Webinar highlights how churches can disciple the next generation
By Myriah Snyder/Lifeway
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. — A child, around 12 years old, and her parents walked through the front doors of Bryan Rose’s church one Sunday a few weeks ago. Rose, who works for Auxano, Lifeway’s church consulting arm, and his wife were serving as greeters and welcomed the family. As they spoke with them at the first-time guest table, Rose asked the daughter, “Do you want to go to our kid’s program, or do you want to stay with your parents? It’s really fun over there [in the kid’s ministry area]!”
The girl replied, “Oh, I know it’s fun! I was just here for VBS! But, since it’s my mom and dad’s first time, I want to stay with them and make sure they’re OK.”
This family served as an example of the ongoing importance of Vacation Bible School (VBS), even in this post-pandemic world. An entire family was visiting Rose’s church for the first time because their child was impacted by VBS. Not only was the girl impacted, but she also already felt some ownership — this was “her” church — and she needed to stay with her parents to make them comfortable.
Clarity first
VBS was just one of the topics discussed in Auxano’s June 2024 Clarity First Live Conversation webinar, “GENspirational Leadership.” Hosted by Rose, Auxano’s manager of engagement strategy, with Jana Magruder, Lifeway Kids’ director of strategic initiatives, the webinar centered around the idea of generational disciple-making within the church.
Auxano regularly hosts similar webinars geared for pastors and senior leaders. They’re typically on the last Thursday of each month, but in July and December, Auxano uses a “best of” approach, showcasing two or three of the previous months’ webinars. July’s can be found here.
These webinars have been ongoing since the pandemic shutdown in March 2020, Rose shared.
The next webinar will be part of a two-part series on Clarity First Staffing. The first part will be August 22, at 10 a.m. CT/11 ET on the topic, “3 Ways Vision Clarity Shapes Church Staff Structure.” The September webinar will be on September 26, at 10 a.m. CT/ 11 ET on the topic, “5 Keys to Leading Church Staff Meetings With Vision Clarity.” Both will be hosted by Bryan Rose, featuring Jim Randall.
Discipleship tools for the next generation
In the most recent webinar, Rose and Magruder explained why VBS is such a vital discipleship tool. Citing Lifeway Research, Magruder shared that 69% of American parents will encourage their child to participate in a VBS event at a church they don’t attend if invited by one of their friends.
“Americans know what VBS is, even if they never went to VBS,” Magruder said. “There’s a trust there that we realized American parents will actually encourage their kids to go to VBS even if they don’t go to that church or any church. It is a tool in the tool belt of reaching kids and families in our communities.”
She said the gospel impact of just one week of VBS totals seven months of typical kids’ ministry discipleship.
VBS is just part of the critical crossroads facing children’s ministry, according to Rose. Magruder agreed, adding there is “an urgent opportunity for the church to provide community and real-life experiences for kids to come to and for families to be around one another.”
A Lifeway Research study found some of the main reasons churchgoing teenagers stopped attending as adults were relational — church members seeming judgmental, never having a sense of belonging in youth ministry and generally feeling disconnected from the church.
Magruder said Lifeway Kids is focusing on “FLIPing the script — disrupting tradition for the sake of the next generation,” as detailed in the book, “Flip the Script.”
Kids and students need relationships in church with:
F-friends
L-leaders
I-influencers
P-pastors
Magruder explained how Lifeway’s new curriculum, Hyfi, incorporates the latest research and equips leaders with intentional strategies to reach the next generation.
Discipling every generation
Magruder and Rose shared five strategic ways to make disciples across every generation.
ERLC announces 2024-2025 research fellows
By ERLC Staff
NASHVILLE(BP) — The Southern Baptist Convention’s (SBC) Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) announced its 2024-2025 Research Fellows at its annual gathering this week in Nashville. The Research Institute is an initiative of the research team at ERLC designed to provide a collaborative space for Southern Baptist researchers and academics to serve the commission and Southern Baptist churches on critical theological, ethical and policy matters in their respective areas of expertise.
Fellows gathered this year to hear lectures and papers as they discussed topics related to this year’s theme, “40 Years of Baptists Engaging With the Naked Public Square,” reflecting on the 40th anniversary of Richard John Neuhaus’ seminal work, “The Naked Public Square: Religion and Democracy in America.”
The ERLC Research Institute is made up of four senior fellows and a large cohort of other fellows from across Southern Baptist life including churches, academia, public policy, law and medicine. The new class of fellows will assist the ERLC in its mission by producing a variety of materials to equip Southern Baptists and churches to engage ethical and cultural issues of the day in the areas of life and bioethics, religious liberty, marriage and family and human dignity.
“It was a tremendous privilege to host this gathering of committed Southern Baptists, whom the Lord has greatly gifted in their various areas of expertise,” said Miles Mullin, director of research and vice president and chief of staff for the ERLC. “Each has a strong desire to use those gifts to serve the churches and a firm commitment to the Baptist Faith and Message. This gathering, then, represents the sort of confessional cooperation that we aim to facilitate as we work to advance the mission of ERLC under the leadership of ERLC President Brent Leatherwood.”
The ERLC Research Institute has a long history within the organization and was established by the organization in 1999 under former president Richard D. Land, who currently serves in the institute as an emeritus fellow.
Jason Thacker, ERLC senior fellow and director of the ERLC Research Institute, commented on the role of the Institute and its priorities for the upcoming year.
“Our fellows represent some of the very best from Southern Baptist life and are leaders on critical theological, ethical and philosophical issues that the church is facing in our rapidly changing culture. I am proud to serve alongside these men and women as we seek to bring both clarity and conviction to the pressing questions that those in our churches and society are asking. Each of these fellows are committed to boldly engage our neighbors with the truth of God’s Word and the hope of the gospel message.”
The 2024-2025 ERLC research fellows include:
- Nathan Finn, professor of faith and culture, North Greenville University
- Gregg Allison, professor of Christian theology, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
- RaShan Frost, lead pastor of The Bridge Church, North Charleston, S.C.
- Bart Barber, pastor, First Baptist Church in Farmersville, Texas and immediate past president of the Southern Baptist Convention
- Thomas Kidd, research professor of church history, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
- Adam Groza, president, Gateway Seminary
- Matthew Martens, trial lawyer, author
- Katie McCoy, director of women’s ministry for the Baptist General Convention of Texas
- Brooke Medina, vice president of communications, John Locke Foundation
- Paul D. Miller, professor, Georgetown University
- Andrew T. Walker, associate professor of Christian ethics and public theology, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
- Ryan Tucker, senior counsel, Alliance Defending Freedom
Learn more about ERLC Research online to access free resources.
