Don’t Just Send Them Off - Commission Them

It’s the beginning of September and as a new season begins, life changing changes are beginning for our young men & women.

When a young person leaves for Bible college, churches know exactly what to do. We invite them to the front, celebrate their calling, surround them with strong leaders and pray publicly for them. Sometimes we give financial support. Their departure is treated as a significant spiritual moment.

And rightly so.

But what happens when a young man leaves school to begin an apprenticeship? Who commissions the new warehouse worker, mechanic, labourer or data analyst? Who prays publicly for the teenager starting shifts that will make Sunday attendance difficult, or for the young man who has no job or college place at all?

Too often, we celebrate the person going to Bible college while simply asking the others, “So, what are you doing next?”

Yet the transition into ordinary employment may be just as spiritually significant—and, for some young men, considerably more dangerous.

In late 2025, 957,000 UK 16–24-year-olds were not in education, employment or training. Young men accounted for 510,000 of them, with a NEET rate of 13.3%. “NEET” is not an identity, but behind that statistic are young men who may feel that adult life has begun without them. (ONS)

This transition can also expose spiritual fragility. Dr Anthony Bradley, drawing on American research by Christian Smith and others, warns that 40–50% of youth-group participants become detached from church by their twenties. His central point is that programmes cannot replace formation at home—especially the influence of an engaged father. (Bradley interview)

Significantly, one longitudinal US study found that four-year university students did not experience the steepest decline in church attendance. The decline was greater among young people moving directly into employment, community college or vocational education. Leaving school, home and church support at the same time creates accumulated risk. (Longitudinal study)

What if Churches held a SEND Night for everyone entering this new season:

• Support them through the transition.

• Equip them for work, study and temptation.

• Name their gifts and calling.

• Dedicate them to God in prayer.

Share a meal, then commission the Bible-college student—but also the electrician, mechanic, supermarket worker, university student and unemployed young man. Tell them that ordinary work & study matters to God and that unemployment does not diminish their worth.  Call the Kingdom man out of them.

Then offer every young man a dependable Christian mentor. Many need father figures: men who listen, keep their word, model repentance and remain present when life becomes difficult. With proper safeguarding and accountability, a mentor(s) can meet regularly, pray with him and ask honestly about work, money, relationships, online habits and faith.

Young men do not need polished heroes. They need faithful men who will walk beside them.

Commissioning says, “God sends you,” but also, “Your church remains your family.” After the SEND Night, remember their names, make the calls and keep their place at the table.