Very true, and the reasons are varied among areas and people....which is why it is so hard to turn around. Just look at the RCC, they have declining numbers and priests just like the rest of us, but many members there blame it on Vatican II. They say "the seminaries were packed before Vatican II" and I think, "well, yeah - all of our churches were doing great back then". I do think that a partial answer would be more options for traditional high church services along with "contemporary" to appeal to a wider range of people.
Yes and no -- it will help a church compete some, but probably not a lot (on average, some will do better, some not quite as well). Here's why.
There is an energy of youth, and usually young people want that energy, so that is how that works, and it's not a bad thing, but there are other aspects to look at here.
I was just reflecting on the first page of posts, how the OP poster seemed entirely ignoring that other conservative denominations were falling in attendance.... (the big picture is that Western Christianity -- Europe, North America, South America -- has falling attendance on net (instead of stable)).
So, sure, some churches can take members from others, for a while, and have an illusion that they are growing new believers.... There
will be new believers, and that will help maintain that illusion. Mostly people that already believe will seek out a church. That seems as if they are new. But mostly those growing churches are just growing by taking young families that were going to go to some church, and might have gone to the one they grew up in.
Not new converts, but returning to church.
But instead of that big picture, people want to believe it's about music, or political leaning of people in a church.
Even "conservative" or "liberal", though those have 0% connection with faith. But can temporarily create a movement in a church, such as when ELCA accepted gay people.
When I pointed out that
temporarily for a short time LCMS would have a slower decline because of ELCA members leaving ELCA to move to LCMS due to such things as accepting gay people....
I think that was entirely unheard there at that time (on the first page). I might be wrong. Perhaps he heard it and didn't like it, and will realize it's true in another year or 3. But it seemed as if it was....invisible information. Not even disagreed with, but instead...unseeable.
So, it seems he imagines wrongly that LCMS will not decline, but ELCA will, and that will of course prove entirely wrong soon, since the people leaving for the LCMS is largely about done, and then the LCMS decline will accelerate back to the same rate as the general average, though some will be closed more rapidly by a nearby new megachurch competition, as is the norm. Some will do well if they have a great preacher. Etc.
Of course, there is the illusion of a growing church in most any town/area were simply a big new church is built and then young people that would definitely come to some church or another choose it because it is new and flashy.
That's growth of (put in random name here like __nature thing like River or Mountain, etc.__ or whatever) is an illusion also -- those churches will age, and then the same will happen, that is on average (some worse, some better).
Of course, an individual church can grow longer time frame when there is a great preacher, because it continues to draw members from other churches, people that would have gone to some church regardless.
So, it is 0% about politics or music, long run. Though of course the good thing about contemporary music is that it authentically worships the Lord in a way many young people can hear, and that's just good.
So, a good band is not a bad thing, but it's not
the thing.
I'm not saying contemporary music is unhelpful. It's great for youth especially.
It's good.
But it's not the long run thing. The long run for an individual church is more about the presence of real faith (not just tradition or keeping on going!) in the pastor, and truly preaching from real faith.
Real faith causes sermons to take on some power.
That matters.