1. JIM RAYMO – BETHANY GLOBAL UNIVERSITY/ WEC INTERNATIONAL WITH KEN AND BETHANY FREIRE UNDERSTANDING AND NURTURING THE MILLENNIAL SOUL IN A MISSION CONTEXT

2. THE RAYMO FAMILY

3. I’ M SO OVER MILLENNIAL ARTICLES, JONCOOMBS.COM I’m so over generalized articles about Millennials. Every week there are new articles about how to deal with those in their late teens to early thirties. So over it. Perhaps it’s because I sit on the border of the Gen X/Gen Y dateline, but I find many of the articles are simply older people trying to work out how to deal with younger people. I work with young adults, and have done so for a long time. I know it’s important to know what’s important to them and how to relate to them.

4. I’ M SO OVER MILLENNIAL ARTICLES, JONCOOMBS.COM Anyway, a recent article I thought was actually good, in relation to mission, was published in the Evangelical Missions Quarterly entitled, “Millennials & Mission: Demystifying and Unleashing a Generation” by Jim Raymo. Raymo outlines some good points on what not to do when you’ve got Millennials in your mission organization and then gives points about how to better integrate them too. I think he has some good points and most of the article is quite positive, which I appreciated. It’s certainly worth a read if you’re in an organization that is working with Millennials-which is, like, everyone.

6. MILLENNIALS ARE: Continuous learners Team players Collaborators Diverse

7. MILLENNIALS ARE: Optimistic Achievement Oriented Socially conscious and highly educated By Internet research counts, 75,000,000 millennials are preparing to join or joining the workforce. (humanresources.about.com)

8. GENERATIONAL DIFFERENCE WHAT MILLENNIALS WANT IN THEIR LEADERS/ORGANIZATION From Dr. Trimble’s generational difference survey: “I wish my leader would look at me and see what my skills are and how they could be utilized... The leaders could have been more pro-active in helping me get involved on things here o the filed. I wish they could have listened to my suggestions and taken my ideas more seriously.”

9. “Millennials will not stay just because WEC is a big respected mission. They will stay if being a part of WEC is a positive experience. If they leave it is not because of commitment but rather that they feel the organization (and/or its members) have not given any room for their dreams and vision and in the end have failed them. Most will be too polite to say this and will give 101 other, more palatable reasons for their departure than the real one.”

10. FROM A YOUNG WORKER: “Speaking from the heart is surprisingly rare in a lot of Christian and mission circles at times, but this is what the younger generation thrive on. They long to be reassured that a fellow worker who been on the field for a very long time is or has been just as vulnerable and needy in some areas as they are. There is so much more in common here than first meets the eye-both are called by God, both have physical and personality and gifting limitations, both need the ongoing help of the Holy Spirit to live a God-glorifying life. If these common needs and weaknesses were effectively communicated by Builders/ Boomers/Gen X leaders in WEC then the way would be made clear for powerful mentoring and intimacy within the team. The younger generations are keen to bond but need lots of reassurance of the heart journey of their leaders and fellow workers.”

11. SPECIFICALLY WHAT MILLENNIALS WANT IN LEADERS 1.Mentoring a)This generation has great respect for those older than they are. b)Most of them have good relationships with their parents. c)They have learned from older people all their lives, and they don’t want to stop now. d)They want to be led and taught in their places of work, in their churches, and in their families but not with a “heavy hand.” e)They particularly want to learn from couples who have had long and successful marriages. f)Many Millennials see such examples as heroes to emulate.

12. WHAT MILLENNIALS WANT IN LEADERS 2.Gentle Spirit a)This category is easier to describe by what Millennials do not want in leaders. b)Divisive, loud, and acrimonious persons turn them off. c)They loathe politicians and political pundits who scream at each other. d)They are leaving churches to some extent because they see many Christian leaders as negative and prone to divisiveness. e)They are repulsed by leaders with harsh and autocratic spirits.

14. WHAT MILLENNIALS WANT IN LEADERS 3.Transparency and Authenticity a)I wish my wife and I had counted the number of times that Millennials used the word “real” to describe leaders they want to follow. b)As one Millennial told us, her generation “can smell phony and pretentiousness a mile away.” c)They don’t want phony; they want authentic. d)They don’t want pretentious; they want transparent.

15. WHAT MILLENNIALS WANT IN LEADERS 4.Integrity a)The Millennials are weary of leaders who don’t keep promises. b)They are tired of Christian leaders who fail basic moral standards. c)They are fed up with business leaders who are more concerned about personal gain than serving others. They want leaders with integrity.

16. DEAL BREAKERS FOR MILLENNIALS 1.An unwillingness to consider the young worker’s ministry aspirations 2. A distorted presentation of the ministry’s strength or successes 3. Instruction rather than stories

17. DEAL BREAKERS FOR MILLENNIALS 4.Second class treatment 5.Lack of opportunity and scope for worship-in their style 6.Immediate demand for long- term commitment 7.Overly authoritarian leaders

18. WHAT MILLENNIALS APPRECIATES IN AN AGENCY/CHURCH Structure with Flexibility Take advantage of the millennial's comfort level with teams. Encourage them to join.

19. WHAT MILLENNIALS APPRECIATE IN AN AGENCY/CHURCH Provide a life-work balanced workplace. Your millennials are used to cramming their lives with multiple activities. They may play on sports teams, walk for multiple causes, spend time as fans at company sports leagues, and spend lots of time with family and friends. They work hard, but they are not into the sixty hour work weeks defined by the Baby Boomers. Home, family, spending time with the children and families, are priorities. Don’t lose sight of this. Balance and multiple activities are important to these millennial employees. Ignore this to your peril.

20. WHAT MILLENNIALS APPRECIATE IN AN AGENCY/CHURCH Millennial employees are up for a challenge and change Millennial employees are multi-taskers on a scale you’ve never seen before Take advantage of your millennial employee’s computer, cell phone, and electronic literacy

22. I call this period that we are in the “season of a remnant.” Regardless of the setting, it is unlikely that we will accomplish significant change or impact in young lives and perspectives through large group training, conferences, or lecture-style classes. Relationships, community and meaningful conversation are where the most formative experiences occur. Wondering why a young person has a specific political view? Engage them in a conversation (not a lecture!) about it. Wanting to instill an essential character trait or leadership quality in a young mentee? Model it for them, inviting them share in your own leadership experiences. Hoping to share faith or truth with a generation that desperately needs it? Begin with “the one” or a few…a remnant. Millennials in Ministry -Jolene Erlacher

23. THE “POST” MILLENNIAL GENERATION GENERATION Z What might they look like? Some names suggested for this next generation: "Posts," "Homelanders," and the (boring) "Generation Z" 1.Intrinsically egalitarian and deeply offended by what they perceive as unfair treatment of others. 2.They are more global and open in mindset than any previous generation, having grown up with a media operating system--YouTube, Facebook, Xbox Live, Google, Twitter--that is itself inherently global and inclusive in nature.

24. GENERATION Z One used to grow up bound by (his or her) street and community, religion, and region. The "Post" generation will feel far less constrained by geography and, as a result, ideology than any previous generation."

25. GENERATION Z Optimism, the centrality of religion, and devotion to in-style fashion are all in recession, so to speak; meanwhile the importance of both family and money are on the rise. It would seem this generation is, at least in its infancy, favoring the tangible over the intangible. That they are relentless digital fact-checkers is not in question, as their teachers and parents can readily attest.

26. CONTACT INFORMATION: JJRAYMO1975@GMAIL.CO M JJRAYMO1975@GMAIL.CO M OR 952 829 4680 JIM RAYMO

27. BY JOLENE ERLACHER MILLENNIALS IN MINISTRY