“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession,
that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”

1 Peter 2:9

I was fresh out of seminary—ordained, idealistic, and ready to change the world. My first assignment was to lead the Evangelism and Young Adults Committee. I gave what I thought was a powerful presentation on missional theology: how personal invitation could shape lives, how John 1:35 shows faith multiplying through relationships, how 1 Thessalonians calls us to “live for one another.”

Then I handed out index cards. “Write down two friends you’ll invite to worship,” I said.

The woman beside me patted my knee and smiled: “Oh, Wes, that’s why we hired a pastor of evangelism. We just want to play music together as a band.”

That moment exposed something deeper than one committee’s apathy—it revealed how easily the church can delegate discipleship.

Ed Stetzer has often noted that churches with Evangelism or Mission Committees rarely excel at evangelism or mission. Not because committees are bad, but because they signal to the congregation that someone else is responsible. As Stetzer puts it, “When evangelism becomes a department, it stops being a culture.”

Outsourcing ministry may seem efficient, but it subtly undermines the New Testament vision where every believer is sent. We hire specialists, and the rest of the body relaxes.

Nowhere is this clearer than in the rise of modern youth ministry. Youth ministry as we know it is a 20th-century invention.

• 1940s: parachurch pioneers like Youth for Christ and Young Life reach high-schoolers.
• 1950s–1970s: churches feel threatened by their success so start to adopt similar models, forming age-segmented programs.
• 1980s–2000s: “youth group” becomes a staple and youth pastors become a job title—pizza, laser tag, worship nights, all supervised by an energetic twenty-something with a guitar.

It worked—at least for a while. Kids showed up, crowds grew, budgets expanded, and churches poured millions into teen programs. But then came college. Freed from parental pressure, many stopped attending altogether.

The Fuller Youth Institute’s Sticky Faith Project found nearly 50% of youth-group seniors drift away from faith after graduation. Millennials are the most estranged generation from their parents. They are the driving force behind the increase in religious nones. Though the church spent the most ever in pursuing these teenagers…the fruit is not there.

The most common reason: faith never became relationally rooted. It was something to attend not something cultivated in their life with their family.

The Sticky Faith research led by Kara Powell and Chap Clark found three consistent patterns among students whose faith endured through college:

1. Intergenerational Worship – Teens who regularly worshiped with adults—not just peers—showed stronger long-term faith.
2. Five Adult Friends – A simple ratio: five caring Christian adults intentionally investing in every one student.
3. Space for Doubt and Lament – Churches that allowed honest questions and grief produced more resilient faith than those that only emphasized fun.

Their conclusion? The most lasting discipleship happens through relational webs, not more programs for already busy teenagers. A retired pastor once told me, “If I were hiring again, I wouldn’t look for a youth director who can entertain kids. I’d look for one who can train parents to disciple their kids and recruit church members to invest into the lives of our students.”

What the church needs is a group of believers who see themselves as missionaries in their own homes, schools, and neighborhoods.