Transcript Slide 1

Reaching People Under 40
While Keeping Over 60
• Authors/Coaches: Eddie Hammett & Randy
Pierce – Co-authors Making Shifts Without
Making Waves
• www.thecolumbiapartnership.org
• www.soulful-leadership.com
• www.transformingsolutions.org
• www.thespiritualbandit.com
Resources by Eddie Hammett
Order at www.amazon.com or
www.transformingsolutions.org
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
3 Challenges faced by the American
Church, pg 57
• After 40 years of life most churches decline in
attendance by 2% a year. 80% of church
attendance is now found in congregations
over 40.
• Slightly more than 1% of all churches close
each year. (about 4,000 churches)
• Healthy new churches typically grow at a rate
of 10%/year for their first 4 years.
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
“Unchurched American turned off by
church – open to Christians”
• 64% surveyed think ‘the Christian religion is a
relevant and viable religion for today. 79% indicated
they think Christianity is’more about organized
religion than about loving God and loving people.”
• 78% said they would be willing to listen to someone
who wanted to talk about their Christian beliefs. #
increased to 89% among 18-29 year olds.
www.lifewayresearch.com – 3/08
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
Getting to Know the Unchurched
Outreach Magazine Mar.April, 2008,
• 86% believe “I can have a good relationship
with God without being involved in church”
• 32% would listen to an inspirational person if
seeking inspirational guidance
• 27% would read a book
• 17% would go to church
• 4% would watch an inspirational movie
• 17% were uncertain
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
Getting to Know New Christian
Outreach Magazine Mar.April 2008
• 59% came to faith through family or friends
• Age of New Christians:
– 47% baby boomers
– 40% Gen-X
– 17% Seniors/Builders
64% came to faith as a result of a conversation
“New Christians Study” by M. Anthony and Gary
McIntosh, Talbot School of Theology, pg. 59
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
New Generation Is Skeptical
• 16-29 yr. olds exhibit a
greater degree of
criticism toward
Christianity than
previous generations
• Only 3% of 16-29 yr.
olds non believers
express favorable views
of evangelicals
• 87% believer
evangelicals are too
judgmental
• 78% believe they are
old fashion
• From unChristian: What a New
Generation Really Thinks About
Christianity and Why it matters
by David Kinnaman of Barna.org
07
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
Church Update - 2007
• Between ’65 and ’01 between 2/3 and 75% of
American churches started before 1960 stalled
in outreach and growth.
• During the same period Mormans and
Jehovah’s Witnesses grew rapidly – from 1.79
million to 5.1 million.
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
Marriage in USA
• Married couples with children now occupy
fewer than 1 in every 4 households
• As cohabitation and out-of-wedlock births
increase among the broader population, social
scientist predict that marriage with children
will continue its retreat
• “Fewer are Married with Children” by Blaine Harden,
Washington Post, March 4, 2007
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
Single Adults and the Church?
• 2000 census shows the foreign born
population in NC increased 5.3%
• 50.6% of our NC adult population are single
• Singles make up 42% of the workforce in US;
40% of homebuyers; 35% of voters and one of
the most potent consumer groups on record.”
Business Week Magazine
• By 2010 nearly 30% of all homes will be
inhabited by singles.
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
Singles and the church?
• “Nationally only 13% of all churches report
offering single adult specific activities
• What singles are in your church and/or
community?
• What are you doing to reach them?
• Biblical Recorder, Norman Jameson editorial, Jan. 19, 2008
www.biblicalrecorder.org
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
Church Update - 2007
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1 out of every three Americans are unchurched
37% of Singles stay away from church
29% of married adults stay away
68% of house church attenders were satisfied
Most 20 somethings disengage from church
House church mov’t growing significantly
•
www.barna.org
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
State of the Church Today
• • Many Christians have left congregations and formed
house churches, small groups meeting in one another’s
homes.
• • Only three out of ten adults in the U.S. in their
twenties (31 percent) attend church in a typical week,
compared to four out of ten of those in their thirties (42
percent) and nearly half of all adults age forty and older
(49%).
• • Eight million adults today who were active churchgoers
as teenagers will no longer be active in a church by their
thirtieth birthday.
• • Only three out of ten adults in their twenties donated
to a church in the past year, which is half the proportion
of older adults (30 percent to 61 percent).
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
Barna Research
“New Statistics on Church Attendance and Avoidance” March3, 2008 –
www.barna.org
• popular measures such as the percentage of people who are
"unchurched" - based on attendance at a conventional
church service - are out of date. Various new forms of faith
community and experience, such as house churches,
marketplace ministries and cyberchurches, must be figured
into the mix - and make calculating the percentage of
Americans who can be counted as "unchurched" more
complicated.
• New Ways of Measuring church attendance include:
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
New Ways of Measuring Church
Attendance – Barna.org
• Unattached – 1 out of every 4 adults
• Intermittents – essentially under-churched. 1
out of every 7 adults
• Homebodies – about 3%
• Blenders – house church and trad. Church 3%
of adult pop.
• Conventionals – 1 of every 3 adults
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
Trends in the Church
What Can You Expect in Next 3 to 7 Years in Your Church
Denominations are not an issue
The term home church has no relevance
Cell churches are changing
People are involved in the church without attending each Sunday
High spirituality and low organized religion mark futuring church
congregations
Worship service days and times vary
Worship structures are changing
Worship styles are changing
Evangelism takes place in both seek-sensitive as well as more blatant
forms
Revival comes in different forms
The church develops rather than trains
Education for the church is moving from teaching to learning
Leadership teams replace single leaders
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
Trends in the Church
Decisions are made by consensus
Church governments are changing
The church is being forced to rethink sexuality
The demand for excellence increases
Church leaders are being held to stricter requirements
Immigrants seek a vision and purpose driven church
Discipline in the church is expected and implemented
Relevancy is in demand
Immigrants stress effectiveness and measurable benchmarks
Family time is a premium consideration
Pastoral care has higher demands
Future churches recognize and respond to single-parent homes
The number of younger retirees continues to grow
From: Futuring: Leading Your Church into Tomorrow by S. Chands and C. Murphy, Baker, 2002
Prepared by Eddie Hammett
Resources to Help in the Journey
www.transformingsolutions.org
& www.thecolumbiapartnership.org
Prepared by Eddie Hammett