Whether Pastors want to admit it or not, it is concluded from various points of research and from practical experience, that about forty percent of the people attending worship services are doing so out of habit. Thankfully, we have many others that are more likely attending worship because of a deep commitment to the Lord. The difference in the morning worship attendance and the evening service (if a church still has one) is quite noticeable. It has been said that the morning church attendance indicates the people who love the Pastor, the evening attendance mirrors those who love the church and Wednesday evening Prayer Meeting attendance indicates those who love the Lord. As a long-term pastor, I can attest to the fact that this seems to be absolutely true.
Church attendance in America is down substantially. And, Christianity in general has lost a lot of its influence on society in general. Too many churches and denominations have hurt themselves by compromising with the world. The Church is suppose to change the world around it; not be changed by that world. And herein lies a lot of the problem. To be accepted by the society we are now experiencing, many Pastors and churches have lowered the standards by which they live and therefore have lost a lot of respect.
More from Rev. Bill Harrell: Faith: Hope
Along with the rest of the world, the church has been negatively affected by the Covid situation. It has dramatically affected the attendance in a negative way. I have an opinion as to why this is true. Too many of our church members were far too willing to accept the governments shut-down of the churches during the Covid 19 pandemic. I personally think it was a violation of our Constitution for them to shut the churches down calling them “non-essential.” We certainly should not have been careless about our response to the pandemic but it should have been left to the churches as to how they responded to the situation. People have common sense but the government did not give us credit for that. They entered into a dangerous arena when they told religious entities what they could and could not do.
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But, what did the churches do? They obediently shut down and started streaming services on line. This seemed like a great thing to do at the time but let me suggest what the actual outcome was. It got people to being satisfied with staying home and looking at a computer or television set instead of going to church. As mentioned above, about forty percent of our church attendees attend services because of habit. The problem with that is that a “habit” can be broken. There is a vast difference in a habit and a commitment. One can break a habit but a commitment is in another category. A commitment cannot be broken. Many people, it now appears, will never attend worship as they once did. During the extended time of the Covid shutdown, the “habitual” attenders found out something. They got comfortable with sitting in their living rooms in their pajamas, sipping their morning coffee, and watching about three different preachers on the television set. Their own preacher was on the computer or smart t.v. and the others were viewed in living color in the comfort of their living room with a person sitting in their favorite chair sipping coffee. Their feeling became: “I think I am doing o.k. I don’t feel that God is mad with me. I feel good about what I am doing. Anyway, I get three sermons from the likes of Dr. David Jeremiah, Dr. Charles Stanley and Dr. Robert Jeffress from First Baptist Dallas, TX and they were probably better than anything else I would have heard. I feel good about the Lord and me. I don’t feel convicted at all about what I am now doing.”
More from Rev. Bill Harrell: Faith: The Call
This approach was discovered, and became accepted during the Covid pandemic which gave an excuse for doing it. But it broke a “habit” and it takes a long time to re-establish a habit even one which one enjoys. The committed are back in worship services because they love Jesus more than anything. That love for Him and their obedience to God’s Word concerning worship (Heb. 10:25) has led them to God’s House as He has said we should do.
How long will this continue? God only knows. Human nature is hard to overcome and human nature is very willing to continue in a habit which they have substituted for personal attendance in a worship service. By the way, we are not the ones to be pleased; God is. And, He is pleased when His People gather to worship Him according to His Word. It all boils down to this: Do you have a “habit” or a commitment?
Reverend William (Bill) Harrell has been in ministry 48 years. He served as the pastor of Abilene Baptist Church in Martinez, GA for over 30 of those years. He can be reached at wfh@williamfharrell.com. You can also check out his blog at www.williamfharrell.com.
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