Unchurched

I trust and pray that two major additions will be made to the life of our church family at Stone Church in the next three years.

We will become a church that also meets in homes across the southland. Small groups are a wonderful forum for spiritual growth, as well as reaching the unchurched.

Secondly, we will become a church that does the majority of its ministry outside the church as well as ministry within our four walls.

My heart is burdened for those who aren't connected to Christ in Palos Heights, Orland Park, Lockport, New Lennox, etc......

I talked with a man this week whose basic belief is pantheism. He sees and experiences God in everything. God is in the trash can. God is in the wall. And of course, God is in you and I. Interesting stuff from a 20 something guy in the 21st century.

Here's some interesting thoughts about the unchurched from an article in the U.S.A. Today.

Lifeway Research, the research arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, conducted a survey recently of unchurched adults. Here are their findings.

About God

72% believe that God, or some kind of supreme being exists.

61% say the God of the Bible is "no different from the gods or spiritual beings depicted by world religions such as Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism."

52% agree that Jesus died and came back to life.

About Christians and church

72% say the church is full of hypocrites.

44% say that Christians get on their nerves.

86% believe they can have a "good relationship with God without belonging to a church."

79% say "Christianity today is more about organized religion than loving God and loving people."

About evangelism

78% would "be willing to listen" to someone tell "what he or she believed about Christianity."

89% of the unchurched have at least one close friend who is Christian

71% agreed that "believing in Jesus makes a positive difference in a person's life."

Obviously, there are some inconsistencies here. How can 61% believe that the God of the Bible is the same as the gods of other religions, and yet 52% say that they believe that in the resurrection of Christ? We can't expect the unchurched to have thought through their theology. That typically takes place after conversion.

There are some things we can learn from the numbers. Almost half of all unchurched people say Christians get on their nerves. Since you can't irritate someone and persuade them at the same time, maybe we need to soften our strategy a little bit. Not the message, but the way it's presented.

And since almost 4 out of 5 people would be willing to listen to what someone else believes about Christianity, maybe we should tell our story more often. Especially since 7 out of 10 believe that Jesus makes a positive difference in people's lives. And since almost 9 out of 10 unchurched people have at least one friend who is a Christian, maybe we should start with those closest to us.

Scott McConnell, associate director of Lifeway Research, said, "These outsiders are making a clear comment that churches are not getting through on the two greatest commandments. [love God, love your neighbor] When they look at churches … they don't see people living out the faith.

"What surprised me is the openness of the hard-core unchurched to the message of God and Christianity — just not as expressed in church. It's a personal thing, not an institutional thing. It's a matter of starting conversations."