I woke up this morning with this desire to just post something that asked people to “Come unto Christ.” I thought of a few things I could do and nothing really stuck. I happened to be checking something on Twitter and came across a post by Hank Smith. I will embed it below.
He posted 4 charts about religion in America. I looked at each chart. They are troubling but not surprising in the least bit.
CHURCH ATTENDANCE
In one you see the highest church attendance is the LDS church. I’m sure other churches have high attendance. I’m sure the Jehovah’s Witness church has high attendance. Some I know are low. Even listening to Pastor Jeff talk about the Protestant religion, you know attendance is low. Which is why I think they have turned their services into theatrical performances. I don’t feel salvation is achieved through entertainment.
Here is the source data: Church Attendance Has Declined in Most U.S. Religious Groups (gallup.com)
When looking at that article, there was another chart that shows the amount of change over the last 20 years. I was very surprised the LDS Church only dropped 1% while other religions had more substantial drops. Then there is Judaism and Islam. Both had increases. The increase in Islam does not surprise me. The increase in Judaism does.
GROWTH OF THE UNAFFILIATED
In this chart, you see those unaffiliated with religion in the United States increasing to 23%. I looked around for supporting data and didn’t find that exact chart. But I found one by the Pew Research Center that seemed to match the data. And the data is worse because in 5 years you lost 5 percent more. I believe the data is consistent because the span from 2007 to 2019 seems consistent with each other on both graphs.
A 15% drop in affiliation is significant. The shift in America has been away from God and Christ rather than toward them. There is this scripture in the Book of Mormon that says; Alma 48:17 Yea, verily, verily I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the devil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men.
Moroni was a man who was full of faith, hope, charity, and love. Those are four things we are missing across America today. They are causing us to turn our hearts from God. We had an awakening of these things around 9/11 and now we as a nation have been abandoning them for power, money, and a myriad of other glutenous things. We have cast God out of our schools, government, and public square, and in place of God, we have started to worship pride, vanity, and secularism.
About Three-in-Ten U.S. Adults Are Now Religiously Unaffiliated | Pew Research Center
VALUES
Our world has become topsi-turvi in the last few years. There were once core American values rooted in patriotism, founded on moral values that were established by biblical truths. Now look at us. If you love America half of the country thinks you are a racist nationalist no better than a murdering nazi. Love of country has become hate speech for some. Flying an American flag has become hate speech. America is now a weak and divided nation.
Most of America does not know the prophecies about America. They are all in the Book of Mormon. The land has been a promised land to other nations in the past. It then became a promised land unto the Gentiles. But, God commands any nation that possesses this land to worship Him. If they do not, they will face the judgments of God.
However, her future is sure. The Glory of God will shine from this land in the future.
I’m not sure what to say about children. We have been and will continue to face the plague of abortion. We are facing the LGBTQ shift which does not produce very many children or the desire to have the. We have seen a shift in the cost of living which has made children more expensive. It is harder to sustain yourself and your family if you can not afford to feed or shelter them.
- Patriotism
- Religion
- Children
- Money
Here is the source: America Pulls Back From Values That Once Defined It, WSJ-NORC Poll Finds – WSJ
CHURCH MEMBERSHIP
You have two different things going on here.
- First, how many Americans are affiliated with a church?
- Second, how many affiliated with a church are now affiliated with a church?
Look at the data and see the biggest changes
- Women
- Non-Hispanic Black
- Non-Married
- Democrat
- From the East
There truly is a disintegration of the family taking place. There has been in the black community for some time. I know it isn’t exclusive to them. The white community is not far behind. The abolishment of the male-dominated patriarchy is evident. Changes in the traditional family and traditional roles within a family are evident. Political values that don’t align with traditional morality established by religion are evident.
Here is the source: U.S. Church Membership Falls Below Majority for First Time (gallup.com)
SUMMARY
This started today with me having a desire to ask others to “Come unto Christ.” I think some of these statistics are depressing. They show that there are many not coming to Christ. Rather, they are turning away from him.
I know that most of these changes are a result of men and women seeking fulfillment and happiness. Honestly, the greatest fulfillment and happiness that one can have is by “Coming unto Christ.” His is the greatest source of happiness.