What is actually drawing people into a particular church? Is it the contemporary worship music? Is it a seeker sensitive church, with an emphasis on visual arts like drama and multimedia? If you think you know the answers, you may want to read this book first. Thom Rainer and his team of researchers decided to ask people who had recently started attending church what made them come and what made them stay. The result: Surprising Insights from the Unchurched, a fascinating look into the mind of what Rainer calls the "unchurched."
All of Rainer's conclusions are statistically documented, and illustrated with graphs, charts, and even maps. He and his team asked some 350 formerly unchurched people various questions about their experience and what got them where they are now. The answers will likely shatter a few myths that Christians hold concerning the unchurched, and the way to reach out to them. Learn what is important to them, and you will be able to reach out to them more effectively.
Rainer takes the research further than simple statistics about the unchurched though. He also profiles leaders at churches which are effective in reaching out to the unchurched. He calls these churches "effective evangelistic churches," which means that they have at least 26 conversions per year, and a conversion ratio (members:annual conversion) of less than 20:1 (the national average is, at 85:1, sobering to say the least). Through Rainer's research, you can learn the characteristics of effective leaders, and catch the vision that they share for evangelism. He includes several appendices to help you gain this vision, and to get your church where it can be effective. The appendices are: questions for the formerly unchurched; a leadership survey; follow-up questions for effective leaders; an unchurched-reaching readiness inventory; a church health survey; and an objective research design and statistical review.
If you are already doing the things Rainer has found to be effective, praise God, and keep doing it. If you are not sure where to start, begin by building on the sure foundation of Rainer's work. And if you need to refocus your energies, this book is a great impetus. A book for all Christians, but especially church leaders, Surprising Insights from the Unchurched, will teach us how to reach out to the unchurched and how to make them feel welcomed and loved. Don't delay, buy it now.
A first-of-its-kind comprehensive study of the formerly unchurched explodes some common myths as to what it takes to reach people and provides insight into how the Christian church can develop effective approaches to reach the growing number of unchurched in North America.
Average Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4 out of 5 stars)
7 of 7 Reviews Showing:
5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Charlene Williams (Grandview, TX), September 10, 2009
This is a GREAT book, and an easy read. I would recommend it to both clergy and lay persons. It has opened my eyes, and I plan to share it with others. We are currently reaching out to the unchurched and are putting more emphasis on evangalism. It is going to be a tremendous help.
5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Keith Hull (Tauranga 3116,), August 21, 2008
A carefully-researched study of why people are attracted to a Church group and what keeps them there. Great insights from the careful surveys are convincing and worthy of study by any leader who seeks to be effective in reaching the unchurched.
3.5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Mike Mitchell (Hampton, VA), January 22, 2008
Pastor Rainer should be commended for approaching the problem with reaching our nation from a new perspective. Rather than simply copying the methods big churches are trying, or surveying the culture to figure out why people don’t go to church, Rainer’s group spent most of their efforts talking to people who moved from unchurched to churched, finding out what prompted them to make that choice. I was encouraged he quoted Dean Kelley’s 1972 classic "Why Conservative Churches are Growing." Like Kelley, Rainer discovered that the unchurched wanted to know why we believe what we believe. They want deep doctrine. They want relationships. They expect excellence. In too many old churches and even seeker-sensitive churches, there is nothing there to make the church attractive.
He doesn’t stop there. The book pulls no punches in describing what the pastor must do and be to reach the unchurched. It gave new clarity why some pastors can’t seem to make progress no matter what hot new program they try.
It’s a good but not a great book, but it’s easy to read, and the 40 pages if survey questions are almost worth the price of the book by themselves.
4.5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by David Dillon (Newfield, NJ), December 11, 2007
This is the one book that I will recommend to the leadership of this church for this coming year. (After their personal bible reading.)
The review rating on this book puzzled me. Why did it not get a better rating? However, after reading the initial rating from 2004, I could not help but wonder if that individual had truly read the book or only skimmed it. Rainer's Test group was not the "seekers", but those that were found by God. In essence he is delineating the means God used to reach these lost in this context.
Sound Doctrine (page 137), Sanctified pastoral leadership (Chapter 8), Hard work in sermon preparation and presentation (page 220, Figure 11.6), and excellence in ministry are contributing factors for these "successful" churches. The one thing that hit me between the eyes was the criteria statement on page 23 and restated elsewhere: it takes 85 members of an average church one year to reach one person for Christ.
This book was a challenge to me and I think it would be a good book for anyone in church leadership.
5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by David Kilpatrick (North Syracuse, NY), August 31, 2007
This book is packed with eye-opening information that we often don't take into account when we reach out to the unchurched. No wonder it is endorsed by so many top evangelicals (click the "review" tab above to read reviews of the book). I feel so badly about the negative (and I believe unfair) review of this book below (from 2004). Paul adjusted his message to his hearers when he went strolling into Athens, Jesus declared His message differently to the Pharisees than he did to the common folk, and again, to his disciples. Ranier is simply providing us with information that helps us approach outreach the way Jesus and Paul did.
Like it or not, our message needs to be conveyed in a way that the hearer understands, or our message may not be truly heard or understood. None of this negates God's role in the process. Read Luke 15. The first two parables focus on God's role in salvation, the third emphasizes the individual's role.
This book goes a long way to providing information we need to be aware of the mindset of those for whom we are called to be ambassadors for Christ.
5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Duane Walter (Sunfield, Michigan), February 23, 2007
I was deeply moved by this book. It reaffirmed the priority of the harvest and the need to really listen to those who are ripe for the harvest.
It was a personal encouragement to me as I anticipate being more fully involved in outreach and discipleship in the very near future.
0.5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Roy Ingle (Thomson, GA), February 23, 2004
The problems with this book are numerous. First, it is written from a very strong pragmatic point of view that emphasises success by numbers. Secondly, it places the "seeker" as the issue for the church rather than God Himself. Thirdly, it fails to address the sovereignty of God in salvation and that there are no seekers (Romans 3:10-11). We become disciples by God's sovereignty and grace alone (John 6:35-47; Eph. 1:4-13; Titus 3:5-7). Fourth, it utilizes methods of the world but never emphasises the truths of Scripture and mainly that faith comes by hearing the Word (Romans 10:17) and about sin (Luke 13:1-5; Acts 2:38; 3:19; 17:30-31).
This book offers no true insights into the true discipling church (Luke 14:25-35). If you are a pastor, get on your face and pray and seek God. He alone adds to the church (Acts 2:47; 1 Cor. 12:13).
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