Bullet in a bible attendance1/15/2024 When I came to my church fresh out of seminary at 61 years of age we had about 60 attending on a usual Sunday. Some study the difference in growth and life of a church and others just wait for the church to die. The difference is that the growing church has found a way to close the back door and they have found ways to minister to todays needs. These things are also true in the growing church. He is worshiped and the work of God is preached. but its an antique and not really as relevant as it once was. A church in trouble might also find that their youth are attending other youth groups and activities and their young parents are moving to churches who have prioritized Children's ministry and have a church where the Children really want to attend. Churches that do not change tend to still win some souls, but after they come to Christ, they sometimes find a more relevant church to their needs and move to other churches. They are still winning souls and adding them to the their Church. The way of growth is all around us in churches that are spiritually and culturally relevant. I do believe however, if we do not minister to our culture many churches will continue dying. It's not a matter of changing the message. Churches that operate using a 1940's model just will not keep up. I pastor a church that has been slowly turning around. The problem is, today not many denominations are keeping up with all the closings. Somewhere between 700 churches will close next year. Gregory, Not every church is like the church he mentions above. The problem is a shortage of courage, commitment, and sacrifice. It’s significantly easier to make changes at stage one than stage four.Īlso, keep in mind that nearly nine out of ten of the churches that die are in communities that are growing. And the longer the church waits to make substantive changes, the more difficult it becomes to reverse the path. Today, the process is much shorter, ten years or less.Ĭhurches have broken free from the death stages, but they are rare. The process from denial to death in the recent past would take as many as thirty years. At best, the church deeds its property to a healthy church. The church becomes another sad and tragic statistic. They now see the handwriting on the wall. But their words are more words of desperation than conviction. For the first time since the dying process began, the remaining members say they are more open to new ideas and change. The anger in the church moves to demoralization. The worship center is desolate on Sunday mornings. And even those who don’t officially leave attend less frequently. The church had been losing members gradually to this point, but now the outflow increases. It’s the people in our community who stopped attending churches. It’s those young people who don’t respect the way we’ve always done it. Church leaders and members begin to recognize that the magic bullet did not reverse the negative trends, so they deflect the blame. The church does not really want to change it just thinks it needs an adjustment. Or, secondly, seek a “magic bullet” program, emphasis, or new pastor. Do more of what we are doing that has proven ineffective. There is a sense that something’s wrong in the church, so the church responds in one of two ways. The church’s impact on the community is negligible, but life continues in the church like nothing has happened. Fewer people are reached with the gospel, but no alarm sounds. The church is declining numerically, but no one seems concerned. I call it “the six stages of a dying church.” So, it is with both sorrow and great love for local churches that I share a pattern that is increasingly common.
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