Disturbing Results and Tough Questions

Angie and I were watching Charles Gibson last night on the ABC News and he commented about a new survey that specifically deals with religion and faith in America.  If you want to take a look at the survey go to www.abcnews.com and you'll find it.  I went to the site and was blown away by what I read.  Here is what I found to be the most shocking: "More than one quarter of American adults have left the faith of their childhood for another religion or no religion at all.  Factoring in moves from one stream or denomination of Protestantism to another, the number rises to 44 percent.  Further one in four adults ages 18 to 29 claim no affiliation with a religious institution at all."

.

Now how could this be? Interestingly, I recently read an article in the magazine "Off The Agenda" by a church leader named Reggie McNeal.  Here is his evaluation of why religion and the church in America is experiencing such a massive decline.  He says, "All over North America churches and church leaders are busy addressing the wrong questions.  Answering them not only won't address the critical issues facing them, it will, in fact, compound the wider church's dilemma and hasten its slide into spiritual obsolescence in the emerging culture."  He then goes on to say if the church/faith is going to recover then "church leaders must be willing to challenge the status quo and be ruthless in their analysis of both the situation and the results."  In other words, church leaders MUST begin to ask the "right" questions.  What are those questions?  Take a look at what he says.  I agree with him 1 million percent.

1. WRONG QUESTION: How do we "do church" better?
2. TOUGH QUESTION:  How do we "be church" better? Or how do we deconvert from "churchianity" (institutional religion) to Christianity (the movement)?

1. WRONG QUESTION: How do we grow this church?
2. TOUGH QUESTION: How do we serve this community?

1. WRONG QUESTION: How do we develop ministers for the church?
2. TOUGH QUESTION: How do we develop missionaries to the culture?

1. WRONG QUESTION: How do we develop church members?
2. TOUGH QUESTION: How do we develop followers of Jesus?

1. WRONG QUESTION: How do we plan for the future we see?
2. TOUGH QUESTION: How do we prepare for the future God sees?

1. WRONG QUESTION: How do we develop leaders for church work?
2. TOUGH QUESTION: How do we develop leaders for the Christian movement?