Grown-ish and Gone: Why Are Generations Missing from the Church?

Send us Fan MailSomething is happening in our churches, and we can feel it in the seats, the silence, and the missing voices. We keep hearing “millennials aren’t coming,” but that phrase blurs the truth: many congregations are losing multiple generations at once, from millennials to Gen Z to school-age kids. We sat down with Pastor Nicholas  Bostic to get specific about who is missing, why it matters, and why the real audience for this conversation is often the adults who shape the church experience.We talk about what younger people actually encounter when they do show up. If someone is facing overdue rent, a cutoff notice, or the stress of raising kids with limited support, how do they hear teaching on giving, discipleship, and commitment? We explore how church communication can become “over their heads,” how tradition can unintentionally shut people out, and why clarity and compassion are not compromises, they are leadership. We also name what the church loses when young people are absent: technology skills, social media reach, fresh urgency, and the kind of honesty that helps surface real needs like depression and low self-esteem before they turn into crises.Then we broaden the lens to leadership development. If a 38-year-old can carry major responsibility at work but still feels too young to be trusted in church leadership, what message are we sending about belonging and the future church? We close by inviting you to the Future Forum, a hands-on working session where we bring real data, interrogate assumptions, and leave with a plan to strengthen youth ministry, intergenerational ministry, and long-term church growth. Subscribe, share this with a church leader, and leave a review so more people can join the conversation.Support the show