Insightful article.
Most people don’t go to church anymore. And the minority who do regularly attend and appreciate weekly services fit a certain profile. They’re the church-inclined.
This shrinking minority differs from the majority in several ways:
Read the rest here.
Wesleyan Arminian 
Great find! Interesting, thought provoking…
Not sure what to think of this. What did you find most interesting?
Hi SLW, I found all the categories interested. I also neatly fit into the category 1, so none of this stuff bothers me personally. :)
I’m wondering what are some effective ways to reach out to people who fit more into category 2.
There were only two categories, no? The church inclined and the uninclined. I take it you’re saying that you personally are church inclined but are seeking ways to reach the uninclined. Or are you saying you are audience-oriented and are seeking to reach out to who crave relationship?
I know it was only a blog post, but I found the article lacking specificity–no real statistics, no studies, no foundations for the assumptions and conclusions made. It was like it was pulled right out of the air. What are we to make of it?
Yeah SLW, I would say I fit the “inclined” category, and am wondering how to reach the “un-inclined”.
I don’t know where the author is coming from – if he’s just speculating or has specific evidence. My gut tells me there is a least some truth to what he’s saying, but my gut doesn’t have any good studies to back it up either. :) It’s pretty well recognized that the church in North America is in decline, but I don’t know if it can be proven that it’s due to the reasons that he lists.
I think the article brings up a lot of good points. I’m all for not getting in a traditional rut that loses touch with new generations, but there are some plain things taught in scripture about what we are to do together as a church. A couple of these being singing (Eph 5:19) and listening to preaching (2 Tim 4:1-2). I think it’s great to find untraditional outreach opportunities to reach those who are not part of a church, but we should be careful to not minimize what God has called us to do together but to befriend and teach others what God has called us to do together.
And I’m not sure if the main reason many don’t belong to a church is so much that they don’t like the format as it is that our culture is immersed in all sorts of pervasive sins, and if someone loves darkness they don’t like the light. Then there is the dislike for authority issue and many other contributing factors.
Good thoughts Tom. I too wonder if the general darkness of the culture plays into this.
I know the darkness of my life kept me away from church for a long time, I think others could relate to that experience, too. But then I also know Godly people who have a tradition that teaches that there is no such thing as a local church so, naturally, they aren’t a part of a church. For a lot of people there doesn’t seem to be any recognition that the Bible teaches us we are to assemble regularly and share our lives with others in our area and participate in specified activities together (fellowship, singing, preaching, etc.). Thanks for bringing up the topic, Kevin!