The Pew Forum this week came out with a survey on the religious landscape of the U.S. Here are some of their basic findings.
- The U.S. is on the verge of becoming a minority Protestant country. The current percentage stands at only 51%.
- 16% of adults say they are not affiliated with any particular faith which is more than double the number of adults who say they were not affiliated with any faith as a child.
- 28% of people have left the faith in which they were raised for another faith or no religion at all.
- If that previous number included people who move from one Protestant denomination to another it would jump to 44%.
- Only 26% of people in Illinois (supposed heart of the Bible belt) are Evangelical Protestants.
Within the report they use the word “churn” to describe what’s taking place across American churches. The idea behind the word is that churches aren’t growing, they’re just simply exchanging one participant for another from another church.
Here’s what struck me: The number of people who have switched faiths is about the same number of people who change spouses and change careers. We’re consistently inconsistent and ultimately fairly uncommitted . . . to anything. Marriages usually ended because of because of finances, intimacy, or communication. Careers are changed because of lack of fulfillment or opportunity. Churches are changed because of worship styles, carpet colors, and programs that were dismissed. At the end of the day, here’s what I really wonder, “Are marriages, careers, and faith really undone by anything else besides . . . selfishness?”
Too many people take their lives too seriously. They get all tied up in knots because they worry about this (what will people think) or that (what’s going to happen tomorrow). That’s what I appreciate most about my relationships with many of my friends. Most of my friends and aquaintances know how to laugh. They know how to lighten the mood. They know not only how to crack a joke, but many of them have unbelievable comedic timing for when they do it. (In fact, this week I received some really funny responses from people in regards to my new blog . . . No, Brad, I’m not turning in my manhood card!) Anyway, here’s what I’ve noticed it’s hard to worry and laugh at the same time. It’s difficult to fret about tomorrow when you are caught up in the humor of the present.
Too many people feel like they need permission to laugh, like there is some limit to the amount of laughter one is allotted. There isn’t! And if you still feel like you need something in writing, here you go: You, (put your name in here), need to lighten up, have fun, relax, throw your head back, and laugh out loud. You need to do it often and without reservation. If you don’t have a reason to laugh, look around, good reasons exist everywhere (especially this time of year when ice on the sidewalks and parking lots is in great abundance). I guarantee, if you look, you can find a reason to laugh and if you still can’t, let me know, I’ll introduce you to some of my friends.
Welcome to my blog. I hope you will come back often and that I have the opportunity to share some of my experiences with you, but more than that I hope we find ourselves closer to the heart of Jesus.
