Personal Reflection
Pretty Prairie is in the middle of Kansas, which is in the Bible Belt. As would be expected of a city in the Bible Belt, there are many people of faith in Pretty Prairie.
Still, changing lifestyles (digital and philosophical reorganizations), and a dwindling, predominantly elderly church population have had a negative effect on church attendance.
Pretty Prairie has a very small population. Though there are surrounding cities with far larger populations, there is no need for people to travel off the beaten trail to Pretty Prairie to go to church. So in the physical world, church membership in Pretty Prairie is limited by the number of people in the city.
But there is no such limit in the digital world.
Sadly technological progress is moving at such a fast (and increasingly faster rate) that traditional churches are being left behind, and are ill-equipped to catch up. It's becoming commonplace to come across a news clipping of yet another church closing due to dwindling membership. And this is likely to only grow worse.
The dilemma is that even as diehard members work to improve membership, their efforts may go largely unrewarded. Offering plates grow emptier. Churches that adopt a contemporary approach (praise band, for instance) may continue to thrive, leaving the dwindling, aging congregations of traditional churches to choose between adapting to survive (before it's too late) or eventual death. And meanwhile, the online world continues to thrive.
So, even as small victories are enjoyed, the question looms of what the future holds for organizations that continue to focus their efforts on the physical space.