Professional Dissertations DMin

Date of Award

2020

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Ministry

College

Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary

Program

Doctor of Ministry DMin

First Advisor

Steve Case

Second Advisor

Rogelio Paquini

Third Advisor

Benjamin Maxson

Abstract

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 disciplines to grow their spirituality. The mentorship consisted of eight sessions. Four sessions were group sessions with the six leaders and four sessions were individual sessions. Each participant completed Lifeway’s Spiritual Growth Assessment and an exit review to measure spiritual growth. The entire church was invited to participate by completing the Spiritual Grow Assessment pre-and post-mentorship training.

Results

All six youth and young adult leaders that participated in the mentorship scored higher on the second Spiritual Growth Assessment. Each mentee spent time practicing spiritual disciplines and indicated that they had grown in their personal relationship with God. While this is difficult to scientifically measure, the verbal responses and assessments suggested that spiritual growth took place in each individual.

Conclusions

Mentoring spiritual disciplines among youth and young adult leaders effectively equipped them with the knowledge and skills to develop personal habits of practicing spiritual disciplines. Further equipping leaders in personal mentoring skills can transmit the spiritual experience to youth and young adults that will lead to greater spirituality and likely church involvement.

Subject Area

Church work with youth--Georgia--Seventh-day Adventists; Youth--Religious life; Mentoring in church work; Spirituality--Seventh-day Adventists; Peachtree City Seventh-day Adventist Church (Sharpsburg, Ga.)

DOI

https://dx.doi.org/10.32597/dmin/736/

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