Moser, Kenneth A.Nel, Malan2020-03-122020-03-122019-11-20Moser, K.A. & Nel, M., 2019, ‘The connection between youth ministry’s division of evangelism and discipleship, and the lack of retention of youth in North American churches’, Verbum et Ecclesia 40(1), a2020. https://DOI.org/ 10.4102/ve.v40i1.2020.1609-9982 (print)2074-7705 (online)10.4102/ve.v40i1.2020http://hdl.handle.net/2263/73723The evangelical church in North America is facing a crisis in its failure to retain young people. Research has shown that young people are dropping out of the church and they are not only leaving but also failing to return once they are older. This crisis did not appear in a vacuum; it is the result of the church’s movement towards a style of programming that has created a division between evangelism and discipleship. This style of programme not only seeks to reach those outside of the church at the expense of those youth in the church but also creates a dichotomy between who we are (our identity) and what we do (our mission). The church must seek to remove this dichotomy between identity and mission and utilise strategies that work with our identity rather than against it. INTRADISCIPLINARY AND/OR INTERDISCIPLINARY IMPLICATIONS : This article is an interaction between practical theology and pastoral practice in Christian ministry. The crisis of youth leaving evangelical churches in North America is because of the dichotomy between mission and identity. Once this dichotomy is erased, mission will be a natural outworking of identity in youth ministry.en© 2019. The Authors. Licensee: AOSIS. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.Youth ministryRetentionIdentityMissionEvangelismDiscipleshipNorth American churchesTheology articles SDG-04SDG-04: Quality educationTheology articles SDG-10SDG-10: Reduced inequalitiesTheology articles SDG-16SDG-16: Peace, justice and strong institutionsThe connection between youth ministry’s division of evangelism and discipleship, and the lack of retention of youth in North American churchesArticle