Bridge the Intergenerational Gap
In ministry, how do you bridge the gap and reach the younger generation of women without alienating the older?
In ministry, how do you bridge the gap and reach the younger generation of women without alienating the older?
1. Create Entry Points.
Several times a year we offer a short series designed to connect young women. We invite older women (named “Titus” women) to allow mentorships to form. These partnerships recognize the wisdom and knowledge of older women, and create a setting where younger women feel they are being invested in.
2. Open avenues of conversation.
Create venues where younger and older women can talk about their needs and, as a ministry, be prepared to offer suggestions on how to meet them. Our staff consists of women mostly in their late thirties. We invited ten young women to discuss our differences and work on bridging the gaps. This opened the line of communication and broke down barriers—perceived and real. We found that a woman of twenty-one and a woman of fifty-one are essentially the same; what separates them is life experience. This venue was great for sharing both perspectives, and opening the door for future conversations.
3. Form leadership teams with younger and older women.
This allows them to build relationships while serving. When a relationship is formed, women are more likely to respect each others opinions and desires. Based on our findings, we recruit accordingly the following year to make sure we have various ages of women in all levels of leadership.
4. Contemporary look and media avenues.
Market to women with youthfully designed media. In doing so, you actually attract both younger and older women. Research shows that women forty-five or older respond best to marketing geared toward those in their thirties because they perceive themselves as younger. A contemporary look helps younger women make the shift from “this is my mom’s ministry” to “this is my ministry.”
5. Effective, ongoing evaluation of your ministry.
Get to know your women – age range, interests, and anything else to keep a strong, healthy ministry. Also, avoid stereotyping. Sometimes it’s not about age, but a matter of personality. Not all younger women share the same perspective, just as all Titus women are not the same. And, try different program ideas. Be prepared to shift gears to meet the needs of your ministry as a whole.
Our women’s ministry is encouraged by the intergenerational relationships that are forming. At times the gap may seem wide, but keep taking steps across that bridge—you won’t always get it right, but you will find ways to help your ministry thrive.
~ By Kelly Andaloro
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