Family-Integrated Model-What I Don’t Like

One of the main issues that I have with this model is that it is completely eliminating any age-oriented activities and teaching. The though behind this is that age-segregation is causing a rift between children and families. However, this approach ignores all of the research that shows that age-oriented teaching and training are beneficial for learning and retention.

Along those same lines, this model claims that adolescence does not exist. This thought  completely ignores the fact that humans go through developmental stages, with each stage having a completely different brain chemistry and structure to work with. Adolescence is not just a cultural phenomena that encourages teens to explore different clothing and spend lots of money; it is a time when the brain of a teenager is unbalanced, causing them to be hyper aware of the emotions of others while lacking the logistical power to rationally deal with that information. This causes them to be unstable. This is brain science, not a recent cultural happening.

I also do not like that this model seems to ignore singles. Though Renfro claims this is not the case, all activities and structures of the church are designed to minister to families. Not anyone else.