Essential Church?: Reclaiming a Generation of Dropouts [Hardcover]

Thom S. Rainer (Author), Sam S. Rainer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2008

Why do so many young adults (18 to 22) leave the church, and what will it take to bring them back? This important question is examined and duly answered in Essential Church?, a follow-up to Thom S. Rainer’s best-selling Simple Church cowritten this time with his son, research expert Sam Rainer.

The book is based on a study of one-thousand so-called "church dropouts" who were interviewed about why they left. Their answers are quite surprising, having less to do with "losing their religion" and more about the desire for a community that isn’t made stale by simply maintaining the status quo.

In turn, the Rainers offer churches four concrete solutions toward making their worship community an essential part these young people’s lives again:

 Simplify - develop a clear structure and process for making disciples.

Deepen - provide strong biblical teaching and preaching.

Expect - let members know the need for commitment to the congregation.

Multiply - emphasize evangelism, outward focus, and starting new churches.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Thom S. Rainer is president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources, one of the largest Christian resource companies worldwide, and the best-selling coauthor of Simple Church. Rainer and his wife, Nellie Jo, have three grown sons and live in Nashville, Tennessee.

Sam S. Rainer is a senior pastor, writer, and the president and CEO of Rainer Research. He also blogs and writes a column for Outreach magazine and lives with his wife, Erin, in Floyds Knobs, Indiana.

From AudioFile

Erik Synnestvedt's precise delivery enhances the authors' examination of the relationship between young adults and the Christian church. Part One examines the reasons that more than two-thirds of young adults 18-22 years old nationwide leave the church. Part Two spells out how the church could be more relevant to young adults in today's world and includes suggestions on how to bring them back to the fold. With lightly accented enunciation and attention to detail Synnestvedt discusses how churches need to return to a clear, simple structure, preach sermons with strong biblical teaching, have an evangelistic outreach worldwide and within the community, and commit to and support their congregations. This call to church relevance should be required listening for all pastors. G.D.W. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 259 pages
• Publisher: B&H Books (September 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805443924
• ISBN-13: 978-0805443929
• Product Dimensions: 6.3 x 0.9 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #66,966 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Thom S. Rainer (PhD, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources in Nashville, Tennessee. He was founding dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism and Church Growth at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. His many books include Transformational Church, Essential Church, and Simple Church.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Not Overly Spectacular, but Several Good Points October 21, 2008

By Benjamin Potter

Format:Hardcover

I've been reading quite a lot of statistically based books lately. This is usually not my cup of tea, but the research helps me to understand trends in such a way as to be better at leading my congregation. As you might have guessed, Thom and Sam are related. Thom Rainer is the president and of LifeWay Christian Resources, the co-author of Simple Church, and the author of several other books, many of which are based on statistical research. His eldest son, Sam, is the senior pastor of First Southern Baptist Church in Floyds Knobs, Indiana, and the president and CEO of the Rainer Group.

These statisticians have written a book that examines the trend of church drop-outs. What their research shows is that the American church is in decline, and the largest group of people dropping out of church is young adults aged 18 to 22. Seventy percent of this age group are dropping out of church while only 30% are staying. Consequently the conclusions they draw and the suggestions they make are aimed at what churches can do to stem the tide of back door users in this age group. Even so, the material can be applied across age brackets when church leaders are trying to invigorate their churches.

The book is divided into two sections: Part 1, dedicated to the research itself explaining "why people are leaving the nonessential church"; and part 2, relating "how essential churches close the back door." The dire picture that the statistics paints is one that causes the first part of the book to seem rather on the negative side.

What we are exposed to in part one is the stark reality that the American church is in decline. It is not really all that surprising with books like unChristian opening our eyes to the fact that the up-and-coming generations are finding more and more things to be disenchanted with about the church. Even so, the Rainers present some interview material that shows that the exodus of young people really has less to do with people getting mad at the church than it does with life change. What the authors discovered in polling and interviewing church dropouts was that these young adults just got out of the habit of going to church because it wasn't an "essential" in their lives.

The authors offer these top ten reasons for 18 to 22 year olds ceasing to attend church:

1.Simply wanted a break from church.
2.Church members seemed judgmental or hypocritical.
3.Moved to college and stopped attending church.
4.Work responsibilities prevented me from attending.
5.Moved too far away from the church to continue attending.
6,Became too busy but still wanted to attend.
7.Didn't feel connected to the people in my church.
8.Disagreed with the church's stance of political or social issues.
9.Chose to spend more time with friends outside the church.
10.Was only going to church to please others.

Part two of the book is actually the more helpful part of what the Rainers write. When you read the book don't skip the foundational material of part one, but for the book to be useful, you'll want to get to part two as quickly as possible. In part two we find the positive side of the message--even though young adults are leaving the church in record numbers, they tide can be turned. And it is, the authors argue, in essential churches. What makes an essential church? According to the book, an essential church is one that:
*Simplifies: Getting the Structure Right
*Deepens: Getting the Content Right
*Expects: Getting the Attitude Right, and
*Multiplies: Getting the Action Right

There are two cautions that I would place when reading this book. The first is mine alone: Beware the temptation to approach the material with an attitude of "churchiolatry." While reading the concerns about the exodus of young adults from the church it is easy to begin thinking that the church is the most important thing. Understanding that scripture dictates the importance of gathering with fellow Christ followers, and understanding also the gravity of the fact that Jesus himself created the church for believers, it is easy to make the creation more important than the Creator--especially when we know (or at least think we know) the best way to express church.

The second caution is one that the authors themselves render when offering the suggested answers to what an essential church is and how you can lead your church to be one, and I concur: Beware of the temptation to use the material in part two of the book to create a "cookie cutter" church. All churches have their own personality, so apply the information according to your situation. All churches are also found in unique situations, so approach the process of becoming essential with your location in mind.

The book itself presents some valuable information in a very readable manner. If you can overlook the overuse of the word plethora (I'm reminded of a certain scene in The Three Amigos), you will be able to use this resource toward turning your church into a God-honoring Essential Church in your community. Wade through the stats and dine on the meat in part two. You will be inspired and challenged. I give Essential Church? three and one-half out of five stars.

--Benjamin Potter, October 21, 2008

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential Church an Essential Resource September 25, 2008

By Laurence T. Baxter VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

More than two-thirds of young adults between the ages of 18-22 leave the church - that's a disturbingly high figure. In this follow-up to the popular book "Simple Church", the Rainers spoke to those who left, the dechurched. What reasons did they give for leaving?

Top Ten Reasons Church Dropouts Stopped Attending Church

1. Simply wanted a break from church.
2. Church members seemed judgmental or hypocritical.
3. Moved to college and stopped attending church.
4. Work responsibilities prevented me from attending.
5. Moved too far away from the church to continue attending.
6. Became too busy though still wanted to attend.
7. Didn't feel connected to the people in my church.
8. Disagreed with the church's stance on political or social issues.
9. Chose to spend more time with friends outside the church.
10.Was only going to church to please others.

The premise of Essential Church is that the reason they leave boils down to this... "Churchgoing students drop out of the church because it is not essential to their lives."

Part 1: Why People Leave the Nonessential Church
Chapter 1: My Faith is Not My Parents' Faith
Chapter 2: Looking for a different kind of community
Chapter 3: That's Life! it changes
Chapter 4: A New Spin on hypocrisy
Chapter 5: All Eyes on the Main Man
Part 2: How Essential Churches Close the Back Door
Chapter 6: The Essential church and the Back door
Chapter 7: Simplify: Getting the Structure Right
Chapter 8: Deepen: Getting the content Right
Chapter 9: Expect: Getting the Attitude Right
Chapter 10: Multiply: Getting the Action Right
Conclusion: Building an Essential Church: A Case Study

The core of the book is on what is needed to reverse the trend. In short, an "Essential Church" focuses on these four critical areas:

Simplify - Deepen - Expect - Multiple

I thought the book was an excellent combination of research, insight, encouragement, and some practical steps churches should consider if they're serious about reversing the perception that church is irrelevant. It should also be an encouragement and challenge to youth ministry leaders. Whether or not you agree with the steps suggested here and in their earlier book 'Simple Church: Returning to God's Process for Making Disciples', I would definitely recommend 'Essential Church'.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Recapturing a Lost Generation March 26, 2009

By Trevin Wax

Format:Hardcover

In 2001, with my first year of Romanian mission work behind me, I returned home for the summer to discover that my youth group friends had disappeared from the church. Only a small handful of the group was now in the college class. The more I tried to connect with old friends, the more I realized that though many were still in town, most of them were no longer in church anywhere.

Apparently, the problem I noticed in 2001 has only grown. Many churches today are waking up to the fact that a generation of young people is missing from the church. The twenty-something crowd has largely disappeared, and most churches know neither why they have left nor what they can do to get them back.

The statistics show that two-thirds of churchgoing young adults drop out between the ages of 18 and 22. These numbers serve as an indictment against the methods and training common to most children and youth ministries. The numbers also indicate an abdication of responsibility on the part of parents to raise their children to value the church.

This sad phenomenon is described in detail in Essential Church?: Reclaiming a Generation of Dropouts(Broadman & Holman, 2008) by Thom and Sam Rainer. In Essential Church, the Rainers (father and son) tell us the reasons young people give for leaving church and what the church must do to win them back.

In the first part of the book, the authors show why young people leave what they call the "nonessential church." In the second part, they show four qualities present in churches that retain their young people through the college years.

I appreciate the way in which Thom and Sam Rainer can share stastics and give advice without emphasizing formulas over substance. Again and again, they say that theirs is not a formula for "success." Instead, they are seeking to steer churches back to orthodox practice and teaching.

Here is what they've discovered: churches that retain young people tend to have simple structures, deep and challenging biblical teaching, an attitude that expects commitment from young people, and an outward focus that leads to evangelism and missions. In other words, churches that function biblically do better at keeping their members. (Surprise!)

Essential Church will encourage healthy conversation about what it means for the church to be the church. It represents a call for the church to return to Scripture rather than outdated methods and formulas for success. And maybe a book like this can help churches stop the mass exodus of young people from their congregation.