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How Churches Can Attract the Next Generation
100K church closures loom
According to some estimates, over 100,000 churches could close in the U.S. in the next twenty or so years. Congregations are aging and literally dying off without replacing themselves, reducing their church’s financial resources as the costs of staffing and property increase.
The solution is obvious — make the congregation younger. Churches need a certain number of prime working-age adults to survive.
But how? The solution is as elusive as it is obvious.
Location, location, location is not a strategy for all churches
The fastest-growing churches enjoy the good fortune of being located around booming cities, to which tens, even hundreds of thousands of people have moved for jobs. The church I attended in the Washington, D.C., suburbs was a good example. Many government workers, like my wife, and military service-members passed through.
If you’re planting a new church, then, you should choose an area with a strong economy based on technology, finance, or other sectors with good long-term prospects.
What if your church resides in the kind of area that young people leave to get an education and a career?
