I have noticed a trend in our good fundamental Baptist churches. The trend is this: we emphasize ministry to children, teens, and adults, but somehow, we have forgotten about a hidden workforce and the next generation of servant leaders, single adults!

I want to share with you five vital reasons we should be reaching out to single adults:

1. Single Adults Are Not Second-class

For too long in our movement, we have overlooked this wonderful group of people that God has placed into our care. Just because God has not brought their spouse into their lives as of yet, does not mean they cannot be utilized and serving God in significant ministry roles! We must remember that it is not always God’s will for every person to be married, but it is God’s will for every Christian to be used to their maximum potential for God’s honor and glory!

2. Single Adults Are Looking for Truth

We have been told by many emerging church leaders, that single adults will only come to our churches if we are entertainment driven and relevant culturally in our ministry approach to them. Although I am not against being culturally relevant, I am against it when Scripture is violated and secularism is masked as Scriptural. Christ is preeminent to culture!

One Sunday night following a service in our church here in West London, a single young man and I had a cup of tea together. His statement was so revealing, “Pastor, I am sick of visiting churches where the pastor attempts to relate to me and act my age, I just want the Bible, nothing else!” He will fit in just fine in our church, and I am convinced there are millions more like him around our world!

3. Single Adults Are Able to Serve Significantly

When working with single adults full-time several years ago, I realized something very important: these guys have the time, energy, and resources to really serve the Lord in the local church! I was thrilled at the end of two years working with single adults to know that they were leading the way in ministry, missions giving, and fellowship in our local church.

Friends, we have an untapped resource that God has placed at our finger tips—single adults who will thrive in ministry if we will train them and allow them to do the work!

4. Single Adults Are Not Afraid to Serve in Missions

Having been involved with missions for some time now, I find that the greatest drawback for many men to go to the mission field is their family. They have wonderful families, but they are afraid, like we all are, that their family will suffer and not have the same opportunities that they had growing up.

Single adults are not afraid! I get emails, phone calls, and visits all the time from single adults who say something like this, “Pastor John, I would gladly give a year of my life to serve God on a mission field somewhere!” It is my prayer that we will no longer look at these type of statements as youthful zeal, but as a sincere passion to serve Christ abroad. I am finished criticizing, I want to enable!

5. Single Adults Need to Be Encouraged

There are conferences for every group in our churches except single adults. Because of this, they sometimes end up going to shallow, weak, contemporary churches that have compromised the gospel in order to reach them. We must find ways to encourage this overlooked group to stay strong in the Lord.