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Prairie Lakes Church, welcome. Um, I feel like I haven't seen you in forever, and, uh, it has been a, it has been a little while, uh, through the, through the fall of last year, um, with, with Pastor John being gone. Uh, I was on a lot.

And so we just thought it would be nice to rebalance, give you guys a little bit of a break from me. Um, but, but listen, I'm really, really glad to be back up here. And, and thanks so much for joining us, uh, this weekend. Hey, uh, last week, pastor John kicked us off in a series that we're still in, and we're calling it, um, we don't go to church anymore.

And, uh, we're just discouraging people from coming to church from this point forward. It's a new direction that we have. No, we don't go to church anymore. So here's, here's what we're talking about. 'cause it's, it's based on some data and actually a pretty massive study on religious behavior in America for the last 25 years.

And, uh, um, it, it was all compiled into a book that we're gonna be drawing from the book's called, uh, the Great De Churching. Okay? Who's leaving? Why are they going? And what will it take to bring them back? It's a great book for you to purchase if you want, on your own.

It's on Kindle, um, audio books. It's, it's kind of everywhere. Um, they also did a podcast, by the way, if you're kind of into that. It's called, the podcast is called As in Heaven. And it's the same data that they're talking about. Okay?

Um, but, but it's, but it's about this thing that they're calling, uh, the, the Great de Churching. Now, here's what they mean by dechurched. Here's how they define, here's how they define that. A de church person is someone who used to go to church at least once per month, which you might feel like, well, that's not very regular, okay?

But, but nevertheless, they, they went at least monthly, but now they go less than once per year. That's, that's who they're talking about. And this is happening at a, at a, at a pretty large scale. Okay? So, so, so good news, bad news situation when it comes to this phenomenon of de churching in America.

Good news, bad news, bad news first, of course, right? And Pastor John covered some of this, um, when he kicked the series off last week, but just in case you missed it, here's just, here's the big high point. Uh, about 15% of American adults living today, which equates to about 40 million people, okay?

40 million Americans have effectively stopped going to church mostly in the last 25 years. That's a lot, that's a lot of people. And this is true across the board, okay? It's not just in that place over there, right? It's every theological tradition, every age group, every ethnicity, both sides of the political aisle, um, every education level, every geographic location, every income bracket.

It doesn't matter. And it's true, not only just across the board, it's true here in our state. Um, every county in Iowa except four, saw an either single or double digit decline in religious adherence. People going to church, every single county, almost in Iowa, most of them by double digits.

Okay? So here's what this means. You and I, we are living in a time that's kind of an inflection point. It's kind of an inflection point when we're seeing something in our generation, while maybe it's been decades in the making, is surfacing now in some really visible, measurable, and expressed kind of ways.

There's been a massive accelerated shift from going to church to not going to church, um, especially in the last 25 years. And, and actually even more so in the last five, okay? So I, this fascinates me for obvious reasons, but, but I've been kind of talking about it a little bit on, on my own social media and just saying, here's what we're doing at Pray Lakes.

And I've got a luck, I've got a pretty significant response, but here's the response to what I've shared on social media. Okay? Um, several of us kind of like saw that, and we go, oh, that's so sad. And it is. That's exactly right. It is so sad. Um, or another one's more like, oh man, we really, we really gotta be praying for revival.

And yes, yes, we do. And okay, I also wanna be the kind of church that does something about this, right? I mean, I wanna be a church that prays. Nothing's gonna change if we don't, but I don't want us to be a church that just prays.

Um, I want to be a church, and I want us to be a church that obeys that that does something that God wants us to do. Uh, so much of what God told us and taught us throughout the whole Bible, old Testament and new, is that we need to be people who obey, uh, and, and obedience in the Bible, for the most part, like happens in the context of relationships.

It's with people. It, it happens in our relationship with God. It happens in our relationship with one another. It happens in our relationship with our neighbors. It happens in our relationship with our enemies. I mean, obedience almost always, at least in God's economy, happens in the context of a relationship with people.

And, and that's what I'm most excited about when it comes to this series. 'cause I think as we learn more about these people, these de churched people, um, we're not only gonna be able to be, uh, better prayers for them. Um, we'll be better, uh, relators to them.

We're gonna be in a better position to be obedient, okay? Because why? Because God so loved the world, and he really does. All right? So, uh, the surveyors behind this book and all this data, they identified, uh, five different groups or categories of de-churched people, and they categorized them based on their responses to the reasons they gave for why they're no longer attending.

So in this series, we're gonna look at four out of those five, we started last week, but this weekend, here's the specific group of people that we're gonna be taking a look at. We're gonna be taking a look at Dietrich people who said, I just got outta the habit.

And you're like, really? That's what we're talking? Yeah. This is a huge group of people. We're the primary reason for them that just, I, they used to, and now they just don't. Um, so let's get a little bit more specific, right? Because here's, here's the profile.

Okay, here's, here's what they look like. Their average age is 40, kind of me. Um, I'm a little, I'm a few years above 40 now, but, but like, that's what their average age. They likely dropped out during the Covid pandemic. Something happened there. Um, they're living, well, pretty comfortably.

Higher education, maybe like middle class, upper middle class. Um, they don't have a negative view of the church. We're gonna talk about that, by the way, a little bit later on. Church hurt is a reason, but not for the group this week.

And that's, they're not going because they got hurt. They're just not going. They still believe, like, and, and the book will will tell you it's, it's not, they don't, it's not exactly the same as those of us who are still going. But for the most part, they still believe and a hundred percent of them indicated that they would return.

That's, that's this group of people. They just got outta the habit. They're not going, but they still believe and they, and they would return. They're open to that. So, so as that's on there, okay, just, just a question for you. It's rhetorical. Obviously you can't answer me back, but, and please don't, it'll be super awkward.

Um, but the question I've got for you, do you know someone like this? Do you, do you know someone, do you have someone in mind right now? 'cause if you do pay attention to that, that's, that's God probably telling you, Hey, pay attention.

Okay? They used to go, but they just got outta the habit. They still believe, but they'd absolutely come back and maybe they've even said something like, um, oh, we gotta get back to church. I know, I know we do. Oh, we, we should, we should really get back.

And yet they don't. And they're not. Um, if we dove a little bit deeper beyond just like a demographic label to these people, and, and, and we, we kind of heard from them about w what is actually going on? Here's what we would find, and here's what they've said is going on below the surface about what's caused them to, to not just go away, but to, to stay away.

So here's the reasons. Okay? Um, why'd you get outta habit? Well, uh, 22% of them says, I moved. I, that is the most common. I, I used to go, I moved to a new place, maybe the new neighborhood, and I, and I just, I stopped, okay.

Um, attending was inconvenient. Maybe I got a little comfortable during Covid and I attended online or whatever. And then, you know, the idea of getting in the car on a Sunday just doesn't feel great. Um, divorce, remarriage, family changed a lot of that lot, a lot of stress put on the home and marriage and family during Covid.

Um, COVID got me outta the habit. I didn't fit with my congregation. That was another one. And then I didn't experience much love from my congregation. Maybe I didn't even feel missed. Okay? Now, those are the reasons. I think there is something, especially in these last two, um, that I wanna dive a little bit more deeply into.

Um, because, because the rest of the lists are kind of circumstantial, uh, even, even though they're a little bit higher up, they're a little bit more common. They're circum, they're circumstances that like were bumps in the road that like, got people off.

But I think these bottom two, these probably are what are keeping people away. Um, these are, these are circumstantial. These, those seem to be relational. Um, and, and I think that's what might be going on with this group of people.

Some of whom you and I know personally, who not only got outta the habit, but stayed out. Um, and, and now they're just disconnected. It, it, it, it, it might be uncomfortable for us to admit those of us who've stayed and stuck around, but maybe the kind of church they left, these people left wasn't compelling enough to keep them connected.

Maybe, um, maybe leaving the church created a little hole in their lives. But it was, it was pretty much just that it was, it was a little hole. Just little, maybe on some level, the kind of church, um, that they left wasn't compelling enough to keep them.

Maybe on some level it, it should have been creating a larger hole in their lives. You know, it should have been having a larger impact on them. But, but, but it's not, and, and, and it didn't. And so maybe, okay, and this is where you're gonna have to decide.

Um, maybe for those of us who haven't left, we stuck, we stuck it out, or we, we, we stuck with it, or we're still here. Um, and it is compelling dog on it. You know, may the, maybe those of us have, who have stuck around, um, need to kinda look at ourselves as a church in the mirror, which I think that's what I wanna do.

Um, 'cause for us here at Prairie Lakes, uh, our mirror is scripture. I mean, it is, it's, it's what God's word the Bible says and what his word says about us, uh, God's church. You know, when, when we want to see not only what we look like, but what we should look like as the church, where we look for that is, is to, God's word, is to, is to scripture.

And, and what it says, and when we do what we're gonna discover is the Bible paints a a super compelling picture of the church. Like, it, it is something that I, because I even read it again for the millionth time, I'm like, oh, I wanna be a part.

I wanna be a part of something like that. You know, it's super compelling. So turn with me to Romans 12 is where we're gonna be. Romans 12. And we're gonna be working through a few chapters of Romans this weekend, 12 through 15 actually. Um, but we're gonna start in Romans 12.

And I'm just gonna give you the heads up, okay? Some of the verses are gonna be on the screen, but not all of them. 'cause we, you know, here's what we want. Really. We, we want you in the Bible on your own yourself. Your phone works great.

If you, the Bible app on your phone works great. You, you don't have to get a big leather, one of these, you know, um, they sell 'em pretty, pretty cheap. But we really, really do want you like your eyes on, on your own Bible and not just on Sundays. Okay? So, um, kind of follow along with us.

Romans 12 is where we're gonna be. Um, but as you find that, lemme give you a little bit of a framework or a, a title if you're taking some notes. Um, because Romans 12 through 15 is gonna paint a very compelling picture of the church at its best.

Um, but here's the framework for us, okay? At the very top of your notes, write this, write sticky church. Sticky church, okay? It's kind of gross. Yeah, I know. Um, I, I probably could have, maybe should have picked a different adjective.

Um, but, uh, I'm not really to talk about like the gum on the bottom of your shoes. I'm not trying to talk about your toddler's hands all the time for some reason, right? Um, the kind of sticky i, i, I wanna talk about is, is is more relational.

You know, it's, I mean, it's personal. It's, it's like when we stick together, it's what bonds us. You know, it's what's really, really hard to break, like gorilla glue baby, you know? I mean, the way that the Bible talks about God's church is super sticky in that kind of way.

Where, where people don't get stuck, but they stick together. Um, so, so let's, let's, let's start here. Romans 12. I want you to, to, to hop to verse four. Let's read, um, four and five together, okay? Four, just as each of us has one body, uh, with many members, um, and these members do not all have the same function.

So in Christ, we though many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. Okay? This is like one of my favorite metaphors in the Bible when it talks about us like God's church, um, this, this metaphor of like, we are a body, we're a body.

Uh, you've got a body, I've got a body, um, I've got fingers that work because they're connected to my hand. I got a hand that works 'cause it's connected to my brain. I got a brain that works most of the time, um, because it's connected to my heart and I have a heart that works because of a mechanical valve and a prosthetic aorta.

That's what I got going on. But it still works. Okay? Um, that's the metaphor, okay? Not the prosthetic aorta part, but like the body part, you know, and that, and that's the first aspect of a sticky church. Okay? Four and five will tell us a sticky church.

There's like a real authentic connection and belonging. Like there's, like, it's real. Okay? It's a real authentic connection. And, and the belonging. Now that's a great idea, right? Like, oh, we should be connected and it should be belong.

It's a great idea. It doesn't always happen. How, how do I build that? How do I experience that? What does, what does that mean? Okay? Um, verse six. Verse six, it says, we have different gifts according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then do it right Then prophesy in accordance with your faith.

If it's serving them, do it. Then serve. If it's teaching them, teach. If it's to encourage, then give encouragement. If it's giving the gift generously, if it's to lead, do it diligently. If it's to show mercy, do it.

Do it, do it cheerfully, right? Listen, real connection and belonging will happen when you actually do whatever, when you actually serve, when you actually serve in the kind of way that God has gifted you to serve.

And you do that with one another. Um, if I get fired, and that's always a possibility, okay? What if I get fired and I'm no longer paid to do what I get a chance and a privilege to do. Okay? If that happens, you don't gonna miss the most besides like the financial security.

Um, what I'm gonna miss the most about this is just being on a team. Like trying to do stuff together with Jesus and for Jesus together. You know, that's what I'm gonna miss the most. Because, because that's how God designed you and me.

He designed us to, to need that, to form those bonds in that kind of way. He's given you some, some gifts and, and you get a chance, and you have the responsibility, by the way, to figure out how to use those gifts. And, and, and you're gonna use those in the church and for the church and, and with others and for others.

And the bonds that form as a result Of that, man, those bonds are sticky. They really are. They really are. That's the first thing. Okay, let's keep going, jump down with me now to verse nine. Well, let's look at nine and 10. Love must be sincere.

Hate what's evil. Clinging to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love and honor one another above yourselves. This Is like the next part of the sticky church, okay? Verses nine to 10 sticky churches are, are churches that love one another in action, okay?

They love one another in action. They don't just serve one another, they love one another. Okay? Um, let's go, let's go to the next one there. Okay? They love one another in action. Okay? So, so, so, so take a look with me now in verse 13, just, just in your own bibles, okay?

Verse 13 says this, share with the Lord's people who are in need, practice hospitality. When it, when it, when it starts defining, how do we love one another? That's how it defines it.

That's how we're gonna love an action. By what? By creating a home for one another. By creating a home for one another. Okay? You, you can do this on Sundays in your own church home, and you could do it during the week, um, with your, your own home.

Alright? So, so make sure, make sure though that you, that you don't miss this picture. Um, This home thing is another like huge significant metaphor when it comes to the church, because here's what God wants. God Wants everyone at church To feel at home when he Says love one another.

And he says, do it by practicing hospitality church. He wants everyone at church to feel at home. And it's not just at Church. God wants Everyone in his church To Keep their homes open.

Home is a big deal. Huge deal. This is why we go, by the way, this is why we go to such great lengths to have, um, massive guest services teams and, and there's parking and there's greeting, and there's cafe and there's connection, and there's security and there's medical.

I mean, it's just this, when it's full, it's a massive team. Why? Seriously be, it's because we want you to feel At home because That's God's design and his intention for the church, For Everyone to feel At home.

What does that mean? That means none of us are too good to volunteer on that team. If you're like, wow, Wow, wow. Listen, when are you, when you, when you do that, even the smallest part of that, you are doing something that is at the core of the identity of the why, Of why God brought this thing into existence called the church.

'cause he wants everybody to feel at home, everybody to be a part of this family, this body. Okay? So maybe that's a good step for you as you're thinking about doing this, or maybe it's time for you to open up your own home, you know, for, for, for a neighbor, for your kids' friends, for a small group or a house group, you know, talk, Talk to your campus pastor about it.

Is there a way that I, you want me to use my home for what God's doing? I mean, either way, what we're supposed to be is the kind of church where we love one another by creating A home for one another. It's right there. It's part of God's vision, okay?

Sticky church, let's keep going. Jump down with me to, uh, let's go to verse 18. Let's go to verse 18. Romans 1218 says, if it's, if it's possible, as far as it depends on you live at peace with everyone. It's one of my least favorite verses in the Bible.

Just kidding, but kind of not, you know, living at peace. It's, this is a big deal. This is a really, this is a, and it certainly is convicting for me. You know, someone like, eh, kinda like arguing sometimes, eh, kinda like a good fight, you know?

But the next part of being a sticky church is this. The church should be an Oasis of peace. It really should be. It should be an oasis of Peace In the, in the middle of a world That is constantly at war, right?

That constantly at war, Both literally and metaphorically. We need to be an oasis of peace. War's gonna rage on the Middle East. It's gonna rage on in, in the Ukraine, you know, the left is at war with the right.

There's a war on democracy. There's a war in the family. There's a war for equality. My stomach goes to war with me when I ate that pizza last night, okay? Lots of war. But the church, as far as depends on us, If it's in our control, the church should be a place in a community, an oasis Of peace In a world at war.

That's pretty sticky. That's pretty sticky. Okay? How are we gonna do that? Well actually jump back up to verse 14 with me. Okay? H how, how do we be this oasis of p peace 14 says this, bless those who persecute you. Bless and do not curse.

Rejoice with those who rejoice, mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited than we get, um, to 17. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful what to do.

What is right in the eyes of everyone. Here's our verse. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you live at peace with everyone, and then it continues. Don't take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written, it's mine to avenge I will repay, says the Lord.

On the contrary, here's the thing. If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he's thirsty, give him something to drink. And in doing this, you will heat burning coals on his head. Not literally. That'd be kinda weird. Don't be overcome with by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Okay? How are we gonna be an oasis of peace by loving our enemies and just leaving the rest to God? That, that's one where the rubber kind of meets the road for a lot of us. If, if you dove into the data a little bit further, um, well, you'd see a world that feels like the church is a political puppet and they just got wrapped up, and I'm not welcome there unless I believe, or if we were people of peace, we would just go, you know what the most important thing is, is to love our enemies.

Yeah. Those people who are advancing social initiative that you don't agree with, the political agendas that you push back on, the neighbors who play their music too loud and they don't take care of their yard. Um, the coworker who is just the worst, right?

What could you tangibly do to show them grace? Some they didn't deserve? How could you do something that was kind and helpful that they didn't even ask for? Sticky churches are an oasis of peace because we smother our enemies, Our Love and kindness.

Okay? Now, just for time's sake, I I, I don't have time to go through the rest of 14 and 15, but, but I I, I do want to, uh, walk through some of this stuff really quickly and, and as I do, here's what I wanna challenge you, okay? This week you can go back, you can watch the sermon, you can grab the notes or whatever, but this week, Romans 14 and 15, spend some time in even like, maybe before your group, spend some time in it because here's the rest of what this sticky church can look like and maybe should feel like.

Okay? Um, let's go to Romans 13, one through six. Uh, the church isn't a political puppet, that's what that's gonna talk about. But instead, the church should be a civic asset. How can we, in a very divisive season, be someone that's for the city that we're in?

Okay? Um, Romans 13, 18, 8 through 10, Hey, we're a sticky church by loving our neighbor, which is more important than anything else. Uh, Romans 14, one through 12 sticky churches keep the main thing, the main thing. No stupid disputes.

Listen, I love a stupid dispute. I, I do. Okay. I, I like wrestling with it and talking about it. I probably read articles on both sides and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And Boy, the main thing is the main thing, Jesus and what he said, right?

Okay. Um, Romans 14, 13 through 22, sticky churches are nonjudgmental, which doesn't mean that we're moving the boundaries on sin, but we know that we're all sinners. You know? So who am I? Right? Like, I believe in God's truth, but who am I?

I'm not, I don't, I'm not in that position to condemn. I know who I am. I know what my garbage is, right? And then finally, Romans 15, one through 18, sticky churches, they're accepting of one another. Not in the sense of we're just accept everything that everybody does.

No, no, no. But we are gonna accept you despite what you do. If you could see that entire list of all the things God tells us his church ought to be, could be, should be. Who is leaving that? Who's leaving a community like that?

Who's leaving a family like that? A home like that, A body like that. Who's leaving that? Who wouldn't miss that? You know? Okay. So as we close down here, okay, um, here's how we're gonna close. One simple step for you, especially as it relates to these people who got bumped off and have stayed away, and just get out of the habit.

What's our step? What's our step here? Okay? Um, here's what the surveyors found. And and it's not gonna shock you, okay? Here's, here's the quote I said there. These are mainly people who just need a few nudges to come back to church, as long as it's the kind of church that God envisioned, but they just need a little nudge.

We have had a number of people in our own lives who have started coming back to church with just a single invitation. There's the quote, okay? So here it is for us more than anything, those that got out of the habit simply need a friend to reach out.

Just extend a personal invitation. We started this year in Ephesians, we talked about being the kind of church. What if 2024 was the year in which we experienced the kind of church that only God could have imagined? We talked about finding a friend and growing together.

We talked about let's be beat him with their money. And here's the thing, again, coming up in this series right here, just make this the year that you make one invite. Just one, just one, just one. Over the course of this year, I'm sure you know someone that's just got outta the habit.

They just got outta the habit. What if I told you they just need a simple nudge. They just need you to look at 'em and say, Hey, I got a, I got a church that think you're gonna like, come sit with me. Okay? Simple step. Let's pray. Kind of to that end.

Um, father in heaven, thank you for just this, this reminder of what a compelling picture your church really is and can be. God, I am sure there is one of those kind of sticky steps we probably need to take in order to continue to, to bring that kind of church into reality.

And God, would you, especially even right now, would you put a name on our heart and God, would you write that name on our heart? And would you give us the, the courage and the discernment we need to just offer that simple, extend that simple invitation.

Come sit with me and God, would you do, would you do the thing that only you can do, which is move someone and move them back? So Jesus, we do, we pray all this in your name. Amen. I.