Church Relevance

7 Startling Facts About American Church Attendance
Christianity Today highlighted a fascinating article from Outreach magazine that presents seven startling facts facing attendance in America’s churches. Want to know what they were?
Less than 20% of Americans regularly attend church—half of what the pollsters report.
American church attendance is steadily declining.
Only one state (Hawaii) is outpacing its population growth.
Mid-sized churches are shrinking; the smallest and largest churches are growing.
Established churches—40 to 190 years old—are, on average, declining.
The increase in churches is only 1/4 of what’s needed to keep up with population growth. It is estimated that 10,000 more churches are needed to keep up with the U.S. population growth.
In 2050, the percentage of the U.S. population attending church will be almost half of what it was in 1990.
It is a very well-written article that discusses each fact in depth and even presents contradicting research. You can read the full text at ChristianityToday.com. The article also gives some interesting insights from prominent church leaders.
“I believe churches that are seeing a decline in attendance need a new vision—one that is clear and purposeful.” - Bill Hybels
“But for any local church, the real competition today is television, the Internet, shopping malls and other social options. The culture offers so many alternatives. Culture—not the ‘church across town’—is the local church’s primary competitor.” - Kirbyjon Caldwell
“We must intentionally identify, predict and meet the needs of people—or else decline.” - Kirbyjon Caldwell
“We’re living in a time where spirituality and faith are hot. But it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re deep.” - George Barna
“I believe we have to get serious about what God has called us to do—and be seen as a place that’s doing, not just saying.” - Bob Coy
“Unfortunately, most American churches today don’t know how to reach outside one culture. We really haven’t taught people in our congregations how to do multicultural evangelism.” - David Anderson
There are plenty of more great insights throughout the article. Times have changed. What are you doing to reach the lost?