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Already Gone
If you look around in your church today, two-thirds of the young people who are sitting among us have already left in their hearts; soon they will be gone for good.
This is the alarming conclusion from a study Answers in Genesis commissioned from America's Research Group, led by respected researcher Britt Beemer. The results may unnerve you - they may shake long-held assumptions to the core - but these results need to be taken seriously by the church.
This is the alarming conclusion from a study Answers in Genesis commissioned from America's Research Group, led by respected researcher Britt Beemer. The results may unnerve you - they may shake long-held assumptions to the core - but these results need to be taken seriously by the church.
196 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2009
90 people are currently reading
756 people want to read
About the author
Ken Ham
235 books359 followersDr. Ken Ham is the president of Answers in Genesis USA and is a well-known speaker and author on the subject of Young-Earth Creationism. He received a bachelor degree in applied science (emphasis on environmental biology) from the Queensland Institute of Technology, and a Diploma of Education from the University of Queensland. He has also received two honorary doctorates: a Doctor of Divinity from Temple Baptist College, and a Doctor of Literature from Baptist Liberty University.
He was a director of Creation Science Foundation (CSF) in Australia, an organization which he jointly founded with John Mackay. In 1987 he moved to the United States, still maintaining his links with CSF.
From 1987 to 1993, Ham worked for the Institute for Creation Research, and in 1994 set up what in 1995 became Answers in Genesis (AiG), a creation ministry dedicated to "upholding the authority of the Bible from the very first verse."
In 2008 Ham was described by well known atheist and evolutionary biologist PZ Myers as a "Wackaloon" for carrying out a prayer session with members of the Pentagon. Ham responded regarding the validity of that prayer breakfastand that PZ Myers and other critics were intolerant of his position.
He was a director of Creation Science Foundation (CSF) in Australia, an organization which he jointly founded with John Mackay. In 1987 he moved to the United States, still maintaining his links with CSF.
From 1987 to 1993, Ham worked for the Institute for Creation Research, and in 1994 set up what in 1995 became Answers in Genesis (AiG), a creation ministry dedicated to "upholding the authority of the Bible from the very first verse."
In 2008 Ham was described by well known atheist and evolutionary biologist PZ Myers as a "Wackaloon" for carrying out a prayer session with members of the Pentagon. Ham responded regarding the validity of that prayer breakfastand that PZ Myers and other critics were intolerant of his position.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 126 reviews
August 5, 2023
I really hated this book in high school. My small, Midwestern church discovered it my sophomore year and took the warning it offered to heart. Every member of that congregation could have recited the statistics he presents about young adults leaving the church. And yet when push came to shove, I watched from the sidelines while they appeared to do nothing to prevent the large number of youth leaving their own church.
Well over a decade later, I now recognize that they did try some things. My senior year we got a youth pastor who taught apologetics. There was an increased focus on creationism. But it truly was too little too late. This book instilled a sense of panic in the Baby Boomers without really producing any helpful results, at least for me and my peers.
The book itself is quite readable. I was surprised by how quickly I got into it and how much the pictures and graphs help. Say what you will of his worldview, Ken Ham is a good writer. I think there are major flaws with his data and the questions he asked. But he presents it in an appealing way.
The questions really are a huge problem. Ken Ham has obviously spent his entire life pushing for the relevance of creationism and a young earth, but in this book he seems to place believing the "right thing" about creation as equivalent with salvation itself. And I'm just no longer able to follow him on that one.
Glad I finally read it. I feel like I exorcised some demons in doing so and learned to feel more grace for the adults in my life in high school. But I also would warn against taking his answers too seriously. Intentional mentorship of the students in your life will do much more than making sure they believe the right things about dinosaurs, the age of the earth, or sex outside of marriage.
Well over a decade later, I now recognize that they did try some things. My senior year we got a youth pastor who taught apologetics. There was an increased focus on creationism. But it truly was too little too late. This book instilled a sense of panic in the Baby Boomers without really producing any helpful results, at least for me and my peers.
The book itself is quite readable. I was surprised by how quickly I got into it and how much the pictures and graphs help. Say what you will of his worldview, Ken Ham is a good writer. I think there are major flaws with his data and the questions he asked. But he presents it in an appealing way.
The questions really are a huge problem. Ken Ham has obviously spent his entire life pushing for the relevance of creationism and a young earth, but in this book he seems to place believing the "right thing" about creation as equivalent with salvation itself. And I'm just no longer able to follow him on that one.
Glad I finally read it. I feel like I exorcised some demons in doing so and learned to feel more grace for the adults in my life in high school. But I also would warn against taking his answers too seriously. Intentional mentorship of the students in your life will do much more than making sure they believe the right things about dinosaurs, the age of the earth, or sex outside of marriage.
January 15, 2012
It’s been no secret that many teenagers leave the church completely shortly after entering into college. However, the shocking news is these teenagers have already left the faith long before they may have left the church. Its not colleges that our encouraging our teens to leave the church, it may be the church itself. Thus the premise of Already Gone by Ken Ham and Britt Beemer…
Already Gone seeks to analyze the results of a survey conducted by Answers in Genesis and conducted by Britt Beemer his America’s Research Group. The survey questioned 1,000 former, regular, conservative church-goers between the ages of 20-29. More than just complaining about the fact that we are losing many of our young people, this survey sought to find out why.
It is certainly an interesting concept every pastor, youth worker and teacher ought to find intriguing. Here’s just one of the interesting and alarming statistics:
95% of those surveyed who have left the church were regularly attending while in elementary school. Only 55% of them were still regularly attending while in high school. Obviously there is a big drop off there. People are not waiting for college to drop out of church. In fact, of those surveyed who now doubt the reliability and relevance of God’s Word first began doubting in Middle School. Only 10% of those surveyed experienced their first doubts in college.
So why are these young people leaving? The top answers that were given where: Boring services, legalism and hypocrisy in the church.
Just reading the results of this survey justifies the money you just spent on the book. Its more than just interesting, it is informative and a slap in the face of evangelical Christianity. It is a wake-up call to re-examine just how we “do church.” Ham urges pastors, youth workers and teachers to evaluate their ministries and methods in light of God’s Word rather than just being “traditional.”
“Are we doing church ‘by the book’? Just because we want to be ‘conservative’ or ‘traditional’ doesn’t mean we are ‘biblical.’ Its safe to conclude that if one of the original Apostles visited one of our churches today, he wouldn’t have any sort of clue that he was in a Christian gathering… ‘Church’ today is mostly driven by man-made traditions and not by the biblical mandates to defend the Word of God and live by the Word of God.”
As great as this book is, it is not perfect. While Ham and Beemer do a great job at exposing the problem and highlighting some of the causes, I think their own ministry clouds them from thinking about the bigger issue. As you would expect, Ham comes to the conclusion that people begin doubting the Word and leaving the church because we are not teaching them how to defend 6-day, young earth creationism.
For the record, I hold to 6-day, young earth creationism. It is an important doctrine that churches do need to preach and equip their congregations to defend. I believe this doctrine is a key fact in unraveling God’s redemptive history as unfolding through the entirety of the Bible. In other words, the Gospel is at stake. But, Ham stops at creation. The gospel is rarely mentioned in the pages of Already Gone. That’s a problem for me.
I think many middle and high school students doubt the Bible and church in general because they are given self-esteem pep-talks instead of Bible doctrine. They are told to check their brains at the door and focus on their emotional needs. They are not being feed. The feel-good religion of many youth groups and churches just doesn’t hold up in a fallen world filled with pain, sorrow and death. They need real doctrine – they need the gospel! They need more than a four-point walk down the Romans Road. They need a full fledged-gospel that imparts live-saving truths to be applied to their entire spiritual walk. They need to be pointed toward a holy, glorious sovereign God who rules and reigns in the midst of sin. Instead, they are told Bible stories that are comparable to Aesop’s fables (at least in their presentation).
The gospel must be defended, not just creation. I whole-heartedly agree with Dr. Ham in that Genesis lays the foundation for a right understanding of the gospel. In Genesis 1-3 you have the establishment of sovereignty, sin and redemption. It’s all their. A Biblical understanding of Genesis is crucial in understanding the rest of what God has to say – its non-negotiable. Teens must also learn how to defend this literal approach from scoffers both secular and Christian. However, as I stated previously, Ham needs to take that next step. He doesn’t here in this book.
Yet, the book is still a valuable resource. It is a tool in your hand to help your ministry address this problem. As a teacher, I tuck this information away everyday as I teach young people. We are losing them before they ever walk out of high school. That should cause every one of us to seriously examine our approach to youth ministry. Buy this book and use it!
Disclaimer: This book was provided by the publisher for review. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.
Already Gone seeks to analyze the results of a survey conducted by Answers in Genesis and conducted by Britt Beemer his America’s Research Group. The survey questioned 1,000 former, regular, conservative church-goers between the ages of 20-29. More than just complaining about the fact that we are losing many of our young people, this survey sought to find out why.
It is certainly an interesting concept every pastor, youth worker and teacher ought to find intriguing. Here’s just one of the interesting and alarming statistics:
95% of those surveyed who have left the church were regularly attending while in elementary school. Only 55% of them were still regularly attending while in high school. Obviously there is a big drop off there. People are not waiting for college to drop out of church. In fact, of those surveyed who now doubt the reliability and relevance of God’s Word first began doubting in Middle School. Only 10% of those surveyed experienced their first doubts in college.
So why are these young people leaving? The top answers that were given where: Boring services, legalism and hypocrisy in the church.
Just reading the results of this survey justifies the money you just spent on the book. Its more than just interesting, it is informative and a slap in the face of evangelical Christianity. It is a wake-up call to re-examine just how we “do church.” Ham urges pastors, youth workers and teachers to evaluate their ministries and methods in light of God’s Word rather than just being “traditional.”
“Are we doing church ‘by the book’? Just because we want to be ‘conservative’ or ‘traditional’ doesn’t mean we are ‘biblical.’ Its safe to conclude that if one of the original Apostles visited one of our churches today, he wouldn’t have any sort of clue that he was in a Christian gathering… ‘Church’ today is mostly driven by man-made traditions and not by the biblical mandates to defend the Word of God and live by the Word of God.”
As great as this book is, it is not perfect. While Ham and Beemer do a great job at exposing the problem and highlighting some of the causes, I think their own ministry clouds them from thinking about the bigger issue. As you would expect, Ham comes to the conclusion that people begin doubting the Word and leaving the church because we are not teaching them how to defend 6-day, young earth creationism.
For the record, I hold to 6-day, young earth creationism. It is an important doctrine that churches do need to preach and equip their congregations to defend. I believe this doctrine is a key fact in unraveling God’s redemptive history as unfolding through the entirety of the Bible. In other words, the Gospel is at stake. But, Ham stops at creation. The gospel is rarely mentioned in the pages of Already Gone. That’s a problem for me.
I think many middle and high school students doubt the Bible and church in general because they are given self-esteem pep-talks instead of Bible doctrine. They are told to check their brains at the door and focus on their emotional needs. They are not being feed. The feel-good religion of many youth groups and churches just doesn’t hold up in a fallen world filled with pain, sorrow and death. They need real doctrine – they need the gospel! They need more than a four-point walk down the Romans Road. They need a full fledged-gospel that imparts live-saving truths to be applied to their entire spiritual walk. They need to be pointed toward a holy, glorious sovereign God who rules and reigns in the midst of sin. Instead, they are told Bible stories that are comparable to Aesop’s fables (at least in their presentation).
The gospel must be defended, not just creation. I whole-heartedly agree with Dr. Ham in that Genesis lays the foundation for a right understanding of the gospel. In Genesis 1-3 you have the establishment of sovereignty, sin and redemption. It’s all their. A Biblical understanding of Genesis is crucial in understanding the rest of what God has to say – its non-negotiable. Teens must also learn how to defend this literal approach from scoffers both secular and Christian. However, as I stated previously, Ham needs to take that next step. He doesn’t here in this book.
Yet, the book is still a valuable resource. It is a tool in your hand to help your ministry address this problem. As a teacher, I tuck this information away everyday as I teach young people. We are losing them before they ever walk out of high school. That should cause every one of us to seriously examine our approach to youth ministry. Buy this book and use it!
Disclaimer: This book was provided by the publisher for review. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.
July 11, 2017
I recently realized that Answers In Genesis has some of it's books available to read online for FREE! Link for this one is at the bottom of the page, and if you are a Christian parent or involved in some sort of Christian ministry, READ THIS BOOK! It may step on your toes, it may challenge you, but I think Ham and Beemer have a lot of the keys here to why people are leaving the church and what we can do about it.
Ken Ham and Brit Beemer share the results of a survey in this book - the people surveyed are 20-somethings who have left the church. The survey was trying to figure out why, and the results are so interesting. But my favorite part about this book was how Ham and Beemer shared the results of this survey while giving strategies that can help stem the flow of young people away from the modern church - and so much of it goes back to taking a stand on the Word of God as true, from Genesis to Revelation. Sadly, so many Christians today are compromising on Genesis without realizing that compromising on one part of the truth of God's Word is compromising the whole thing.
Personally, one of the most interesting chapters to me was on Sunday School - and how individuals who attended Sunday School were no more likely, or even less likely, to attend church as an adult! The reason was because Sunday School has failed in that it does not connect the Bible to the real world, teaching Bible "stories" instead of teaching the Bible as actual history and giving historic and scientific facts that support it. But it can't all be blamed on Sunday School, because we as parents should be giving our kids the answers to these questions at home - and that's where I found it so challenging! I was blessed to grow up in a family that DID connect the Bible to history and science and the "real world", and this book reminded me how important it is that I do that for my kids as well.
Highly, highly recommend this book, and even better for you, you can read it online for free just like I did! It's not terribly long either, I finished it in three days of nap time reading. Here's the link!
https://answersingenesis.org/answers/...
Ken Ham and Brit Beemer share the results of a survey in this book - the people surveyed are 20-somethings who have left the church. The survey was trying to figure out why, and the results are so interesting. But my favorite part about this book was how Ham and Beemer shared the results of this survey while giving strategies that can help stem the flow of young people away from the modern church - and so much of it goes back to taking a stand on the Word of God as true, from Genesis to Revelation. Sadly, so many Christians today are compromising on Genesis without realizing that compromising on one part of the truth of God's Word is compromising the whole thing.
Personally, one of the most interesting chapters to me was on Sunday School - and how individuals who attended Sunday School were no more likely, or even less likely, to attend church as an adult! The reason was because Sunday School has failed in that it does not connect the Bible to the real world, teaching Bible "stories" instead of teaching the Bible as actual history and giving historic and scientific facts that support it. But it can't all be blamed on Sunday School, because we as parents should be giving our kids the answers to these questions at home - and that's where I found it so challenging! I was blessed to grow up in a family that DID connect the Bible to history and science and the "real world", and this book reminded me how important it is that I do that for my kids as well.
Highly, highly recommend this book, and even better for you, you can read it online for free just like I did! It's not terribly long either, I finished it in three days of nap time reading. Here's the link!
https://answersingenesis.org/answers/...
March 13, 2023
I disagreed with quite a few of Ham's conclusions, and I think that he has made Genesis a foundation that cannot support the spiritual weight that he tries to throw on it. Our foundation should be Christ. We should start by being able to trust the Gospels and their witness of Jesus Christ and then work our way backwards to trust the integrity of all Scripture.
image:
I did find many of their findings interesting, but I was floored by what questions they left out of their survey--namely, questions about Jesus. Also I could not follow several of their logical leaps from the data to interpretation. This could possibly be because I haven't seen the actual breakdown of the surveys but many of the inferences indicated that they were gut reactions or hunches. Overall it seemed like there was a heavy dose of confirmation bias.
I want to state for the record that I am actually inclined to believe in a younger-earth (maybe not strictly 6,000 to 7,000 yrs), non-evolutionary creation, and historical Adam and Eve. I believe in a global flood. I believe that The Fall brought physical death into the world, as well as spiritual. But I don't like it when people try to force weight upon the Scripture that it doesn't demand. Ham claims that "Genesis is written as typical historic narrative (not like the Psalms that are written as typical Hebrew poetry)" (102). He clearly neglects to mention that Genesis is just that--highly stylized Hebrew poetry.
I have more to say, but this is my initial reaction. I believe that we are losing young people in our churches, but I don't think that believing in "millions of years" is the reason they are leaving.
I think they're leaving because they are seeing the disconnect between the older generation's supposed belief in the Bible and their failure to live it out in real and vibrant ways in the world.
image:
I did find many of their findings interesting, but I was floored by what questions they left out of their survey--namely, questions about Jesus. Also I could not follow several of their logical leaps from the data to interpretation. This could possibly be because I haven't seen the actual breakdown of the surveys but many of the inferences indicated that they were gut reactions or hunches. Overall it seemed like there was a heavy dose of confirmation bias.
I want to state for the record that I am actually inclined to believe in a younger-earth (maybe not strictly 6,000 to 7,000 yrs), non-evolutionary creation, and historical Adam and Eve. I believe in a global flood. I believe that The Fall brought physical death into the world, as well as spiritual. But I don't like it when people try to force weight upon the Scripture that it doesn't demand. Ham claims that "Genesis is written as typical historic narrative (not like the Psalms that are written as typical Hebrew poetry)" (102). He clearly neglects to mention that Genesis is just that--highly stylized Hebrew poetry.
I have more to say, but this is my initial reaction. I believe that we are losing young people in our churches, but I don't think that believing in "millions of years" is the reason they are leaving.
I think they're leaving because they are seeing the disconnect between the older generation's supposed belief in the Bible and their failure to live it out in real and vibrant ways in the world.
March 21, 2013
Not my theology. Kids are leaving church because we aren't teaching them the literal truth of Genesis? And the "right answer" is that dinosaurs coexisted with people? I'm sorry, that is not a universal Christian belief.
September 12, 2024
Wow! So relevant and important in our churches and families today. Are we as parents and the church doing what we need to do to teach our children diligently? It definitely makes me want to do better.
August 19, 2014
Well no wonder kids are leaving the church. I'm happy their statistics prove the exodus from this garbage. This book spews all the bigotry and hate-based "Christianity" that drove me away also.
I keep searching for statistics and information that will help me support my youth in the love of God for everyone without the politics and backward thinking that pollutes so many who call themselves Christian, yet condemn others with a hatred Jesus spent his life rejecting.
I keep searching for statistics and information that will help me support my youth in the love of God for everyone without the politics and backward thinking that pollutes so many who call themselves Christian, yet condemn others with a hatred Jesus spent his life rejecting.
February 23, 2012
Already Gone
Based on a survey of 1,000 kids who grew up in conservative Christian homes but subsequently abandoned their faith, this book explores what is causing our kids to leave. Many insights from the data are fascinating and very helpful. Unfortunately, the book also tended to be an exercise in data interpretation. Ham believes that our kids are leaving because we fail to teach them creation science. The data led me to conclusion that the issue is our families and our personal walk with God. Sometimes the book left me feeling quite confused. Is Ham calling for us to leave off the seeker-sensitive empty emotionalism with overly "relevant" messages? But then he challenges pastors to make their messages relevant to the needs of today's hearers by focusing on "earthly things" (creation apologetics) in addition to the heavenly (pg. 157).
Overall, this was a helpful book when talking about the data, but not when Ham interpreted it.
Major insights:
1. The issue of whether a kid will stray is already largely settled before college. Middle and high school are the critical battlefields.
2. According to their findings, people don't usually leave a church because of the music. They do actually want to be fed something substantive.
3. Ken Ham really believes in creation apologetics. I really like AIG and thank God for what they're doing. But it did seem concerning that he advocates creation apologetics as the key issue for why the church is failing.
4. On the contrary, this book confirmed my confidence that the biggest issue in the churches is our personal failure to soak up and live out the gospel.
5. The failure to live out the gospel manifests itself in families. Ham shows that the kids most likely to abandon their Christianity are the ones who see hypocrisy in their families and churches.
Random Notes:
23 - 61% of Twenty Somethings who were raised in the church are no longer spiritually active—reading the Bible, praying, or attending church.
31 - Of these, 95% attended regularly in elementary and middle school, 55% in high school, and 11% in college. In other words, most were already lost in high school.
32 - of those who doubt the Bible, 40% first had doubts in middle, 43.7 in high, 10.6% in college.
39 - kids who went to SS regularly are slightly MORE likely to apostasize later.
48 - our SS curricula need to include a heavy emphasis on apologetics.
50-51 - parents can't just delegate their teaching responsibility to the SS.
65 - there are two basic groups: (1) People who left and have no intention of ever returning. They also refuse to attend even for Easter or Christmas. (2) People who come for special holidays, and anticipate bringing heir kids to services.
65 - the kids who left the church are in two groups. Group 1 denies the Bible and doubts they'll ever come back. Group 2 still claims belief in the Bible but doesn't go to church because of perceived hypocrisy. He thinks group 2 are still Christians but just need to be convinced that the church has good to offer.
67 - extramarital sex clearly plays a huge role in driving unbelief.
62,66,75,77 - He seems to connect Genesis and apologetics to solving every one of these problems. But wasn't the church already losing kids before Darwin? Half-way covenant?
77 - he suggests that we should be intensely doing young earth apologetics in the church.
82-83 - good point that even many unbelievers reject evolution. The sticking point for their doubts however is the age of the earth. This has secular emphasis everywhere and that is what undermines their confidence in the accuracy of the Bible.
86 - bad misuse of 1 Cor. 1:23.
90-91 - we start with earthly things (creationism) so they will believe in heavenly things (the gospel).
96 - statistically, public, Christian or home school made little difference on whether a kid ultimately strayed.
109-110 - seeking more cultural relevancy or adapting our music is treating a legitimate problem (losing our young people) with the wrong drug.
110 - music is often given higher priority in services than preaching.
113 - people need biblical teaching, which he defines as apologetics.
114 - he advocates a completely revamped view of how we train our kids and learn as adults - centered on apologetics.
121 - REALLY unclear survey question
131 - young people are far more prone to meet their religious needs outside the church through informal forums.
137 - good quote from Willow Creek survey.
139 - statistical non sequitur
151 - apologetics sounds like the only way to connect the Bible to the real world.
Based on a survey of 1,000 kids who grew up in conservative Christian homes but subsequently abandoned their faith, this book explores what is causing our kids to leave. Many insights from the data are fascinating and very helpful. Unfortunately, the book also tended to be an exercise in data interpretation. Ham believes that our kids are leaving because we fail to teach them creation science. The data led me to conclusion that the issue is our families and our personal walk with God. Sometimes the book left me feeling quite confused. Is Ham calling for us to leave off the seeker-sensitive empty emotionalism with overly "relevant" messages? But then he challenges pastors to make their messages relevant to the needs of today's hearers by focusing on "earthly things" (creation apologetics) in addition to the heavenly (pg. 157).
Overall, this was a helpful book when talking about the data, but not when Ham interpreted it.
Major insights:
1. The issue of whether a kid will stray is already largely settled before college. Middle and high school are the critical battlefields.
2. According to their findings, people don't usually leave a church because of the music. They do actually want to be fed something substantive.
3. Ken Ham really believes in creation apologetics. I really like AIG and thank God for what they're doing. But it did seem concerning that he advocates creation apologetics as the key issue for why the church is failing.
4. On the contrary, this book confirmed my confidence that the biggest issue in the churches is our personal failure to soak up and live out the gospel.
5. The failure to live out the gospel manifests itself in families. Ham shows that the kids most likely to abandon their Christianity are the ones who see hypocrisy in their families and churches.
Random Notes:
23 - 61% of Twenty Somethings who were raised in the church are no longer spiritually active—reading the Bible, praying, or attending church.
31 - Of these, 95% attended regularly in elementary and middle school, 55% in high school, and 11% in college. In other words, most were already lost in high school.
32 - of those who doubt the Bible, 40% first had doubts in middle, 43.7 in high, 10.6% in college.
39 - kids who went to SS regularly are slightly MORE likely to apostasize later.
48 - our SS curricula need to include a heavy emphasis on apologetics.
50-51 - parents can't just delegate their teaching responsibility to the SS.
65 - there are two basic groups: (1) People who left and have no intention of ever returning. They also refuse to attend even for Easter or Christmas. (2) People who come for special holidays, and anticipate bringing heir kids to services.
65 - the kids who left the church are in two groups. Group 1 denies the Bible and doubts they'll ever come back. Group 2 still claims belief in the Bible but doesn't go to church because of perceived hypocrisy. He thinks group 2 are still Christians but just need to be convinced that the church has good to offer.
67 - extramarital sex clearly plays a huge role in driving unbelief.
62,66,75,77 - He seems to connect Genesis and apologetics to solving every one of these problems. But wasn't the church already losing kids before Darwin? Half-way covenant?
77 - he suggests that we should be intensely doing young earth apologetics in the church.
82-83 - good point that even many unbelievers reject evolution. The sticking point for their doubts however is the age of the earth. This has secular emphasis everywhere and that is what undermines their confidence in the accuracy of the Bible.
86 - bad misuse of 1 Cor. 1:23.
90-91 - we start with earthly things (creationism) so they will believe in heavenly things (the gospel).
96 - statistically, public, Christian or home school made little difference on whether a kid ultimately strayed.
109-110 - seeking more cultural relevancy or adapting our music is treating a legitimate problem (losing our young people) with the wrong drug.
110 - music is often given higher priority in services than preaching.
113 - people need biblical teaching, which he defines as apologetics.
114 - he advocates a completely revamped view of how we train our kids and learn as adults - centered on apologetics.
121 - REALLY unclear survey question
131 - young people are far more prone to meet their religious needs outside the church through informal forums.
137 - good quote from Willow Creek survey.
139 - statistical non sequitur
151 - apologetics sounds like the only way to connect the Bible to the real world.
July 9, 2015
In the front of this book are pictures of beautiful churches in England that have been transformed. They show a church in the United Kingdom turned into a rock climbing center, one in England turned into a night club, one a restaurant and still another a theater.
The authors talk about a shift in society, “The decline of the Church has followed the plummeting spirituality of a nation that has lost its roots—its foundation. England, the country that was once a cornerstone of western Christianity, is now, by and large, a wasteland of lost souls, where the word “God” has many different definitions, with so few these days who would even think of “God” as the Creator God of the bible….Few people are aware that the same epidemic that has hit England has reach our own shores, spreading like an unstoppable virus.”
Got your attention? It did mine. Definition of “Epidemic—
1. A disease or anything resembling a disease; attacking or affecting many individuals in a community or a population simultaneously.
2. Anything which takes possession of the minds of people as an epidemic does of their bodies; as, an epidemic of terror.
The authors describe this “Epidemic” and show the results of surveys done that brought them to this conclusion. It’s an eye opener. There wasn’t ONE major thing that was happening that would point to something they could fix but it did give areas to concentrate on.
At the end of this book is a resource you can use to help spread the love and joy of Christ and get people back in relationship with God or start in that directions anyway. Welcome to the Revolution, is the hope. What does it look like? The authors give resources to Parents and what they can do to help their children have a relationship with god and keep it. There is also a guide to help Christian Educators, Youth Pastor, and finally the Pastor,
At the end are pictures of churches throughout American that have been abandoned and being used as something else just like in England. One church used as a Historical Society, a business office, a Musical Instrument store, a Martial Arts College, and a Town Hall. The virus has hit American shores. This book gives hope, areas we can work on, and practical ways we can stop this epidemic. We are all the body of Christ called to define the word and life it. I'm glad I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
Disclosure of Material Connection:
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”
Nora St.Laurent
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The authors talk about a shift in society, “The decline of the Church has followed the plummeting spirituality of a nation that has lost its roots—its foundation. England, the country that was once a cornerstone of western Christianity, is now, by and large, a wasteland of lost souls, where the word “God” has many different definitions, with so few these days who would even think of “God” as the Creator God of the bible….Few people are aware that the same epidemic that has hit England has reach our own shores, spreading like an unstoppable virus.”
Got your attention? It did mine. Definition of “Epidemic—
1. A disease or anything resembling a disease; attacking or affecting many individuals in a community or a population simultaneously.
2. Anything which takes possession of the minds of people as an epidemic does of their bodies; as, an epidemic of terror.
The authors describe this “Epidemic” and show the results of surveys done that brought them to this conclusion. It’s an eye opener. There wasn’t ONE major thing that was happening that would point to something they could fix but it did give areas to concentrate on.
At the end of this book is a resource you can use to help spread the love and joy of Christ and get people back in relationship with God or start in that directions anyway. Welcome to the Revolution, is the hope. What does it look like? The authors give resources to Parents and what they can do to help their children have a relationship with god and keep it. There is also a guide to help Christian Educators, Youth Pastor, and finally the Pastor,
At the end are pictures of churches throughout American that have been abandoned and being used as something else just like in England. One church used as a Historical Society, a business office, a Musical Instrument store, a Martial Arts College, and a Town Hall. The virus has hit American shores. This book gives hope, areas we can work on, and practical ways we can stop this epidemic. We are all the body of Christ called to define the word and life it. I'm glad I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
Disclosure of Material Connection:
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”
Nora St.Laurent
The Book Club Network www.bookfun.org
The Book Club Network blog www.psalm516.blogspot.com
Book Fun Magazine www.bookfunmagazine.com
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July 24, 2011I'm not sure suspicious is the right word, but when an author widely known for Answers in Genesis commissioned statistics that arrive at the conclusion that apologetics on that issue are THE critical issue is whether twentysomethings stay in church, one has to ask.
His insight that young people don't place the value in church because they don't put what they learn on equal footing with other subjects was insightful. His contention that apologetics needs to be included in our lessons from the Bible could make a big difference.
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The author's claim that
His insight that young people don't place the value in church because they don't put what they learn on equal footing with other subjects was insightful. His contention that apologetics needs to be included in our lessons from the Bible could make a big difference.
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The author's claim that
September 24, 2012
Check it out here: http://tonotdecideistodecide.blogspot...
March 15, 2023
2.5… honestly… super discouraging 😩
July 31, 2017
I grew up going to private school and attending church. I noticed when my peers stopped going to church. Why is it that I keep coming back to church while others don’t? When my kids were old enough to start noticing the same thing, I wondered why I as a parent placed value on my family going to church while other parents might let their kids skip? I kept asking myself these questions and looking for answers.
Already Gone was being talked about on social media, but was often in the light of “we need to ditch the Sunday School model because it isn’t working.” Being in children’s ministry, I remember how hard it was to occasionally sit with my parents for big church and I still see value in children’s Sunday School. So I didn’t see any reason to read a book I would not agree with.
But people didn’t stop talking about the book, so I finally gave it a chance. There is much more to it than “there is something wrong with traditional Sunday School” and “the throw the baby out with the bath water plan”. And for some churches, its more than Sunday School that has gone wrong. There were a few times I questioned how the surveys were conducted—were only students asked these questions and were Sunday school teachers ever questioned? And sometimes they jumped to alarming conclusions when the results cited pointed to something more neutral.
The reason I keep going to church actually wasn’t because of something I learned at church, it was what I was learning at home—that there are sources outside the Bible that prove it is true (archeology, science, ancient culture, other ancient writings). Most churches don’t tell you these things. In fact, in speaking to one of my former youth pastors, he admitted that most churches see any ministry for those under 18 as merely entertainment. And the red flags that were being spoken of in the book I was watching played out among my kids friends—many attend church, believing the evolution from science class in the public school system, no pastor is teaching them otherwise, and then these friends/students are then reinterpreting other parts of the Bible. They use the logic “If I can reinterpret what the Bible says here, why can’t I reinterpret what the Bible says there. If I question this accuracy of the Bible, then how can I count on it for that.” These are middle school and high school kids I’m talking about.
So the biggest question when reading this book isn’t “What’s wrong with Sunday School? What’s wrong with church?” The biggest question is what are you going to do with what you have learned from this book?
Already Gone was being talked about on social media, but was often in the light of “we need to ditch the Sunday School model because it isn’t working.” Being in children’s ministry, I remember how hard it was to occasionally sit with my parents for big church and I still see value in children’s Sunday School. So I didn’t see any reason to read a book I would not agree with.
But people didn’t stop talking about the book, so I finally gave it a chance. There is much more to it than “there is something wrong with traditional Sunday School” and “the throw the baby out with the bath water plan”. And for some churches, its more than Sunday School that has gone wrong. There were a few times I questioned how the surveys were conducted—were only students asked these questions and were Sunday school teachers ever questioned? And sometimes they jumped to alarming conclusions when the results cited pointed to something more neutral.
The reason I keep going to church actually wasn’t because of something I learned at church, it was what I was learning at home—that there are sources outside the Bible that prove it is true (archeology, science, ancient culture, other ancient writings). Most churches don’t tell you these things. In fact, in speaking to one of my former youth pastors, he admitted that most churches see any ministry for those under 18 as merely entertainment. And the red flags that were being spoken of in the book I was watching played out among my kids friends—many attend church, believing the evolution from science class in the public school system, no pastor is teaching them otherwise, and then these friends/students are then reinterpreting other parts of the Bible. They use the logic “If I can reinterpret what the Bible says here, why can’t I reinterpret what the Bible says there. If I question this accuracy of the Bible, then how can I count on it for that.” These are middle school and high school kids I’m talking about.
So the biggest question when reading this book isn’t “What’s wrong with Sunday School? What’s wrong with church?” The biggest question is what are you going to do with what you have learned from this book?
August 5, 2014
While my first response to this author was skepticism, I was pleasantly surprised by a few elements in this book. Ham (rightly, in my opinion) distills the data he collected into essentially two main reasons for young people leaving the church: interpersonal conflict of one form another (hypocrisy, politicking, legalism), and lost interest in or respect for the Scriptures. Those make perfect sense to me.
He repeatedly calls on church leadership to recognize that their methods are not working, and especially to humble themselves. He calls on parents to take ownership of their children's spiritual guidance, rather than handing it off to a Sunday School teacher once a week, and he calls on Christian educators to stop calling the Bible factual and then treating it like unverifiable magic. All of these were very strong points, and are indeed elements in the exodus of young people.
Unfortunately, there are also blind spots of the writer's that prevent him from making certain logical connections that would be necessary to bringing this issue to its next developmental stage. Of course, being who he is, he mentioned the origins issue more times than I could count, and while I think it's a huge milestone in modern church history, he never justified his assertion that it was a pivotal issue in church growth. Also, and this is the biggest one, he never distinguishes between people who have chosen to follow Jesus Christ with their lives and people who simply enjoy attending church services. This was the book's biggest, glaring vacancy, and I was disappointed that it never made a showing. The assumption that the USA's previous proportion of church attendees vs. people who were not is CONSTANTLY handled as evidence of a much holier generation. This is a major logical fallacy and it is egocentric to say the least. How we can assume that 1950s America cornered the market on righteousness is truly beyond me, and as a reader considering the trend in church attendance, I want to know how he feels the community of believers compares to the community of people who show up (or don’t show up) for social reasons. That would have been useful information, but it is lacking in this book.
February 19, 2019
In considering buying this book, you need to consider that it is dealing with the mass exodus of young people from the church, which is happening across the board. However, the focus of this book is on the conservative evangelical/fundamentalist churches. This exodus is more of a crisis of faith for these churches, because of their theology.
I've noticed the negative reviews are negative because Ken Ham is the author. This should not be an issue. Yes, Ham's focus is on recent creationism and his focus is mentioned in this book, but the theme of this book is the problem of twenty somethings leaving the church and how to stop it. He sees one's views of Genesis (which he feels is the foundation of all Scripture) to be part of the problem, but what do you expect? His argument here is more on the need to defend the Bible and to live it out.
The co-author is C. Britt Beemer, who does research. The survey is done of 1,000 people in their 20's who went to church as children and are not now. The survey was very detailed (the full survey is in the appendix), and revealed some interesting facts. Among these is that Sunday School is not helping the problem and that there are two different groups that leave the church. Some do so because they believe the Bible is not relevant; others still believe the Bible but feel the church is irrelevant.
Besides pointing out the problem, Ham deals with solutions. Those solutions are well thought out. He recognizes that a lot of what's going on in church is not the commandment of God but the traditions of man. He also realizes that those traditions may be good, bad, or neutral, but it doesn't change the fact that they are traditions.
Every pastor, every youth worker, every Christian education minister and Sunday School teacher, and every Christian parent needs to read this book.
I've noticed the negative reviews are negative because Ken Ham is the author. This should not be an issue. Yes, Ham's focus is on recent creationism and his focus is mentioned in this book, but the theme of this book is the problem of twenty somethings leaving the church and how to stop it. He sees one's views of Genesis (which he feels is the foundation of all Scripture) to be part of the problem, but what do you expect? His argument here is more on the need to defend the Bible and to live it out.
The co-author is C. Britt Beemer, who does research. The survey is done of 1,000 people in their 20's who went to church as children and are not now. The survey was very detailed (the full survey is in the appendix), and revealed some interesting facts. Among these is that Sunday School is not helping the problem and that there are two different groups that leave the church. Some do so because they believe the Bible is not relevant; others still believe the Bible but feel the church is irrelevant.
Besides pointing out the problem, Ham deals with solutions. Those solutions are well thought out. He recognizes that a lot of what's going on in church is not the commandment of God but the traditions of man. He also realizes that those traditions may be good, bad, or neutral, but it doesn't change the fact that they are traditions.
Every pastor, every youth worker, every Christian education minister and Sunday School teacher, and every Christian parent needs to read this book.
January 12, 2015
This is a fantastic book.
For the Irish Bible Institute I am doing some work on understandings of discipleship and how that affects whether people stay in church or leave.
The thesis here is that a lack of belief in the Bible. Ken Ham is the leader of Answers in Genesis, and as such believes in the literal interpretation of Genesis... For a little while it meant I was taking some of his conclusions with a pinch of salt, as belief in the literal interpretation was a factor in his studies, however, I then came across this gem of a quote which has been the most persuasive statement about why a Christian should believe in the Bible account of creation as written in Genesis 1-3 (or 1-11)
“For creationists, history is based on the Bible and the belief that God created the world 6,000-10,000 [years] ago… We humans were perfect because we were created in the image of God. And then there was the fall. Death appears and the whole account becomes one of deterioration and degeneration. So we then have Jesus in the New Testament, who promises redemption. Evolution completely flips that. With evolution, you don’t start with anything perfect, you start with primitive little wiggly things, which evolve into apes and, finally, into humans. There’s no perfect state from which to fall. This makes the whole plan of salvation silly because there was never a fall. What you have then is a theory of progress from single-celled animals to humans and a very, very different take on history.” (Ron Numbers, 76)
I would recommend this book for any who are interested in reading about the generation of young people who once attended church, but no longer do... and what the church can do about it.
For the Irish Bible Institute I am doing some work on understandings of discipleship and how that affects whether people stay in church or leave.
The thesis here is that a lack of belief in the Bible. Ken Ham is the leader of Answers in Genesis, and as such believes in the literal interpretation of Genesis... For a little while it meant I was taking some of his conclusions with a pinch of salt, as belief in the literal interpretation was a factor in his studies, however, I then came across this gem of a quote which has been the most persuasive statement about why a Christian should believe in the Bible account of creation as written in Genesis 1-3 (or 1-11)
“For creationists, history is based on the Bible and the belief that God created the world 6,000-10,000 [years] ago… We humans were perfect because we were created in the image of God. And then there was the fall. Death appears and the whole account becomes one of deterioration and degeneration. So we then have Jesus in the New Testament, who promises redemption. Evolution completely flips that. With evolution, you don’t start with anything perfect, you start with primitive little wiggly things, which evolve into apes and, finally, into humans. There’s no perfect state from which to fall. This makes the whole plan of salvation silly because there was never a fall. What you have then is a theory of progress from single-celled animals to humans and a very, very different take on history.” (Ron Numbers, 76)
I would recommend this book for any who are interested in reading about the generation of young people who once attended church, but no longer do... and what the church can do about it.
March 23, 2015
Ken Ham makes the argument that young people aren’t just leaving church when they hit college—even as they attend Sunday School or youth group in their younger years, they are “already gone” due to the church’s failure to address essential issues.
One interesting point made by Ham is that the church has relegated things in the “physical realm” (i.e. science) to the educational system and things in the “spiritual realm” to the church. Ham argues that this dichotomy should not exist—the church should be addressing both spiritual and physical questions. As it is, kids’ faith in the authority of Scripture is being challenged because of the church’s refusal to deal with issues in the physical realm. I think this is some good food for thought.
What I didn’t like is that it seemed that Ham sometimes crossed the line from “call to action” to “drum up panic through slippery-slope arguments”. For example, he begins and ends the book with a series of images depicting empty church buildings that have been converted to other uses (such as restaurants, theaters, city halls, etc.). The implication is that a mass exodus of people from the church has caused this, and more and more churches will be abandoned to such uses if we don’t turn things around. Such arguments felt like more of an appeal to emotion than reality.
I am also not sure if I agree with Ham’s conclusion. Even though I think the church could be stronger on apologetics, reason will never be enough; there is a necessary element of faith and the working of the Holy Spirit, and I felt like Ham never really acknowledged that.
Definitely a thought-provoking read. I’m glad it got the mental juices flowing, but didn't care much for the tone of the book.
One interesting point made by Ham is that the church has relegated things in the “physical realm” (i.e. science) to the educational system and things in the “spiritual realm” to the church. Ham argues that this dichotomy should not exist—the church should be addressing both spiritual and physical questions. As it is, kids’ faith in the authority of Scripture is being challenged because of the church’s refusal to deal with issues in the physical realm. I think this is some good food for thought.
What I didn’t like is that it seemed that Ham sometimes crossed the line from “call to action” to “drum up panic through slippery-slope arguments”. For example, he begins and ends the book with a series of images depicting empty church buildings that have been converted to other uses (such as restaurants, theaters, city halls, etc.). The implication is that a mass exodus of people from the church has caused this, and more and more churches will be abandoned to such uses if we don’t turn things around. Such arguments felt like more of an appeal to emotion than reality.
I am also not sure if I agree with Ham’s conclusion. Even though I think the church could be stronger on apologetics, reason will never be enough; there is a necessary element of faith and the working of the Holy Spirit, and I felt like Ham never really acknowledged that.
Definitely a thought-provoking read. I’m glad it got the mental juices flowing, but didn't care much for the tone of the book.
August 4, 2018
Already Gone is...special. And by Special I mean, I would have been thrown out of my graduate program (well, failed out) had I done a shoddy a job with the "survey" as was done in this book, at least going by how it's presented in the Appendix. For one thing, throughout the book, they use "survey" and "interview" interchangeably; these are NOT the same at all. Likewise, their methods of reporting are...problematic. For instance, we're supposed to believe that there was a 100% response rate to 1,000 people in this age range, among people who only belonged to "Bible Believing" churches, but left them, with a zero percent non-response rate? That's bull. I've conducted survey research; even with best practices and in person methodology, you're going to get mid to high 90% response rate. This is a very self selected group, we're not told the methodology taken to capture this sample, we're not told the non-response rate for this group, nor how people were excluded (which had to have occurred), and whether or not there's a self-selection bias. And all of that? That's just with the sample! Later on there's...special...things like how they'll claim "80% of people in our sample responded X", but looking at the very basic descriptives they provide, they're not bothering to even count those who didn't respond to the specific question being referenced, and it could be that over half the people had "no response" but then they're basing the statement of "80% of people in our sample responded X" on only half the sample size.
Anyhow, some interesting results, but I'm not sure about the validity.
Anyhow, some interesting results, but I'm not sure about the validity.
June 30, 2014
Reading this book should be done by every Christian. Meditating on this book should be done be every Christian. And acting upon what is learned in this book should be done by every Christian. We must keep our children by all cost. This book should be a parenting book for everyone who has children or want children or who have children in their family. Everyone one who says they love their Church should spend time in this book and put to use all they learn because if children keep leaving the Church then the Church will stay in decline but if we keep our children then the Church of God (not the denomination) but the blood bought can and will continue on for the Glory of God. Don't let the world win our children. Show them that living for God is the number one best thing of all.
January 30, 2019
Britt Beemer is a research analyst who was engaged to Survey 1000 20-somethings who left the church in order to find out what is going on. Their extensive questionnaire led to some very revealing facts like the age kids become disillusioned with church (much younger than I thought!), what bothers them most, and why some come back while others never do return. The really great thing about this book is that there are answers as to why and how to stop it! I was given this book because it was recommended reading for everyone on our church’s Christian Education committee. I’m excited because I know how to implement the main strategy in the Small Group ministry. It’s frighteningly simple, yet so essential!
January 29, 2012
Ken Ham and Brit Beamer did a fantastic job at researching a current trend in the church today. They asked probing questions to find out why people (mostly kids and twenty-somethings)are leaving the church, and often times the faith. They shed light on the urgent need of understanding and leadership in the church today. People need to start educating themselves on the seemingly harder issues of the Bible, or they just need to "man-up" and have the faith that it takes to stand on the Word of God. The trends are disturbing.
March 11, 2021
It is difficult to review a book that is rather well-known and, at least by most who wanted to read it, greatly appreciated. I was hesitant to read and review Already Gone for many reasons. For a long time, this was because I didn't really think it applied to me. While I think the book is incomplete in it's suggested solutions, I do think it as worth the time to read.
http://madelynrosecraig.com/2021/01/2...
http://madelynrosecraig.com/2021/01/2...
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January 8, 2025Ken Ham and Britt Beamer hit on a topic that has been bugging me for a while now; the fact that young adults are leaving the church at a fast rate. Ham and Beemer ask the question "why?" and give a rousing call to action for Parents and Pastors alike.
September 16, 2020
This is a thought provoking book on how we disciple our own children and the children and teens at our church. Are our methods effective and should they change? I find myself drawn to God in desperate, persistent prayer.
February 1, 2018
This book should be a MUST for anyone in church leadership
November 4, 2020
A must-read for every parent!
November 4, 2020
Book summed up in 1 word. Home school!
November 4, 2020
Do not hesitate this book is one of Ken's top 3 books!
November 4, 2020
Well done book and message.
November 4, 2020
One of Ken's top 3 books. Buy it, read it, share it. It's an eye-opener!
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