As a lay pastor it always deeply saddens me when I see churches close the doors for good. In this area of Central Ontario the year 2016 has seen several churches close down in the area. And the ones that remain open are really struggling to keep going. What is happening? Why has there been such a departure from church attendance?
Thinking back half a century ago when I was a child there really was not much to do on any given Sunday. Shops and businesses were closed, there was no organized sports no computers or video games or amusement parks nearby. There was no cable TV, and the options on both of our 2 channels on the black and white TV were church services. Church was literally the only thing happening on Sunday morning, so people went. It was actually quite refreshing and renewing having a quieter laid back day from the rest of the week.
Nowadays there are so many attractive things to do on a Sunday, and people including Christians are taking advantage of it. The Blue Laws in 1985 were declared unconstitutional in Ontario and businesses flung their doors wide open for business, which had a big impact on family and church life. Many people who previously attended church now had to work on Sundays, which makes church attendance for some very difficult or impossible.
More and more we have also become a society who want to be entertained, and people will pay top dollar to make that happen. From the website Credit Loan, it states that the average American (which would be comparable to Canada) spends an average of $2827 per year on entertainment.
Sadly this has carried over to the church. People come to church with expectations of “what’s in it for me”. But true church worship revolves around God and not our own expectations. Our church does have audiovisual support in our services, we are on social media, and have a blog in order to be more relevant in this fast paced technological society. It is not meant to be entertainment but to be a part of the worship experience. A great article on worship can be found at Crosswalk titled “Worship The Way God Intends”.
So why not take an hour or so today to support your local church. Remembering it is not about “me” and being entertained, but about worshipping God. “The deepest and most enduring happiness is found only in God. Not from God, bit in God” ~John Piper~
My Sunday Blog 
How much of the absence from churches is an absence of relevance? I left the church a few years ago when I saw the priest was quite frankly lazy. His attempts at relevance were disappointing and left me disillusioned.
Millennials, who will be the defining future of church attendance are more spiritual than religious. Religion and church attendance has been tainted as we are exposed to more views and far far too often Religion is seen as the hand of condemnation and judgment.
Where I live, there’s an exponential growth in fire churches – a God who promises wealth, prosperity and destruction of enemies and obstacles. God is an ATM, Jesus the PIN.
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Thank you for reading and taking the time to share honestly and respectfully. What you have shared about absence of relevance is very accurate. The world has moved ahead so quickly, a lot of churches have not kept up.
This is the 1st time I have heard the term “fire churches”. There are churches out there that are relevant for today’s society and true to the Bible. But it will take some work to find them.
Thanks again for sharing! Hope you have a great day! 🙂
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The decline in the church today saddens my heart. Heaven should be kept in perspective; it’s not about my pastor or my church but it’s all about God.
kind regards from Nigeria
Itofa
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Thank you for reading and sharing Itofa. So important, and cannot be emphasized enough is that it is all about God. 🙂
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It is so sad to behold the moral decay all around us. And it starts with leaving the church because whether we like it or not, believers need to be connected to a church family, to each other, as we spur one another on towards God. Keep preachin’, Carl!
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April, thank you for reading and sharing your valued comment. God indeed has designed for us as believers to be connected to one another through the fellowship of church families. We miss out on so much when there is not that connection. I appreciate so much your encouragement! 🙂
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