GREENFIELD — It’s a concert but so much more.
Greenfield Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) will play host to the band 390 East at 7 p.m. Oct. 3 in an outdoor concert outside the church, 23 N. East St.
This performance by the band, comprised of worship leaders from various Wabash-area churches, is part of a larger initiative by the church to engage adults in their 20s and 30s. The band “is a modern worship band … who blend high energy Christian rock with worshipful atmosphere,” according to a release from the church.
The church recently received a $6,000 stipend from the Lilly Endowment-funded Center for Congregations as part of the center’s Engaging Young Adults initiative.
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Greenfield Christian was accepted into the program in 2019 and has been participating in assignments and learning opportunities as part of the grant process, in which participating churches will be considered for matching grants of up to $30,000 to fund developing ministries with young adults.
Twenty-five central Indiana congregations were selected for the program. (Congregations in other Indiana counties were eligible for a previous similar program.)
“This is a challenge that over the past several years we’ve been hearing about from a wide variety of congregations around Indiana,” Wendy McCormick, program coordinator, said in an introductory video for the initiative on the center’s website. “Not very often do congregations call us and say, ‘We need help engaging young adults.’ But often the things that they do call us about (are) ‘Should we start a new worship service?’ ‘How can we improve our communication?’ ‘How can we better use social media?’ ‘How can we better engage our community and those in need?
“Often when we get in conversations about those kinds of challenges, under the surface is the desire to better engage young adults in the congregation’s most deeply held values and ministries.”
Sharon Feister, leader of the Engaging Young Adults team at Greenfield Christian, said the team’s activities thus far have included surveying 20- and 30-somethings about topics such as where they and their friends like to gather; what social issues concern them; and what older generations need to understand about them.
The church also presented a 2019 Halloween party attended by more than 350 children and young adults. It sponsored a Greenfield Youth Football League flag football team, and members went to games to cheer on the team and get to know team families.
Other plans include book and Bible studies for young adults, improving the church’s online presence and offering podcasts.
Some of the local Engaging Young Adults team’s planned activities have been canceled or delayed by COVID-19, but the team’s interest in continuing its work remains high, Feister said in an email.
“We are focusing on empathetic listening with 20- and 30-somethings in our community, to connect what we learn with our congregation’s deepest faith commitments, and to follow the lead of young adults as we imagine and pilot new ministries of engagement,” she said.
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The Center for Congregations points out that educational opportunities to assist congregations in engaging young adults are available to all congregations in Indiana. It recommends the Congregational Resource Guide (thecrg.org). Search young adults and millennials.
https://centerforcongregations.org/engaging-young-adults-initiative
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390 East will play an outdoor concert at 7 p.m. Oct. 3 in the parking lot of Greenfield Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), 23 N. East St.
Those who go are asked to bring lawn chairs or blankets for seating. Masks and social distancing are highly encouraged.
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