Intentional integrated program development to facilitate retention of Seventh-day Adventist youth in Calabar, Nigeria

Abstract

The retention of young people is a challenge to the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Calabar and it evokes deep concerns. The inability of the church to transmit her professed faith to its young people who are faced by the pressure of society and culture evolution is the essence of this study. This study examined factors associated with the loss of young people aged 18– 39 years. As with any other group or organization, the training of youth is critical to the overall growth of the church. The research developed a biblical model that is relevant to contemporary times, implemented, and evaluated as an intervention to the problem of youth retention in the Adventist Church in Calabar. A qualitative research method was adopted and the primary source of information was through a focus group interview. Data were gathered, analyzed and stratagems were developed, implemented, and evaluated to facilitate a coherent intervention program design for the Adventist Church in Calabar. The research findings reveal the presence of complexity and challenges of managing the differences among the varying groups of the church. A situation that edged out the young people and has become a contributing factor to the constant loss of the youth. The findings also made open the lack of professional ministerial impact, creating gross neglect of the young people; and challenges of program planning and implementation. This means that the church is not intentional about program design that targets to meet needs. A Koinos Mentoring Program, a faith-based, biblical intervention to tackle the retention problem of the church. Koinos Mentoring Program is intentionally integrated to fuses the mentor and the mentee in a relational atmosphere leading to retention, a principle rooted in Acts 2:42. This method would have participants develop a clear understanding of and appreciation for sound doctrine; encourage spiritual growth that enhances a sense of community caring for one another. It was implemented in Calabar Church with two groups who undertook pilot projects that ran for seven days, 2 hours 30 minutes daily. Group ‘A’ specifically targeted unmarried young people with “Get SMARTER” whereas group ‘B’ targeted the married group of young people with “Intimacy Oneonone.” The result of these interventions was that the programs do not only retain young people but also attracted their friends of other faiths as well.