That\’s it!

I received some information from a preacher friend today. He sent me a link to some interesting data in a report from USA Today. It was interesting, not only because it is relevant to what we are all doing with World bible School, but also because I happened to overhear two people discussing this yesterday.  One of the comments I overheard on this topic was this, “…people are tired of religion and all the rules. They just want to be spiritual…”  I’m not sure I agree.

The data from the USA Today report.

Then, in a related USA Today article about the decline of religion in America, the author said religion – particularly Christianity – is on the decline in America by 11% over the “last generation”.  His conclusion was that there has been “considerable softening of the edges in doctrine, politics and social values”.

Ok, I accept the statistics from the report. But the author’s conclusion makes me think.

The perspective I see on a daily basis from WBS is a little different.  The WBS picture indicates that there are people in America who are looking for something. Lots of them!  As I pull up the stats for the last year, 21,695 new students have enrolled in WBS from the U.S.! A good number of Americans are not only wanting to study the Scriptures – they are actively engaged in doing so.

I can’t help but wonder – could it be that the free-for-all-love-and-grace-at-no-cost-fest that is so tolerant that it stands for nothing is not what people need deep in their souls? Maybe the decline seen in American religion as it is offered to people today is not a point for chagrin, but it is a point of hope for the Gospel. If I am correct, then this is a great opportunity for Christians to take the Message and once again be the evangelists we were commanded to be.  World Bible School is the perfect tool with which to seize the opportunity.

Well, that’s it!  I’d like to know what you think.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 10th, 2009 at 12:15 and is filed under Reaching the U.S.. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.