Marriage and Family in the United States today

What does family life look like in America around the year 2024?

The US population is about 335 million (Decennial Census by Decades). For some perspective, that is more than double the 1950 US population (151 million, https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/dec/popchange-data-text.html) There are about 275 million people over the age of 15, the other 60 million are under 15.

There are about 125 million households or family units. The average household size is about 2.6 people. U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: United States

About 125 million or 1 in every 3 people are married; or about 1 in every 2 people over the age of 15. (see charts linked here National Spouses Day: January 26, 2021 (census.gov)) https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/demo/tables/families/time-series/households/hh1.xls

Fewer than 1 out of every 2 households are married. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/demo/tables/families/time-series/households/hh1.xls

About 91 million people over the age of 15 have never been married. So if another person isn’t married, the odds are almost 50/50 that they have never been married. Record Share of Americans Have Never Married | Pew Research Center

If a person is married, they are more than likely over the age of 30. https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/visualizations/time-series/demo/families-and-households/ms-2.pdf

Another 47 million people over the age of 15 are either widowed or divorced.

As a pastor, I keep these things in the back of my mind when I'm around town, meeting people, creating studies, and preparing messages. This is the American family. 2 in 5 Americans are married, more than 2 in 5 Americas (including children) have never been married, and fewer than 1 in 5 Americans have been but currently are not married.

What does the gospel say to all these households and individuals? We believe that Jesus died and rose for individuals and for families. This is the good news we’re going to hear this weekend. Can’t wait to hear it with you!

See you Sunday at 9:30 am

Forum and Voters’ Meeting - Financial Update

As we shared over the last two weeks, we’re facing a serious financial situation looking into 2025 gospel ministry.

This gives us a good chance to remember what we are here for - we believe that we have been entrusted with the good news of Jesus and his victory for the world - and we will endure obstacles in our way. You can find information about the financial situation here. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1En5Wlkw_IYkFK3Wr2jYpQiRfuhh_eAHjkM0LOKjSpMY/edit#heading=h.aaf8dwuxjg0u

The council is offering three ways for us to work through this situation. You can hear about those and choose at

Congregational Forum - October 13th 10:45 am

Voters’ Meeting - November 3rd 10:45 am

Materials for these meetings can be found here. https://peaceotsego.org/peacenews/202410voters

These are great times to commit together to work of God among Peace. Please plan to join us.

The Reformation: October 31st

Are you getting ready to celebrate a great time of the Christian year? It’s a most wonderful time of the year!

Enjoy celebrating the Reformation.

There are a lot of good resources out there to get a sense of the impact of the Reformation. Here are just a couple:

Our Reformation guide histheo-reformation_impact_of-20171031.pdf
A great site detailing the theology and history of the Reformation Reformation 500th Anniversary | News, Resources, History (lutheranreformation.org)

Martin Luther’s Early Years: A Gallery of Friends and Enemies | Christian History Magazine (christianhistoryinstitute.org)

Peace will have feast to celebrate the Reformation on October 27th. Bring something to the potluck! https://www.perfectpotluck.com/meals.php?t=GLYU6028&welcome=1

We’ll also have name tags available starting October 27th if you’d like.

Trail for Treaters

I’m looking for help to pass out goodies at the Trail for Treaters downtown Otsego October 31st from 4 - 6 pm. Please reach out to me 269-694-6104 and come meet a lot of people in our community!

Phone

The council has decided to move Peace’s phone to a business mobile phone. The landline in the office/workroom will be removed. Our phone number will remain 269-694-6104.