Membership

[Gregory Matthews]

From Adventist World, December 2017,  “Annual Council Rport:”

 

“There are 89,167 urban dwellers for every urban adventistcongregation.”  Doug Venn, Director, Global Mission Urban Center.  Page 4

 

“Member loss rate is quite high:  39 percent, or two out of each five new members.  . . . Members do not leave because of theological differences, but because they go through a crisis in life or experience conflict in the church community.”  David Trim, Director of the Office of Archives, statistics and Research.  Page 7

 

 

[Outta Here]

What plans do the church (officially) have in place to help those members in life crisis; or to help rectify conflict experienced in the church? If these are the two main reasons, maybe a better question to ask would be why and what can the church do to lessen the degree to which they lose these members.

[Gregory Matthews]

Aubrey,  I do not have good answers for that and as The Wanderer said . . . . . .

[debbym]

people have their comfort zones, and we have individuals who can stretch and go beyond those comfort zones and people who cannot or will not.  Church conflicts come from our humanity, and trauma or life distress is part and parcel of the human experience.

why the church congregation does not flex and stay with or hold onto people going through stuff... i don't believe  there is a formulaic answer.  i don't think the primitive early church had a problem with this.  The power of the Holy Spirit was much more dominant in the church family experience, and church happened on the level that lives were lived, in the homes.

Now we have a removed building, the church building,  and we leave our homes and go to church, and leave the church and come home to the where we live.  If church is where we live and where we live is also where the church is, even when we are home,  then i think we live differently and do not lose our connection to Church through the vicissitudes of life regardless.

[B/W Photodude]

I remember a study I read about where they asked people who no longer came to church, "what bothered them the most?". A common answer was no one came looking for them. No church should have missing members that no one cares about or fails to notice when they are no longer there. 

[LifeHiscost]

There is nothing secure in the life of anyone who does not place their life in the hands of Jesus. If He is our best Friend, this Word becomes true, without fail.

28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.... Romans 8

My sense of comfort is only assured when I know Who made me and I can be assured of His plans for me. Having just read Daniel 2 and 3 and their experience with the fiery furnace, I'm satisfied,

12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. ....Acts 4

God is Love!~Jesus saves!

[Kevin H]

There is a facebook page called Ex and Current Seventh-day Adventists where a number of Ex-Seventh-day Adventists say that the idea that "Members do not leave because of theological differences, but because they go through a crisis in life or experience conflict in the church community.”  is an Adventist lie and that they and most others do leave due to theological differences

[Outta Here]

On 11/27/2017 at 11:01 PM, B/W Photodude said:

I remember a study I read about where they asked people who no longer came to church, "what bothered them the most?". A common answer was no one came looking for them. No church should have missing members that no one cares about or fails to notice when they are no longer there. 

While I realize a formulaic solution may not be possible, a formulaic scaffolding (or outlined, loosely structured) "plan of action" might be. The fact that a common answer that no one came looking for them tells me there is no plan of action in place.  

A formulaic plan of action could lead to organic, Spirit-led reclamation of believers.

So why does the SDA church not have a basic formula?

[JoeMo]

On 11/27/2017 at 4:23 PM, Gregory Matthews said:

“Member loss rate is quite high:  39 percent, or two out of each five new members. 

Wow!  I'm surprised that the number is not much higher.  In my experience, it seems like the number should be 65%-75% over the first year.  The biggest reason seemed to always be failure to integrate  with the congregation (aka failure of the congregation to integrate the new member). Second biggest reason is theological differences.  If I ever left the SDA church it would be over the latter.

[B/W Photodude]

1 hour ago, JoeMo said:

The biggest reason seemed to always be failure to integrate  with the congregation (aka failure of the congregation to integrate the new member). Second biggest reason is theological differences.  If I ever left the SDA church it would be over the latter.

It seems that all sense of responsibility is lost once a person is baptized. There should be something of a mentoring process for new converts.

If someone drops out, especially soon after baptism, I suspect that a proper preparation of the new member was not done. There should not be theological differences, other than the fact that there already exists two camps in Adventism and Satan is always ready to promote theological differences. Like Jesus said, they should count the cost beforehand. Rushing people thru baptism to pump up the numbers is bad practice.

[Kevin H]

B/W Photodude: Wanted to like your above quote but there are more than two camps in Adventism. Our pioneers came from diverse churches and brought their diversity with them. They agreed on a hand full of fundamentals then as long as they were not fanatics could believe what they understood in scripture. 

I think some of the ways you can slice up the pie is fundamentalists and non-fundamentalists: Desmond Ford, the Adventist Theological Society, Main line Adventists and the so-called "Historic Adventists"/Last generation Theology Adventists would all be fundamentalists. While among large view and other pockets here and there we would be non-fundamentalists. 
, 
We could also divide up between Lutheran, which would include the Fordites and ATS, the Methodists which would include the Larger view, the teachings from Atlantic Union College from the 1970s and 80s, and the Historic/Last Generation, and the Baptists which would include main line Adventists. 

You could divide up between the Forensics and God's wrath being an active punishment that needs to be appeased, which would include Fordites,, ATS and Historic/Last Generation. And the non-forensics which would include larger view, AUC in the 70s and 80s, and the God does not kill subgroup. And mainline being undecided. 

Speaking of which you can divide up between God does kill by imposed penalty: Ford, ATS, Historic/Last Generation; God does kill by natural result by the same action causing heaven to the save causing death to the lost: Larger view/AUC 70s 80s, and the God does not kill: the God does not kill sub group. And Mainline being split between the 3. 

There are the pro and anti women's ordination groups as well. 

When it comes to Fundamentalism and God's wrath The historic/last generation would have much more in common with Ford than with me. But when looking at Methodism and the importance of the investigative judgment the Historic/Last Generation would have much more in common with me than with Ford. 

So you see we have many different subgroups and many different ways we can slice up the pie. This is one of the beauties of Adventism. During our best times we have learned how to play together. During our worst times one or another sub group thinks that they are the only valid version of Adventism and that the rest of us are only nominal Adventists and they want to force their view of Adventism on the rest of us and make us comply. 

Indeed we need to mentor our new members. Support them. Help them to see the basics of Adventism (the landmarks and 28) but also the unity in diversity that we have.