I came across this article from ChurchRelevance.com discussing a recent study by the Barna Group.  According to the study, half of all Americans agree with the statement “A growing number of people I know are tired of the usual type of church experience.”  This percentage is even higher among African-Americans (59%) and Hispanics (58%).

Let’s be clear.  This is not saying that 50% of Americans are dissatisfied with the typical church experience.  What is really says is that people are aware that there is a growing dissatisfaction, whether they personally feel it or not.  It should also be noted that study doesn’t identify what constitutes “typical.”  One person’s boring, typical church could be another person’s dream church.  I’m also sure that regional and denominational difference have an impact on what a “typical” church looks like to someone.

While there certainly are a number of things to keep in mind about these numbers, I think that that trend is an important one that we can’t ignore.   There does seem to be a growing dissatisfaction about the way “typical church” is done.  In my experience (and I would love to see the Barna’s numbers on this) that dissatisfaction is stronger among people who are under age 30 or maybe 35.  If we don’t do something about it, those dissatisfied people are going to walk out the door and not come back to church, and non-church goers are going to never give church (or possibly even God) a chance.

This doesn’t mean that the current “typical church” is wrong or that we need to blow up the “typical church” and start all over.  There are too many people who are not dissatisfied.  The current church methods are effective for them.  To get rid of the “typical church” entirely would simply change the group of people who are dissatisfied.  Instead, we need to come up with some new ways of “doing” church.  That may be within existing churches, or it may mean planting some new churches.  Whichever way we go, we need some new methods that show how God is relevant to people today.  If we do that, we can reach people that “typical churches” may be losing, or may never be reaching in the first place.