A new study, put out by George Barna, shows a trend that doesn’t have a good outcome for the American family. In their findings, America is on the brink of having more people un-churched than we have attending church on a consistent basis. This list consists of 34% of people who formerly attended church and no longer want to go. They are considered de-churched and they are the fastest growing segment. Twelve percent of people today are considered un-churched (and this number is growing quickly due to the emergence of millennials who have had and want no church experience). These two segments together make up 46% of adults in our US population. This is a 60% increase in the last decade. The number this represents is staggering. Through the end of 2015, the estimated number of un-churched adults stood at 112 million. If you add in the number of children and teenagers, the total swells to 151 million un-churched individuals.
The number-one reason they give for not attending church is their perception of the experience. Most of the adults felt that people at church were spiritually shallow and that the experience didn’t add value to their life. Three out of four distrust organized churches and one out of four believes the Bible is a good source to address difficult or challenging questions about matters of faith and life.
The enemy is busy at discrediting the effectiveness of the church by causing dissention and distrust toward the people of God and His body. I admit, ministering today is more challenging than it has ever been, but it is not impossible. While the number of un-churched people is increasing in our world, our church is still seeing an increase in attendance. Not what we could see but we are growing. We have more people at our church on any given Sunday than we ever have in the history of this church. We have more people involved in ministry than we have ever seen. We are not where we want to be, and we are not setting records on a national scale, but we are encouraged to see many new faces every week. I believe the increase is due to speaking the Truth in love and a loving congregation who cares for the whole family.
In Matthew 16, Jesus is talking with the disciples and asking them, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They give Jesus the response of many people around that varied from John the Baptist to Elijah, and many said a prophet. But Jesus leaned in and asked who they thought He was. Simon spoke up in Peter fashion and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” It is there that Jesus said the famous statement, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it” (Matthew 16:17-18). Beforehand, Jesus warned them not to listen to the teachings of the Pharisees and the Sadducees. They were to guard against this teaching.
When I review the statistics on what is happening in our world of faith today, I can’t help but think back to what Jesus warned the early disciples about. The yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees is still an issue today.
In spite of the challenges and setbacks at times, take heart church, God is not finished yet. This past week with Vacation Bible Adventure reminds me that people are still seeking to know God. We don’t know the underpinnings of everyone there on Sunday. There could have been some families that wanted to give the church and God one more chance before they gave up completely on Church. I believe that this happens more than we know. With the number of VBA workers and the atmosphere that is present in our services, the church may have redirected some families not to give up hope.
There are some exciting things going on in the church. Life transformation is the key in seeing a church go beyond its walls. The enemy cannot hold down a testimony of the forgiveness of God and life transformation. I am excited what God is doing and will do in the days ahead. My prayer is that God will use this church to make a global impact on the kingdom of God starting in our local community. Let’s work at decreasing the number of de-churched and un-churched in our community by passionately following Jesus with our whole heart. This Sunday come with the spirit and attitude of Jesus as He calls you to participate in the faith journey of a devoted church that wants to reach the lost. At our church, we want guests to see a people who are spiritually on fire for God and are responding to a fresh, life-giving Word of faith. Thank you for being the Church!
Joy in Jesus!
Pastor Mike
www.findlayfirstnaz.org
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