ follower.

The truth is this generation needs mentors more than ever. But what is sad is a lot of older leaders in the faith are not allowing themselves to change how they connect with this generation. Some are more interested in staying to their denominational style of ministry than embracing what God wants to do through the next generation.

If you want to impact and connect with millennials, then know their language. Understanding the millennial language will help you gauge the effectiveness and spiritual impact on the environment, worship/music, teaching and relational community of your church service.

Your Thoughts?