Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Encouraging Intergenerational Faith Transmission And Spiritual Growth In Home And Church: Reconnecting Youth And Older Generations Through Family Systems Concepts At The Adelaide Seventh-Day Adventist Church, The Bahamas, Larry L. Green

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

This Doctor of Ministry (DMin) project addresses a pressing issue within the church context of the Adelaide Seventh-day Adventist Church in the Bahamas. We first observed sporadic attendance of our youth (Gen Z and Millennials) and their lack of identity with the church. Wider observation revealed weak relationships among the various generations within our church as well as in our homes. This absence of relatedness across generations potentially hinders some from embracing the community’s faith and growing spiritually.

Method

This study aimed to understand and address the nuanced factors contributing to this generational disconnection through the intervention of an …

Formation Of A Millennial Cafe Ministry In Ogden, Utah: An Economically Viable Model, Ryan Kent Hablitzel

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Connecting and retaining millennials within established church structure has proven difficult in my context. I have a genuine desire for community and purpose within millennial groups, yet the majority remain removed from traditional church programming and events. A growing disenfranchisement with current church framework has caused many millennials to disengage or seek purpose elsewhere.

Method

Press Together was formed as a new millennial friendly approach to ministry in Ogden, UT. This raw cold-pressed juicery serves the healthiest organic options from its retail location while providing a space for fellowship, ministry and employment. This uses millenial focus groups and financial …

Developing Spiritual Disciplines In Youth And Young Adult Leaders Through Mentoring At The Peachtree City Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Nathaniel E. Elias

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The Peachtree City Seventh-day Adventist Church (PTC) leadership and parents of teenagers expressed concerns regarding the lack of spirituality and church involvement of their youth and young adults. Church appointed youth and young adult leaders had not received consistent spiritual equipping to share with the youth and young adults of the church. Youth ministry primarily focused on recreational fellowship and lacked spiritual focus. The church approached the associate pastor to provide spiritual equipping for youth and young adult leaders.

Method

Six church nominated youth and young adult leaders participated in a 10-month mentorship program that equipped them with spiritual …

A Strategy For Empowering Parents In Family Discipleship At The Philadelphia Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Hubert A. Wilkie

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Although the Bible clearly calls parents to train their children in the faith and pass on faith to the next generation (Deut 6:4-9; Eph 6:4), few parents at the Philadelphia Seventh-day Adventist Church seem to be involved actively in their children's spiritual development. As a result, the way God designed the family to function is being inadvertently abandoned. This apparent lack of faith and values transmission has resulted in a very high attrition rate among our youth, who are usually disengaged by age 15 and leave the church by age 25. This perceived crisis over the dropout rate has …

Educating Young Adults In The Conejo Valley To Choose A Godly Spouse, Simon Liversidge

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Divorce rates and marital satisfaction rates are similar in both Christian and non-Christian young adults. Yet increases in church attendance, religious commitment and spirituality have been shown to make significant differences in divorce and marital satisfaction rates. However, many young adults have no framework to understand how to choose a potential spouse, or what factors or characteristics are most important in making such a choice. Almost all premarital education is aimed at young adults who have already chosen their spouse, but have no education aimed at understanding what matters most in making this choice.

Method

A weekend seminar was …

Ministering To Youth And Young Adults Through A Sports Initiative In The Normandie Avenue Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Michael S. Jenkins Jr.

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The Normandie Avenue Seventh-day Adventist church is centrally located among other nearby Seventh-day Adventist churches in south Los Angeles, California. The presence of youth and young adults in worship services has diminished. Ministry participation among this group at Normandie has also diminished. Adventist and non-Adventist youth and young adults are not being attracted to the church or its ministries. Youth and young adults who do attend worship service and or participate in ministries do not have a strong relationship with the pastor or other spiritual figures. A 2008 study shows the median age of Adventist congregations is 51 while …

Strategy To Retain Second Generation Immigrants At The Bethlehem French Seventh-Day Adventist Church In New Jersey, Emile Duvivier

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Bethlehem French Seventh-day Adventist Church in East Orange, New Jersey, has been facing the challenges of any typical church located in urban environments in this post-millennial world. The church is confronted with member depletion in general, and the young people, in particular. The problem of retention has plagued our congregation in a manner that stagnated our exponential growth. A large percentage of the children who were born and raised in the church is leaving the Seventh-day Adventist faith after college. The Bethlehem French Seventh-day Adventist Church has not been exempted.

Method

To resolve the problem, I have put in …

Oregon Conference Pathfinders' Teen Leadership Development Program As A Model For The North American Division, Tracy Leon Wood

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The Pathfinder Teen Leadership Training (TLT) program was introduced in 1994 in the North American Division. Although the TLT Manual had gone through three revisions, there had never been any staff training or conference-level leader training resources developed. Because the TLT program was an NAD Pathfinder curriculum, it was imperative that the components of the Conference-level Leadership Skills Development Program be consistent throughout the division. The problem was that there were no developed processes or guidelines that conferences could follow to develop their TLT conference-sponsored program from the TLT Manual. The Oregon Conference had developed a TLT academic credit …

Development And Implementation Of An Effective Training On Servant Leadership Among The Youth In The Gekomu Ii Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Fred M. Okemwa

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The Gekomu II Seventh-day Adventist Church has a membership of about 1,500. The youth account for 35% of this membership; however, many of these young people are unwilling to play active leadership roles in the church. The absence of leadership trainings for the youth to develop skills and acquire knowledge to enhance their leadership abilities is one of the causes for their lack of involvement in the leadership roles. As a result, the leadership strengths and talents possessed by these young people are underutilized thus affecting the overall leadership quality of the church.

Method

In response to the above …

Developing A Structure To Strengthen Youth Ministry In Florida Conference, Pedro E. Perez

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem.

Florida Conference did not have a way to connect the Youth Ministries Department to local churches to support the churches’ teen ministry. There was a need for a structure to create a connection between the conference and local churches to strengthen youth ministry in the local church. With over 300 churches in the conference, the youth director could not achieve this alone. Furthermore, there was not even a contact list to know which churches had a youth leader or young people. Developing a structure would be a means of gaining access to local church youth leaders so that the …

A Discipleship Model For Youth At The Paradise Adventist Church, Milton Daniel Marquez

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

For more than a decade the Paradise Adventist Church had been experiencing a common problem facing most churches in North America: approximately 60% of the youth were leaving the church. Rainer and Rainer (2008) argue that one of the factors in two-thirds of young adults between the ages of 18 and 22 leaving our churches after high school is the lack of a simple and effective discipleship process. Pastoral observation concurs that a primary contributing factor to the loss of Adventist youth is that the youth are not being discipled effectively and thus not rooted in Scripture, connected to …

An Action Plan For Youth Involvement Leadership At Francois In Martinique, Louise R. Nocandy

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Youth involvement leadership in Seventh-day Adventist local churches remains an issue of concern. Part of the vision of the Seventh-day Adventist World Church and the local church is to encourage the youth to be faithful disciples of Christ and to teach, train, equip, and involve them in the Seventh-day Adventist local churches. However, the Annual Local Churches Strategic Plan is not intentionally oriented towards youth involvement leadership and the Annual Youth Strategic Plans are generally not based on the vision for the entire church. This gap reveals a lack of partnership between the youth department and most other departments …

A Wholistic Model Of Apologetics For Equipping The Youth, Selim Kesmez

Master's Theses

Problem

While available studies indicate that biblical world view among young adults decreases in years of secular education Adventist education system in Germany is struggling to address the needs of the young adults. The question arises what kind of needs can be identified why they leave faith and church behind and how the Church may counteract this process and provide valuable assistance. The urgency of this question emerges in considering the high rate of de-conversion among Adventist youth.

Method

This study analyzes various studies and statistical reports regarding the condition of the spiritual life of young adults in both the …

A Biblical Strategy To Promote Christian Morality Among Youth In The Seventh-Day Adventist Church In The Zambia Union Conference, Tommy Susiku Namitondo

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

A good number of the youth in the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Zambia are openly involved in immoral behavior. The youth blame peer pressure and modernity for their lack of Christian morality. The issue is whether youth in today's atmosphere can maintain a biblical norm of moral purity.

Method

A systematic study of the Bible was made. Then the writings of Ellen G. White, other Adventist writers, and other Christian authors were reviewed. This data was used to develop seminar materials for teaching Christian morality to young people. Four congregations were selected to pilot a program to demonstrate that …

A Mentoring Program For Equipping Youths As Leaders In The Rivers Conference, Nigeria, Ugochukwu Elems

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Young people feel neglected in the leadership process of Rivers Conference of the Seventh-day Adventists, Nigeria. On the other hand, the adults think that the young people lack the experience and skills needed to occupy positions of leadership. Unfortunately, while the young people are being marginalized in the leadership process, they constitute an overwhelming majority of the membership in Rivers Conference

Method

The mentoring approach adopted for equipping the young people of Rivers Conference as leaders in this project is a modification of Jesus' model of leadership proposed by Kreider (2008, p. 113). The process will be divided into …

Youth Evangelism, "Link2llife," A Strategy To Reach Postmodern Youth In Germany And Switzerland, Stephan Sigg

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

In terms of cross-cultural mission youth are the most crucial group of people to be reached with the Gospel. From a theological, a sociological as well as a psychological point of view adolescence can be seen as the most receptive phase of life regarding the adoption and integration of faith, a coherent value system and a meaningful life narrative. The process of individuation in the adolescent years offers the biggest potential for both conversion and apostasy. Despite a professionalized youth ministry youth evangelism has never been high on the missional agenda of the Christian Church.

Method

The youth ministries …

Developing A Model For Spiritual Guidance And Peer Mentoring For Youth And Young Adults In The New Life Seventh-Day Adventist Fellowship In Berrien Springs, Michigan, Hollis H. Mceachchrane

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Research has pointed out a factor essential to the spiritual guidance of youth and young adults in the Seventh-day Adventist Church: How teenagers think is dependent (Fields & Robbins, 2007) on how they are spoken to and how effective the messages are delivered; however, a majority of youth from New Life SDA Fellowship do not receive adequate mentoring that would pair them up as a support for each other or that would build good interpersonal relationships with their peers. While the Fellowship offers a designated staff for church services, there is no provision for youth to mentor each other …

Toward An Integrated Youth Ministry: A Case Study Of The Application Of Principles From Ephesians Among Teens And Their Families Of The Collegedale Church Of Seventh-Day Adventists, Timothy Allen Cross

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

According to recent research on young adults in the Collegedale Church of Seventh-day Adventists, there has been an approximate 68% attrition rate (Rainer, 2009, pp. 5-6). This research revealed that 84% of the young people growing up in the Collegedale Church drop out and only 38% of those who drop out engage in another church. Consequently, of the young people who grow up in the Collegedale Church, this leaves a net result of 68% who drop out from church entirely. DeVries’ seminal work (2004), combined with Rainer and Rainer’s research (2008), demonstrate the potential of a significant increase in …

Implementation And Evaluation Of The Jesus Loves Jeans Initiative To Evangelize And Retain Youth For The Houston International Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Kendall Turcios

Professional Dissertations DMin

The Topic

The Houston International Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) Church has had significant challenges baptizing and retaining its youth. In the last five years, only a few youth have been baptized and nearly 50% no longer attend church. A primary contributing factor seems to be the lack of training to develop genuine biblical discipleship in the youth and young adults. Eims (1978) describes the process of discipleship as ―[taking a] person from the time of his conversion and helping him become a solid, dedicated, committed, fruitful, mature disciple who could in time repeat that process in the life of another‖ (p. …

The Development Of Leadership Competencies For Children And Youth For Implementation In Pathfinder Club, Hyungsik Ju

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Children and youth members in the Korean Adventist church have been steadily decreasing in numbers. Although there are many causes, the most serious problem is a lack of leadership development training for children and youth. And then, the lack of a leadership program for young people not only fails to promote an evangelistic passion, but also causes a deficit of training for future church leaders. In this sense, various leadership competencies should be applied and developed in order to nurture young people spiritually.

Method

Library research, a theological analysis, a contextual analysis of South Korea and the Korean Adventist …

Bringing Home Our Adventist Prodigals: A Strategic Plan To Reclaim Youth In The Trans-European Division, Paul David Tompkins

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The Seventh-day Adventist church is losing far too many of its young people. This trend is hurting the world-wide church, the local congregation, and individual families. Yet very little is being done about it! The purpose of this study is to address this issue and to specifically formulate a Strategic Plan for reclaiming inactive youth in the Trans-European Division (TED).

Method

The TED territory is extensive, covering over thirty-five countries, therefore, a local pilot project was conducted. This involved identifying young people who the local church listed as inactive, or non-attending, and then contacting them with a questionnaire as …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Summer Day Camp In The Local Church As An Opportunity To Encourage Youth In Their Spiritual Growth, Church Identity, And Service, Michael J. Stevenson

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Large amounts of time and effort are expended by youth directors in providing camp related opportunities for employment. It is widely hoped by these youth directors that the experience of being a camp staff person will increase spirituality among the staff, that it will strengthen their identification with the Seventh-day Adventist church, and that, in the future, these same staff members will desire more opportunities to serve in the mission of the church. The purpose of this project is to qualitatively study whether staff are affected positively or negatively in the ways mentioned above, by being staff members of …

Recruiting And Equipping Postmodern Immigrant Youth Preachers In Emmaus, Christian Fellowship, And Community Tabernacle Seventh-Day Adventist Churches, Anthony L. Usher

Professional Dissertations DMin

After spending over six years at Emmaus SDA church, on January 1, 2004, the author was assigned to Christian Fellowship SDA Church and Community Tabernacle Mission. He observed that the fierce shifting winds of postmodernism have fueled the retardation of youth evangelism. If the trajectory of this dreaded trend goes unchecked, youth preaching in these churches will spiral downward into the obscure corridors of oblivion. A relevant profile, as well as a specific demographic composition of all three congregations, enhanced the development of an empowering argument that potentially could reverse the momentum of this encroaching tide back to God’s side. …

A Twenty-First-Century Approach To Empowering The Youth Of The Brooklyn Temple Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Newton Upanton Cleghorne

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

In several churches in the Northeastern Conference and, in particular, the Brooklyn Temple Seventh-day Adventist Church, the adult membership has dominated the positions of leadership. Most of the potential youth leaders have painfully become spectators rather than players and leaders in the church. The goal of this dissertation, therefore, is to develop and implement a program to empower these youth through training, mentoring, positioning, and liberation.

The Method

Any theology that does not have a biblical foundation is suspect and, therefore, humanistic. A theology of youth ministry was developed within a biblical context. The intent of the study was …

Un Estudio Sobre La Vida Espiritual De Los Jóvenes Adventistas En Tabasco, México, Ervin A. Gonzalez Esteban

Professional Dissertations DMin

The Bible gives great attention to youth. Important Bible characters acted under divine direction, leaving teachings regarding leadership and obedience. The biblical terms most used in reference to young people are na 'ar, a young man possessing strength and vigor, and neos, a person full of youth and inexperience. Paul advised Timothy: “Let no one despise thy youth” (1 Tim 4:12). John saw young people as being strong through the word of God and overcoming the wicked one (1 John 2:14). Research of young people shows that in today’s society, generations follow each other approximately every twenty years. Each one …

Spiritual Awareness And Growth Of Indian Adventist Youth Through Retreats, Maywald Jesudass

Professional Dissertations DMin

Each year, the Seventh-day Adventist Church in India spends large sums of money on youth and Pathfinder camps. These camps provide recreation and interaction among the youth, but often fail to lead the campers to conversion and commitment. The program, the methodology, and lack of trained resource personnel contribute to these poor results yearly. Retreats can provide a better alternative to youth camps. Retreats provide seclusion in which the retreatant becomes aware of self and God. The biblical-retreat models of the Old and the New Testaments form the foundation of the study.

For centuries, the Roman Catholic Church has required …

Developing Bible Lessons To Reach Hindu Youth, Roy Jemison Injety

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The large number of non-Adventist youth who attend Seventh-day Adventist schools have a limited exposure to biblical teachings and, therefore, are unable to make a decision to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior.

Method

Bible study lessons were developed to provide youth with a more complete understanding of the Bible and lead them to take a decision for Christ. The lessons address issues relating to youth needs and topics that are common to the Hindu and Christian faiths. A survey questionnaire provided information about the needs, moral development, and Bible knowledge of the target group. A variety of teaching …

Development And Implementation Of A Youth Prayer Fellowship In Madras, Swamidass Johnson

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Many youth in the Adventist Church in Madras do not participate regularly in church activities. Additionally they suffer from the effects of poverty, unemployment, and family tensions.

Task

The task of this dissertation was to develop a youth prayer fellowship that would address the problems of youth in the Madras Adventist Church.

Method

The biblical concept of prayer groups was studied to establish a basis for the prayer fellowship. In addition, the organization and effects of five Indian prayer fellowships were studied: Friends Missionary Prayer Band, Indian Evangelical Mission Prayer Fellowship, Christian Missionary Society Prayer Band, New Assembly Prayer …

Toward A Theology Of Youth Ministry And Its Praxis In The Local Church, Luis Fernando Ortiz

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

In many Seventh-day Adventist churches in North America patterns of non involvement among the youth were observed. Young people were attending church on Sabbath, but almost none of them were leaders. The objective of this dissertation was to identify biblical principles for the development of a youth ministry in which leaders build responsible servant leaders and encourage young people to grow, learn, and use their gifts in Christian ministry.

Method

The Scriptures were searched for a biblical background for youth work and principles for successful youth involvement. The word “youth” was analyzed in the Old and New Testaments together …