In the summer of 2006, LifeWay Research conducted a survey of 469 formerly churched adults to better understand why people stop attending church and what it would take to bring them back. The “formerly churched” are defined as those who regularly attended a Protestant church as an adult in the past but who no longer do so.One of the questions asked was if they would consider returning to active church involvement. The results are encouraging:
62% - are open to returning, but are not actively looking
28% - unlikely to consider returning
6% - would consider returning to their former church
4% - would consider returning to another church other than their former church
It is encouraging to see that nearly 75% would consider returning to active church involvement despite the fact that the average length of inactivity is fourteen years!
Why Would They Return
The inactive members were also asked what it would be some reasons that would fuel their return to church. They said:
46% - to get back closer to God
34% - to fill a gap felt since stopping church attendance
32% - to be around others with similar values
31% - to make friends
30% - to help others
It’s interesting to note that all of these reasons for returning indicate that they realize something is missing in their lives, either in their relationship with God or in their relationships with others.
Here’s what we can learn from this research:
1. Always remember we are in the people business. We must show compassion and love in all that we do. The Scripture admonishes us to speak the truth in love (Ephesians
2. Make sure members are quickly assimilated into the church, in particular into a caring small group of some type. The Sunday School class has the best potential for the development of relationships and the ministry.
3. Follow up on your drop-outs. Considering that three out of four church drop-outs are willing to give it another try, we must not neglect the outreach to this group. Who has not attended in the last six months? While they may not go back to the same Sunday School class, perhaps they can be reached through another class or ministry. Thirty-one percent said they would consider returning to “make friends.” Making friends could be the first step to reclaiming these formerly churched.
4. Develop a strategy to reclaim the formerly churched. The research shows there is an openness to return. Forty-six percent said they would consider returning “to bring me closer to God.” How does that happen? Through the study of God’s Word and experiencing an atmosphere of acceptance and unconditional love. Create your own plan to reclaim those dissatisfied, disengaged, and discouraged in your own church.
For Education Ministers: The Summit: A FREE Online Convergence of Small Group Experts, Thurs. Feb. 18th: Bill Donahue, Steve Gladen, Eddie Mosley, Rick Howerton, Carl George, Lyman Coleman and more! http://www.lifeway.com/
For Education Ministers: 4G Conference, Building Great Groups - Sunday School Groups, Discipleship Groups, Small Groups, Missional Groups: Ridgecrest, July 23-26 http://www.lifeway.com/event/?id=361
For Leaders: SS in HD Conference: FBC/Woodstock, March 11-12 http://sundayschoolinhd.org/
For Women: Bible Studies and Resources for Women: choose a Bible study by your favorite women's ministry author http://www.lifeway.com/article/?id=160745
For Men: Dare to be Uncommon: by Tony Dungy http://www.lifeway.com/e7/shop/?id=005223822
For Student Ministry: Register Now for Fuge Camps: http://www2.lifeway.com/fuge/
For Pondering: What's Changing, What's Not: trends that will be affecting your ministry this year http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/currenttrendscolumns/culturewatch/whatschangingwhatsnot.html
