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Five Major Trends for Amercian Churches…

There's an interesting article at the ChristianPost.com about research that identifies five emerging trends in U.S. churches.

Here are the five:

1. Our nation will see the emergence of the largest generational mission field in over a century.

2. The dominant attitude of this huge generation toward Christianity will be largely indifferent.

3. Senior adult ministries in churches will experience steep declines.

4. The large Boomer generation will become more receptive to the gospel.

5. Family will be a key value for both of the large generations.

The question is how do churches adjust to these trends?  Should churches adjust?  How should churches respond?

Here are some of my thoughts:
• Whatever the trends are, make sure the gospel is preached.  Self-improvement messages are catchy and attractive, but the gospel is God's power for salvation.
• People reach people, methods and programs do not.  Continually communicate the truth of every believers responsibility and privilege to reach out to others.
• Prayer.  No matter the flow of the cultural current, prayer is the driving force that transcends culture.  More prayer, more power.
• Focus on making disciples.  It's our job description.  It's easy to be distracted by more "flashy" programs and events because disciple-making is repetitive and lacks pizazz.  But always remember: changed people change culture.

You can read the full article here.