GC RETENTION SUMMIT LOOKING AT REALITY OF CHURCH EXODUS NOV 2013

The Adventist world church, now with nearly 18 million members, has lost at least 1 in 3 Seventh-day Adventist members in the last 50 years, according to summit organizers

The ratio of people lost versus new converts is 43 per 100.

The reasons people drop out of church often have less to do with what the church does and its doctrines than with problems people experience in their personal lives—marital conflict or unemployment, for example.

What the church does that contributes to the problem is not helping people through their tough life experiences.

Conclusion A large majority of those who separate from the church do so because of personal factors, rather than doctrinal reasons, and frequently without deliberate rejection of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

It has been recognized that, for pastors and church members, it is often easier to instruct others in doctrine than to nurture and mentor them in a personal, dynamic relationship with Jesus Christ.

Building loving and Christ-like relationships within the local church must be an urgent necessity for the Seventh-day Adventist Church.