Christian Forums

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • Focus on the Family

    Strengthening families through biblical principles.

    Focus on the Family addresses the use of biblical principles in parenting and marriage to strengthen the family.

  • Guest, Join Papa Zoom today for some uplifting biblical encouragement! --> Daily Verses
  • The Gospel of Jesus Christ

    Heard of "The Gospel"? Want to know more?

    There is salvation in no other, for there is not another name under heaven having been given among men, by which it behooves us to be saved."

Church Attendance Is Dying. Here’s What’s Next.

2024 Website Hosting Fees

Total amount
$905.00
Goal
$1,038.00

ezra

Member
I WILL PROBABLY share this in two post. i read this today the person makes some valid points . my main objection is at the end by my book
https://careynieuwhof.com/church-attendance-is-dying-heres-whats-next/
Church attendance is dying. Big time.

It’s not just reflected in the size of the decline, it’s reflected in the quality and nuances of those numbers.

At least two massive, seismic shifts are at work in our culture causing this. First, we’re moving from Christendom into a post-Christian, post-modern era literally in our lifetime.

Second, we’re in the midst of the biggest technological shift in human history. The digital disruption happening all around us. The digital disruption isn’t just coming. It’s here. And it’s changing attendance patterns at your church whether you recognize it or not. (By the way, have you heard Clay Scroggins talk about the digital disruption on Episode 193 of my leadership podcast? Cue it up for this week.)


The digital disruption isn’t just coming in the church. It’s here.
CLICK TO TWEET


We could add a third reason: We western Christians have been anemic in our mission over the last number of decades. But that’s kind of one of the main points I make again and again on this blog. So we’ve covered that before and will cover it again.

Regardless, people who used to attend regularly aren’t. Whole groups of people are gone.

So what does this mean for today and for the future church?

As we’ve said before in this space, in the future church only the engaged will attend because only the engaged will remain. (Here are 5 reasons engagement will drive almost all future church growth.)


In the future church only the engaged will attend because only the engaged will remain.
CLICK TO TWEET


But what exactly does all of this look like?

Here are three trends as we head into the future.
1. The Future Church Meets Anytime, Anywhere, Sometimes
As Erwin McManus said, “to be a futurist in the church you only need to see the present clearly.” A little too true.

All of this is so obvious, but somehow we miss it.

On the positive front, done well, our whole model of church is based on community (the gathering of people) which will continue forever. The gathered church is here to stay. Not only did Jesus commission us that way, but as we are all experiencing in real time, the more connected we become technologically, the more disconnected we feel. All of us need community now more than ever, and the church is uniquely positions to provide the best community there is if we lean into it.

But our Sunday gatherings have not only been based on community. Much like cable TV and traditional broadcasting, our model has been based on scarcity. In other words, we hold the means of production (the music, the message, the programming and the gathering space) and therefore you need to gather here at X hour to experience it. You can’t get until we say you can.

Of course, that’s no longer true. As I outline in this 2018 church trends post, church in a box is an outdated strategy and the digital has very much become real.

Life now slips seamlessly between the digital and the analog. After all, you’re reading this on your phone or on your laptop (digital) and in the next five minutes you’ll make some real-world interaction, ordering coffee, talking to a colleague or family member in real life.

Digital slips into analog, analog then slips back into digital. We all live there.

So will the future church.

Most church models are still mostly anchored in the past—gather here at a set time and we can be the church. Miss it, and well, you miss it. But as more and more churches move seriously into online and social, that will change.

In the future, the church will meet any time, anywhere, sometimes.

Let me explain.

In the future, the church will meet anywhere, any time, sometimes. You’ll have set gatherings and people will gather together in person, but the digital will supplement, enhance, expand and sometimes replace your local gatherings.

For example, when people are out of town, they’ll join you online. But through email (yes despised email…people read them every day), online church, social and more things we’ll invent, we can engage people daily in the mission. And we can reach people who haven’t been reached every single day, not just Sunday.


Technology means we can reach people every single day, not just Sunday.
CLICK TO TWEET


People may even choose to gather spontaneously on their own…meeting with friends and inviting new people. The expressions are as limited as you want them to be.

Even if your church doesn’t decide to invest in the internet, nothing stops anyone in your church or community from following dozens of churches and church leaders who have. When it comes to technology, the toothpaste is out of the tube.

If only the church would live like this was an opportunity, not an obstacle, our mission could expand dramatically.

And yet most churches don’t even spend 5% of their budget on their online presence. How’s that working for you?

Online is not a threat to the local church. It’s fuel.


Online is not a threat to the local church. It’s fuel.
CLICK TO TWEET


2. Consumers Are Leaving…And Won’t Be Back
Part of the tension we’re all feeling is that we live in a consumer-driven culture. While there’s been a backlash to materialism to some extent among Millennials, Generation Z appears to be embracing it with zeal (so far anyway). We’re not exactly in a post-consumer culture.

Add to that the fact that many churches have a consumer mindset (come to us…we’re the best/coolest/hippest/most orthodox/most whatever), the arrival of digital options means you no longer need to attend to consume.

It’s far easier to consume content on a treadmill or on your commute than it is to drive to a place at a set time and sit in a back row and consume.

As a result, many consumers have left and more will leave. It’s just more convenient.

Consumer Christianity isn’t about what you bring to the mission, it’s about what you can squeeze out of it. A podcast or online broadcast and a few songs on Spotify is just an easier way to do that.

Not much is lost in seeing consumers leave. It was hard to build the future of the church on them anyway.


Consumer Christianity isn’t about what you bring to the mission, it’s about what you squeeze out of…
 
part 2 yes it is long but has good points till he wants sell his book...
3. The Contributors And The Curious Will Step Up
While consumers lean away, two more groups will lean in…hard.

The contributors are people who engage in the mission. They love to serve, give, do community and invite their friends. They aren’t into consuming nearly as much as they are into contributing.

Bold visionary leadership that calls people to give, sacrifice and exist for the sake of others will define the future church. These will be life-giving people, and their willingness to sacrifice for the sake of the Kingdom and outsiders is something you can build the future of the church on.

The final group that will lean in are the spiritually curious. These are people who haven’t made a commitment to Jesus, but want to know more.

Despite all the disillusionment with the church (much of it deserved), over time the curious will become a growing group. I think we’re seeing early pockets of this in Canada, where I live, and perhaps in Europe. The angry, disillusioned and hostile generation of people who left the church gave birth to an indifferent generation, who in turn spawned a generation where curiosity is emerging (Jesus? Really? Tell me more…I’m looking for something…). It may take a decade or two for the curious to really emerge in the US, but they’re there now in pockets.

Curious people are open people. And they’re looking for Christians who can answer their questions.


Curious people are open people. And they’re looking for Christians who can answer their questions.
CLICK TO TWEET


The curious are looking for people to engage with. People whom they can bring their questions to…people they can do life with. And They’re looking for experiences and services (online and in person) that move them to inform, inspire and transform.

If you think about it, these are exactly the people you want in your church…the contributors and the curious.

So why not start building the future of the church on them now?

How Fewer Can Lead To More
So where does this leave us?

Well, if you’re watching consumers slip out the back door…there’s no big worry. Sure, pray for them and wish them well, but you can’t build the future of the church on people who are in it for themselves.


You can’t build the future of the church on people who are in it for themselves.
CLICK TO TWEET


So who’s left? Well, if you can get your contributors more engaged, serving, giving, inviting and in community, you can build out from there. In fact, at a certain point, the growth and life in the community will become contagious.

Fewer gimmicks, less inertia, and more passion about the mission is a great recipe for the future.

Want to get people more engaged? Here are 7 ways to grow church attendance by increasing engagement.


Fewer gimmicks, less inertia and more passion about the mission is a great recipe for the future.
CLICK TO TWEET


Letting consumers go while welcoming contributors and the curious is a great step in the right direction.

Some Practical Help
 
let us be looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith .i think as we can see at the end of the article he has a book of lessons. the Holy Spirit teaches us were to busy writing books making money instead of being the salt and light
 
I pray for the day that church attendance is gone and people are living out their faith every second of every day and the Holy Spirit guides us into all understanding. Our love for Jesus is known and lived according to the Spirit.
 
Last edited:
John 4:23-24 "Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are th kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
 
I pray for the day that church attendance is gone and people are living out their faith every second of every day and the Holy Spirit guides us into all understanding. Our love for Jesus is known and lived according to the Spirit.
you pray for what ?
 
That people are not going into buildings to get their spiritual fill. That they crave the Word and the Lord guides them.
well that is part of it..but church attendance in the building is needed .all through out the Bible they assembled themselves together. the day of Pentecost for one. Jesus fed the multitude they sure wasnt there for a social gathering . we crave the word but attend church services to get fed/marching orders encouragement.. i know today everybody has a opinion .they dont need a church to attend Jesus told peter feed my sheep . contrary the public opinion there is no need for church .there are still Bible believing Churches paul wrote
Ephesians 4:10-12 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
10 The One who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill[a] all things. 11 And He personally gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12 for the training of the saints in the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ,
going to the building is only getting fuel . the real work is outside the 4 walls. you get trained to go into all the world-the great commission
 
-sigh- this is tough one. I've had a rough go of things with church people. heckled at the local megachurch, hard glares at an SBC church out of state, shunned by the genteel PCUSA folks. I'm hardly the only one.

Misfits have a hard time getting into a good church. what does that say about the modern church? So...Scripture says fellowship is key, and I'm finding that the people I try to fellowship with...have other things to do...--sigh--

but church can be good. verna loves church. its been an anchor in her life, for decades. but...based on what little I Know of the available data, Verna's group is aging out of church, and the other generations aren't filling in their spots, especially when you look at under...I'd guess 40, 45 years old...there's other "stuff" to do on a Sunday, they move a lot, it never was as big a part of their lives as their parents and grandparents' generations, etc. etc. etc.

David Wilkerson...mah personal favorite Pentecostal....writes about a "remnant" that God will raise up, from all denominations (and...I would think...outside the established church, too) as apostasy and error overtake -all- of Christendom, especially in the US. He wrote a bunch about it in the 70s, based on what God showed him, and now...its coming to pass. gay unions, occult stuff in society, witchcraft in the church, sexual immorality accepted all over the church (divorce, adultery, porn, cohabitation, plus...of course..."the gays," LOL), materialism and all kindsa false doctrine...

it would appear...we're living it! Awesome. Maybe The Internet is part of God's plan to unite the remnant? Makes sense, to me. Of course...I like to think I"m part of the remnant, so...there's that, too. :)

I dunno. Stuff like ezra posted above makes me think that many in the organized church are marketing Jesus, which kinda bothers me. there's a former megachurch minister here semi-locally, he does 'consulting' with churches, to help them grow bigger and bigger...

I'm kind of torn on that. good? could be worse. Perhaps some good could come of it. But...--should-- Christians really turn marketing Jesus into a Big Business, in and of itself? Hmmm...

I dunno.
 
-sigh- this is tough one. I've had a rough go of things with church people. heckled at the local megachurch, hard glares at an SBC church out of state, shunned by the genteel PCUSA folks. I'm hardly the only one.

Misfits have a hard time getting into a good church. what does that say about the modern church? So...Scripture says fellowship is key, and I'm finding that the people I try to fellowship with...have other things to do...--sigh--

but church can be good. verna loves church. its been an anchor in her life, for decades. but...based on what little I Know of the available data, Verna's group is aging out of church, and the other generations aren't filling in their spots, especially when you look at under...I'd guess 40, 45 years old...there's other "stuff" to do on a Sunday, they move a lot, it never was as big a part of their lives as their parents and grandparents' generations, etc. etc. etc.

David Wilkerson...mah personal favorite Pentecostal....writes about a "remnant" that God will raise up, from all denominations (and...I would think...outside the established church, too) as apostasy and error overtake -all- of Christendom, especially in the US. He wrote a bunch about it in the 70s, based on what God showed him, and now...its coming to pass. gay unions, occult stuff in society, witchcraft in the church, sexual immorality accepted all over the church (divorce, adultery, porn, cohabitation, plus...of course..."the gays," LOL), materialism and all kindsa false doctrine...

it would appear...we're living it! Awesome. Maybe The Internet is part of God's plan to unite the remnant? Makes sense, to me. Of course...I like to think I"m part of the remnant, so...there's that, too. :)

I dunno. Stuff like ezra posted above makes me think that many in the organized church are marketing Jesus, which kinda bothers me. there's a former megachurch minister here semi-locally, he does 'consulting' with churches, to help them grow bigger and bigger...

I'm kind of torn on that. good? could be worse. Perhaps some good could come of it. But...--should-- Christians really turn marketing Jesus into a Big Business, in and of itself? Hmmm...

I dunno.
yes Church people can be mean spirited..i have ran into a few i want you to read this about Christians .the Apostle paul writing to the Corinth church.. they was so busy judging everybody they forgot who they use to be.
1 Corinthians 6:9-12 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor [a]effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10 nor thieves, nor thecovetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

The Body Is the Lord’s
12 All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.

Footnotes:
  1. 1 Corinthians 6:9 I.e. effeminate by perversion<------
i have explained this to you before not church attendance ..but past life i am not interested in your past .only your future 2 Corinthians 5:17 a new creation in Christ old things passed away all things become new .Justified by faith and Grace justified just as we had never sinned .the old record is wiped clean .the church --yes the body of Christ the assembling born again saints is NOT museum for saints .yes some dress in 3 piece suits ladies wears new dresses puts on enough make up to paint a barn. yes some will stick there nose up in the air or look down... that is not the true Church !

the church the place of attendance only becomes a sanctuary when we go there. so the Church is 1. a sanctuary 2. hospital 3. a refuge .4 counsel center for encouragement .4 a place of fellowship.. 5. a worship center where we worship as a group in truth and spirit . from the pulpit i tell it like this your either once a sinner saved by Grace or your a sinner that needs saved by Grace . peter wrote Love cover a multitude of sins. Jesus said Love one another .if i am loving you in the spirit .then i can not judge you.. i would love to preach to a room full of people like you use to be. that would have a open mind and just be willing to listen and consider what i say .

now that is what the TRUE CHURCH IS ALL ABOUT ..a church i use to attend had a slogan welcome to certain church where everybody is somebody and Jesus Christ is Lord .. i have heard about every excuse of not going to church. you have to search for the right one..
 
i'm gettin' better about things. I figure..now, I've been blessed beyond measure, despite my flaws and ongoing sin patterns (Everyone has them, of course), so...move on. Put aside what is behind and press forward...

I mention the gay thing cuz that's in Wilkerson's material. That and lots of occult stuff, general Babylon-level immorality, combined with false doctrine. Lines up with what some other people have had visions of, along with a crumbling established/external church. --sigh--

I think I'll at least try my hand at a local church or two, see how it goes. Did I tell you the RCC dude never called me back? Man oh man...I get no respect, Rodney Dangerfield-style. LOL. I really don't care that much...I was just curious.

Maybe its because I'm in The Bible Belt ("1,000 miles wide, 1 inch deep"), there's a whole lotta "proclaiming a form of godliness, but lacking the power thereof," probably because "Christianity" of various forms is still a part of the culture, even though...I don't know, it doesn't seem that one sees that many genuinely transformed lives. I see a lot of people who get hair cuts, start voting Republican, but in terms of -amazing grace-, like you read about with both the 1st and 2nd Great Awakenings in America...

not so much. And I'm not saying that to be judgmental, its an honest observation. Maybe its increasingly like that all over the US? I dunno.

Thanks for your posts and replies, as always. :)
 
From the "and a child shall lead them" department:

the Church started as a Body of believers.
When it went to Rome it became an institution. When it went to Europe it became a culture.
When it got to the US, it became a business.

When you have a body, and you turn it into a business, isn't that a prostitute?
 
From the "and a child shall lead them" department:

the Church started as a Body of believers.
When it went to Rome it became an institution. When it went to Europe it became a culture.
When it got to the US, it became a business.

When you have a body, and you turn it into a business, isn't that a prostitute?
i have read something like this before .i been saying for sometime. man keeps wanting to improve the plan of salvation
 
while I think face to face conversations are better, one cant also ignore that we do live in a digital age, and at times. due to the working wages in some areas one simply cant attend church much. sorry being at church is important but It doesn't pay the bills. im not going into politics but with rent on the low end for a parent(s) with several kids if she makes too much is going to be over a grand a month here. working one job might not be enough for those. its not even being addressed by the potus. the high costs of rent is crazy. imho. I have a disable wife. I make collectively 20 per hour and that isn't enough at times.
 
It's true, the economic squeeze affects building the Church. Unemployment figures are low, but say nothing about the terms of employment or how it compares to the cost of living. There is no middle class; there are working poor, and rich. Those still in between are so few as to no longer be a "class"
 
It's true, the economic squeeze affects building the Church. Unemployment figures are low, but say nothing about the terms of employment or how it compares to the cost of living. There is no middle class; there are working poor, and rich. Those still in between are so few as to no longer be a "class"
off topic which will affect the church ability to provide. the wealthy may care and in some areas that have few there wont be any able church to provide nor charity. its not good to have a man or woman work like they do just make it and also it affects marriages and also children grow up with "absent but not absent parenting". my dad was like that. he worked two jobs and was often not there to be a dad. I don't really fault him as there was other things with the siblings but it still affected me and the others.
 
yeah...the US has a decimated middle class, loads of working poor, an increasingly frustrated working class, and varying degrees of upper class (my parents are on the lower end of the new upper class, in what was once the upper middle class...), and then...

i dunno. there's the "other" people, like me...ssi and ssdi (more ssi than ssdi, but...still...) have become kinda like the new welfare, especially when dealing with psych issues. what's left of the welfare programs is often insufficient and tightly regulated (really harsh, punitive regulations in a lot of states, actually...). not that I can complain, personally...I benefit from what is left of the safety net, largely because of my parents' higher status (fairly recent devlopment...I read that after the economy tanked, some of the middle class got bumped up, and lot more got thrown down into lower status conditions....the banksters, of course, got a bailout...). anyway...

a lot of people are working now for stagnant or falling wages, in insecure jobs, in communities with fewer meaningful social bonds, and in families that often splinter and disintegrate, too. just...looking at social and economic factors...i don't think the outlook for the established, Protestant church is all that great, not in the US. that's not even taking into account secularization and such.

I read on somebody's blog, though...she's not a believer, but she pops into church now and then because she thinks its one of the few places in American culture that hasn't been overrun by hate and anger. of course...this lady is well-educated and affluent, so her perspective is different from mine, but...

it is nice that there are still good churches out there, little clusters of light unto the darkness, etc.
 
Back
Top