To better serve your church's teens with resources that will help, you need to understand their hopes and dreams—and where God fits into them.

According to a recent survey by The Barna Group, the most common aspirations of teenagers are related to education and their professional pursuits, with completing a college degree their top-rated future priority.

Questioning a nationwide sample of more than 600 teens and asking them to describe what they think their life will be like roughly 10 years from now, as young adults, the researchers learned:

College and career: In all, 93% of teenagers said they would either definitely or probably obtain a college degree by their mid-20s. In terms of career, 81% of teenagers felt they are likely to have a "great-paying job" by the time they are 25.

God and global: Having a connection with God and international travel emerged as second-level priorities. Nearly three-quarters of teenagers felt they would have a close personal relationship with God (72%) in the next decade or so. About seven out of 10 youths (71%) said they will definitely or probably have traveled to other countries by their mid-20s.

Family and church: Most American teenagers expected to be engaged in the traditional institutions of marriage and church involvement (58% and 63%, respectively). However, only a small percentage felt certain about these outcomes in their own lives: 29% of teenagers said they believed they would definitely be "actively involved in a church or faith community."

Current church attendance appears to be a better predictor of future religious activity than is a teen's religious affiliation. Among weekly attenders of religious youth groups, 60% said they definitely will be involved in a church in the future, which compares to just 22% of teens who attend less frequently and 14% among teens who never attend such religious functions.

Source: The Barna Group

-To read the full report, click here. http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/13-culture/366-teenagers-want-successful-careers-and-global-travel-expect-to-delay-marriage-a-parenting-

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