For generations, Sunday morning church was nonnegotiable. You went. You sat. You stood when told. You tried not to fall asleep during the sermon. And you definitely didn’t ask, “Do I really need this to follow Jesus?” But for a growing number of young Christians, that question is very much on the table.
The numbers don’t lie: Weekly church attendance is slipping, especially among millennials and Gen Z. A 2024 Barna study found that only 30% of practicing Christians under 30 say they attend church in person every week. And yet, spiritual curiosity hasn’t disappeared. Bible apps are booming. Worship music is topping charts. Small groups are popping up in homes, parks and, yes, even Discord servers. The question isn’t whether people are engaging their faith—it’s whether traditional church attendance is the only way to grow.
Let’s be honest: the Sunday morning routine doesn’t always work for everyone. If you’ve ever sat through a sermon that felt more like a TED Talk with three worship songs and a branded coffee bar, you know what I mean. Churches aren’t immune to burnout, bad leadership or just being, well, boring. So does opting out of the routine mean you’re opting out of growth?
Not necessarily.
“Spiritual formation happens in community,” says Dr. Kristen Sanders, a theologian and discipleship consultant. “But that doesn’t mean it only happens in a sanctuary at 10 a.m. on Sundays. Growth can happen around a dinner table, on a walk, during a hard conversation or in a moment of silent prayer.”
That’s backed up in Scripture too. The early church met daily—in homes, around meals, in the temple courts (Acts 2:46). There wasn’t one right building or a single hour carved out on a calendar. What mattered was the consistency of gathering, the sharing of life, the devotion to teaching and prayer.
In other words, the form of church has always evolved. The function—being the body of Christ together—has stayed the same.
But before you fire off a “See? I don’t need church” text to your group chat, it’s worth wrestling with this: spiritual independence can quickly morph into spiritual isolation. Skipping church because you’re craving a more authentic expression of faith is one thing. Skipping church because it’s more convenient to scroll sermon clips on TikTok and call it discipleship? That’s another.
“I see a lot of young people deconstructing the Sunday model—and that’s not a bad thing,” says author and pastor Rich Villodas. “But if that leads to disconnection from any kind of faith community, that’s where growth can stall.”
Because real spiritual growth doesn’t just come from consuming content—it comes from friction. From being annoyed with someone in your small group. From serving someone who can’t pay you back. From having someone call you out when you’re being a hypocrite. You don’t get that from a podcast.
At its best, the church isn’t a performance you watch once a week. It’s a body you belong to. It’s people who know your name, see your mess and still stick around. That can look like a traditional church building. It can also look like a home church, a cohort, a volunteer team, a Tuesday night prayer group or even a digital community (if it’s more than just likes and DMs).
The point isn’t the pew. It’s the people. And more importantly, it’s the presence of God moving through those people.
So can you still grow spiritually without going to church every Sunday? Yes. But not without some kind of intentional community. Not without people who can challenge, support and stretch you. And not without a regular rhythm of showing up—even when it’s inconvenient.
Church isn’t a box to check. It’s a way of life shaped in proximity to others. What that looks like may change—but the need for connection, accountability and shared pursuit of God never does.
Title: The Spiritual Tradeoff of Skipping Church
URL: https://relevantmagazine.com/faith/growth/the-spiritual-tradeoff-of-skipping-church/
Source: REL ::: RELEVANT
Source URL: http://www.relevantmagazine.com/rss/relevantmagazine.xml
Date: June 6, 2025 at 03:10PM
Feedly Board(s): Religion