10 Temptations of Church: Why Churches Decline and What to Do About It

Church after church faces eventual death while helplessly lamenting its fate. What perversity is at work that causes those who sincerely love the church to become obstacles to growth? Like the apostle Paul, churches don’t always do the things they want, but instead they do the very thing they hate. Why? While the theological answer is sin at work in us, the organizational answer may just be that members of dying churches unconsciously find a payoff in the church’s decline. They are tempted by church.

Karen Vannoy and John Flowers both served in separate new church development projects before they joined forces in revitalization with Travis Park United Methodist Church in San Antonio and most recently, First United Methodist Church in Phoenix. Karen begins work as the District Superintendent of Tucson in the summer of 2012 while John continues church revitalization work, as well as mentoring pastors and congregations. You can contact them through churchfortomorrow.com.

Karen Vannoy and John Flowers both served in separate new church development projects before they joined forces in revitalization with Travis Park United Methodist Church in San Antonio, and most recently, First United Methodist Church in Phoenix. Karen began work as the District Superintendent of Tucson in the summer of 2012 while John continues church revitalization work, as well as mentoring pastors and congregations. You can contact them through ChurchForTomorrow.com.