What happens to church drop-outs? Since Polls say that at least 80% of Americans proclaim some kind of religious affiliation but on any given Sunday only 25% go to a house of worship, where have all the drop-outs gone? What happened to them? Paul records in 2 timothy 4:10 “Demas has deserted me because he loves the world”.
It’s not a new problem. Where are they? They are all around. They are now critics of the church and the religious community. They can tell you what is wrong with the Catholics, Protestants, Evangelicals, and Independents. If you want to know, they can enumerate to you all that is wrong in “specific” congregations under each heading.
Many “drop-outs” visit various churches just to be able to declare what is wrong. Cynicism is in the tone of their voices. An “above-it-all” Pharisaism is the condescending attitude.
Something happened or didn’t happen for them in church and they can’t get over it. Many are still angry at their parents for “forcing” them to go to church when they were children, even though that was many years ago.
Most of the drop-outs were gently cared for and helped through a time of stress such as sickness, death, or divorce by that same church that they left. Those kindnesses are now forgotten.
Think carefully on this instruction: (2 Peter 3:17) “since you know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by error and fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ”.
If you are faithful, keep it up. If you are a drop-out, go back to the church where you belong. “Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first”. (Revelation 2:5)
“God, You know how proud we are and how hard it is for us to admit that
we were wrong. Soften hearts and give us a taste for repentance. Amen”
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