Spiritual supply and demand
In Economics 101, the principle of supply and demand is explained. In the most simplistic terms, it comes out like this: The amount, or worth of 鈥渟omething,鈥� is determined by how much someone is willing to pay for that something. Generally, the more of something that is available, the worth of it goes down if not enough somebodies are willing to acquire it. How much demand for how much supply is what regulates price or value.
No one will supply something that no one wants. So, what creates demand? Whatever someone wants or needs. We all need food and water. Those are needs. We all want to be entertained, that is a want. Others recognize the demand for wants and needs and seek to supply them for the exchange of currency.
So, in a free market system where we can choose or demand more of something, others seeing opportunity, make effort to supply that demand. The supplier makes whatever profit, and the consumer gets what they need/want. This has periodic highs and lows but ultimately has self-regulation built into it by the natural course of supply and demand.
This has an interesting parallel to church attendance. In recent decades as statistics are kept, church attendance, or denominational identification, or demand, has consistently gone down. This certainly isn鈥檛 a supply problem if one looks at how many church buildings there are. At least in American/Western countries. There has been a 7-point decline in church membership from 79% in 2000 to 72% now.
Conversely: there has been a remarkable uptick in Africa, South America, Iran, and Afghanistan. The demand for Bibles, church leaders, and church buildings strongly outweighs the supply. Why the difference? Some would say that whenever a people get wealthy, their demand for spiritual things becomes weak. And when people have nowhere to look but up, their spiritual hunger, or demand becomes greater.
Another factor for wealthy societies may be the attraction. Does what being offered have appeal? It obviously does for others. If demand is weak and supply is great, do those who have the supply weaken or cheapen their message to increase demand, as Capitalists do? Do we water down the truth or compromise Christian integrity to attract 鈥渃onsumers?鈥� The message needs to remain the same yet perhaps the methods to attract demand should be evaluated?
In other places, demand goes without being adequately supplied. Notably the root cause is because it is forbidden. The spiritual supply is purposely kept from those wanting or needing it.
Going back to root cause(s) for weak demand. How we perceive spiritual faith provokes spiritual seeking. If our primary outlook is that faith is a want, a personal preference for those concerned and wanting involvement, then faith falls into the curious category.
If faith is distinguished as something necessary, a need, then it must become a regular part of one鈥檚 life. God himself reveals that we need faith. Whether we understand, admit, or confess that or not. Sometimes we need to do what is indispensable despite the spiritual resistance. Heb 10:25 reveals that we, 鈥渟hould not give up meeting together (church), as some do, but encourage each other especially as we get closer to the end.鈥�
When we come to terms with how imperative it is to needing faith in our lives, then the demand will just about overwhelm supply. The issue is that too many don鈥檛 identify the urgency or need. Its like slowly starving too death and becoming accustomed to the consequent handicap it brings into our lives, we learn to live with the spiritual disability. Never comprehending our lives are unhealthy, imbalanced and the dysfunction shouldn鈥檛 be the norm.
There are many reasons why some don鈥檛 have a demand, or hunger and thirst for the things of God. But if anyone can come to terms of what they are missing, be reminded of what Christ has said, 鈥淏lessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled鈥� Matt 5:6. NIV
And for a word on spiritual supply and demand, Philippians 4:19, 鈥淏ut my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.鈥� KJ. Do you want it, need it, or both?