In Sermon Illustrations: "Closed churches" showing 1,161-1,180 of 8,452

Denominational Loyalty Has Remained Unexpectedly ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Denominational Loyalty has remained unexpectedly strong among those who attended church as children. The church preferences of the adults who did not attend a Christian congregation when young are more likely to attend Baptist churches and not mainline Protestant or Catholic churches. Barna ...read more

Tags: Church General

1 Out Of Every 6 Theological Students In The U.s. ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

1 out of every 6 theological students in the U.S. is enrolled in a Southern Baptist seminary. (Foster ...read more

Tags: Church General

In ‘99, 52% Of Students In Theological School ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

In ‘99, 52% of students in theological school were 35 or over, up from the ‘91 figure of 45%. (Foster ...read more

Tags: Church General

A 5% Increase In Customer Retention Can Translate ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

A 5% increase in customer retention can translate to a 25% to 125% increase in company profitability in the B-to-B marketplace. ...read more

Tags: Church General

Republican Churchgoers: According To New Pew ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Republican Churchgoers: According to new Pew Research Center data, evangelical Protestants have shifted toward the Republican Party over the past 15 years. In ‘87 and ‘88, white evangelical Protestants were split fairly evenly (34% Republicans, 31% Democrats). Today, Republicans have a nearly ...read more

Tags: Church General

Pastor Leadership Styles

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Pastor Leadership Styles Shepherding-loving, nurturing, community-driven 55% Bridge Building-good personality, create consensus, being people together 53% Directional-seeks next logical move, searches for right path 44% Team Building, matching people/jobs, expects it done, hands off ...read more

Tags: Church General

Don't Fear The Unchurched: Thom Rainer, Author Of ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Don’t Fear The Unchurched: Thom Rainer, author of The Unchurched Next Door, recently interviewed unchurched people across the U.S. to understand how they think. Many Christians think anytime they share their faith they’re going to be blasted, criticized, and ridiculed. The research shows 90% of ...read more

Tags: Church General

No Answer: Barna Research Phoned 3400 Randomly ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

No Answer: Barna Research phoned 3400 randomly selected Protestant churches from across the U.S. during December and 55% offered no human answer. Overall: 19% had neither a person nor an answering machine responding to calls; 16% had an answering machine responding; 20% had either an answering ...read more

Tags: Church General

Buster Pastors: The Number Of Busters (Currently ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Buster Pastors: The number of Busters (currently ages 20 to 38) who serve as senior pastors has doubled in just 2 years from 22,000 to 45,000 (nearly 14% of all 324,000 Protestant senior pastors in the U.S.). Buster pastors are more likely to use drama (32% to 21%); show movies, videos, and DVDs ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 13:1-14

Tags: Church Practices

Pastor Search Reality: According To Adair Lummis, ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Pastor Search Reality: According to Adair Lummis, with the Hartford Institute for Religion Research, church pastoral search committees today look for the following in a new pastor: male, married (to a woman), and under age 40. Committees may not say this overtly to candidates, but that’s what they ...read more

Tags: Church General

Diverse Methods Of Worship Are Also On The Rise. ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Diverse Methods Of Worship are also on the rise. New Ellison Research data reports U.S. Protestant churches worship in a more contemporary manner than 5 years ago. Over the past 5 years 44% report no significant change, 15% have moved in much more contemporary direction, while another 36% have ...read more

Tags: Church Practices

Just 43% Of Americans Attend Religious Services ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Just 43% of Americans attend religious services in a week today compared to 49% in 1958. (Foster ...read more

Tags: Church Practices

Contrary To Popular Assumptions, Only 14% Of All ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Contrary to popular assumptions, only 14% of all American evangelicals attend mega-churches. (Foster ...read more

Tags: Church General

Pastor's Pay: A Recent Christian Ministry ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Pastor’s Pay: A recent Christian Ministry Resources (survey finds: Protestant pastors’ pay packages average $73,000. Mega-church pastors earn an average of $108,000. Pastors of congregations with less than 100 members receive $32,500. Average salaries increased to $60,000 for churches with 100 to ...read more

Tags: Church General

What Do People Want In Their Pastors? A New ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

What Do People Want In Their Pastors? A new study by Hartford Institute researcher Adair Lummis reveals that, first and foremost, lay leaders want a pastor with an authentic religious life. Most lay people define that as a person whose faith combines both head and heart; a person whose lifestyle ...read more

Tags: Church General

Nearly 57% Of The Nation's Religious ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Nearly 57% of the nation’s religious congregations have fewer than 100 active adult participants. (Foster ...read more

Tags: Church General

The Numbers Of Americans Attending A Weekly ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

The numbers of Americans attending a weekly worship service dropped from about 40% in the ‘60s to about 25% today. ...read more

Tags: Church General

State Of The Unchurched: Since ‘91, The U.s. ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

State Of The Unchurched: Since ‘91, the U.S. adult population has grown by 15%. During that same period the number of unchurched adults has nearly doubled, rising from 39 million to 75 million–a 92% increase! The latest Barna Group study shows that the percentage of unchurched adults has risen from ...read more

Tags: Church General

Fewer Churchgoers Since ‘91, The Adult Population ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Fewer Churchgoers Since ‘91, the adult population in the U.S. has grown by 15%. But during that same period, according to a new Barna Group study, the number of adults who do not attend church has nearly doubled, rising from 39 ...read more

Tags: Church General

Youth Pastor Burnout: The Bridges Project, A ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Youth Pastor Burnout: The Bridges Project, a research study of the Institute for Youth Ministry at Princeton Theological Seminary, has identified several factors common to youth pastors who experience burn-out or a lack of success in ministry: ►Inability to shape healthy work relationships ...read more

Tags: Church General