What Ever Happened to Discipleship?
Michael Craven
Author, Speaker, Founding Director of the Center for Christ & Culture

There is a growing body of research demonstrating that there is a significant disconnect between professing faith in Jesus Christ and actually following Jesus. A recent study by the National Study of Youth & Religion entitled, Portraits of Protestant Teens reveals a great deal about our current approach to youth ministry and its shortcomings.

The study revealed that 59 percent of Protestant teens (13-17) report regular church attendance, meaning they attend church at least 1-3 times per month while 41 percent of all teens reported regular church attendance. The study participants identified affiliation with nine Protestant denominations with Southern Baptist (SBC) being the largest group represented in which 65 percent of SBC teens reported regular attendance. Forty-seven percent of Protestant teens reported active involvement in their church's youth group compared to 38 percent of all teens. The majority of Protestant teens also reported that they attend Sunday School "a few times a month," participate in youth retreats, rallies, and conferences. In all, 90 percent of Protestant teens say they believe in God compared to 85 percent of all teens; only 12 percent of all teens say they are "unsure about the existence of God." the rest