Communicating With Young Adults
1. Be consistent.
Basic principle. Not perfect, but consistent. Consistent with my message and my lifestyle. Consistency may require honesty about ignorance. When teaching on I Tim. 2 I have to admit to myself and my audience that despite all the exegesis and opinion in the world, I'm just not exactly sure what the heck Paul meant regarding women. I have an idea, but...
2. Be simple.
This is where the rubber meets the road. It's the biggest lesson I’ve learned in young adult ministry. The average person doesn't care about complex realities and deep issues. Most of them are just trying to get through their week. This doesn't mean they shouldn't be pushed towards them; it needs to be done with care. Some of us have spent so much time in the academic world or even in the preparation of our material that we forget that the vast majority of the US population is not college educated (I'm cheating, I know, I'm including children). Case in point: String theory lit me up this year. I've read it, watched the PBS special and loved it. Couple of months ago I referenced it in a message. I felt the clammy feel every speaker has when they know no one knows what you’re talking about. I asked if anyone had heard of string theory. Big crowd, no one responded...I hinted at what it meant...they were lost. Will they know in the future, probably...but....it’s not as relevant as I thought. String theory has no bearing to Kris, for example, who's step dad is abusing her, or Sharon who isn't sure about Christ, or Jason who just found out his daughter just might not be his daughter after all...all who were in attendance that night.
Keep it simple. Too much of what I've heard in the emerging church communication is simply confusing.
3. Be inviting.
When I communicate, I need to invite people in to experience, feel, see, taste, and smell what is happening. Narrative and metaphor preaching is a great way to get people into the story. I think a good communicator needs to get people into the story anyway they can. Narrative is quickly become the default way to do this. I don't think it’s the only way.
4. Be practical.
Why do you think 7 Habits, 21 Laws, 3 Ways, etc, etc, etc, still sell so much. People want, I believe, handles to hang their ideas on. Reference points on how to do life. A guide doesn’t tell you what to experience, but how to prepare for the experience. Real life is hard for most people. Real life presents real questions for most people and real questions need answers, not just a story that leaves them with more questions. Yes, more questions, lead to more answers, but at some point doesn't someone need to say...okay here's what you do and why you do it?
5. Be truth based.
For me, this is the Bible. But more than this, I need to be opinion-less. I know I'm probably the closest to a fundamentalist in many social groups but I'm sticking to this one. Authoritative preaching/teaching needs to come from a source. I'm not just providing an option for people to choose. My role is to train them for service in the body of Christ. James, Paul, Peter and even Jesus spoke specific commands on life and living and what it means to live as a body. When I'm speaking these are not just my ideas and thoughts, they need to be the truth.
6. Be compassionate.
They will know we are Christians by our love. It is the primary communication method. If you can’t preach on sin or a fallen culture from a place of compassion or sorrow, maybe something is wrong. If the sinfulness of your young adults causes more anger than tears, check your heart. Be patient.
7. Be personal.
Not just about me, but about everything. I've abandoned the "we as Christians" line for "I." Why? Because, it’s more personal. I got this from a great mentor/coach and a couple of leading business communicators. "We" might not do anything, but "I" have to do something.
8. Be short.
From this list you see I'm struggling with this one. In sincerity, my tradition values the hour-long sermon....I'm trying my best to shave my time down. It goes with the simple point above. I'm 30+ minutes in most settings and that's way too long...anyway I think this is important in today's sitcom culture.
9. Be interesting.
I hate boring preaching. How can we take the greatest story every told and make it boring? How can we take the greatest truth of all time and make it so no one wants to hear it. This is where metaphor and story helps us. This is where I think the greatest strength of the narrative/image rich preaching comes into play. If people make Jesus boring...if they make the life of Christ boring...if they make life with Christ boring...I think they need to stop. I didn't say funny, I didn't say comical, I did say interesting.
10. Be repetitive
I know this sounds like the opposite of creativity, but it just might be the epitome. You need to consistently communicate the same truths and principles in as many different ways as possible. Don’t re-use sermons, but recycle and re-energize the truths of the bible. Don’t be afraid to preach on the same topics and the same areas until you feel you’ve gotten through to people.