Thom S. Rainer talks about how hard it is for churches to keep the same number of people coming to worship services. He gives an example of a church that has 100 people attending on average. This church would need to add 32 new people every year just to keep attendance the same.
There are a few main reasons why churches lose attendees:
1. Death: In the United States, about 1 out of every 100 people die each year. This number might be higher in churches with older members.
2. Moving Away: In 2020, about 9 out of every 100 people in the U.S. moved to a new place. Many of these people move out of the area where their church is located.
3. Switching Churches: For every 100 people attending a church, about 7 will leave to go to a different church in the same community.
4. Going to Church Less Often: People are going to church less frequently than they used to. This is the biggest reason why churches are getting smaller. It’s estimated that church attendance drops by about 15% every year.
So, if a church has 100 people attending, they can expect to lose 1 person to death, 9 to moving away, 7 to switching churches, and 15 to going to church less often. This means they need to add 32 new people each year just to keep attendance the same. If they add fewer than 32, the church will get smaller.
But Rainer says there is still hope for churches, even with these challenges. Read the full article.
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