Reasons why the youth desert church at teenage :a study of Kagumo Fullgospel Local Church Assembly

Abstract

This research was done to find out why the youth desert church at teenage. The objective was to find out the role of the foundations laid at Sunday school level, the role of parents and the kind of programs that appeal to the youth. Grounded theory was chosen for the research. Nine teenagers were interviewed, five of who were active and four who were inactive in church programs. Six youth leaders were involved in the focus group discussion. It emerged that poor input by the church leaders in establishing appropriate programs and training teachers for this age group led to them leaving the church. Other factors had to do with the senior youth's attitude towards the teenagers, lack of sufficient parental support and negative influence from peers. The research established that despite the good foundation laid in Sunday school, more needs to be done to maintain the teenagers in church. The parents and the church leaders ought to play a more active role to motivate the youth to remain active in church. The youth need to be fully involved, their talents recognized and used within the church for them to remain active. It was recommended that the youth group be reorganized taking into consideration their age brackets and more interesting and involving activities should be included in the programs.