Lessons I learnt visiting four churches in two weeks — Part #2
By: Gospel Powered
Tags: Communication, Church, Christianity

Last week we began a two-part series sharing my experiences after visiting four churches in two weeks. We looked at some of the communication strategies and each of these churches were using, and got some great ideas that every church should try out, and also identified some weaknesses we should be aware of in our own churches. Today we’ll take a look at the third and fourth church we experienced.

As was mentioned last week, the purpose of this article is not to criticise the individual churches in any way. My hope is that through this blog, I can humbly share my experiences, both good and bad, for the purpose of equipping and encouraging other churches world-wide to continue striving for excellence in the way we do church, for the glory of God alone.

For the purposes of this article, I won’t be commenting on the actual theological content of the sermons, or components of the service that are very much dependent on individual tastes and preferences (eg song choice, décor, etc), but will be focusing more on processes, systems and logistics that get people in the door, and keep them coming back!

Church #3

A large church of around 3000 members over multiple services and campuses.This service took place in the church’s newly constructed worship centre, which from the moment we entered resounded of “purpose built”.

Things that were awesome (other churches should follow suit!)

The service started on time

Sounds obvious, right? But actually, the number of churches (including mine) that start 5–10 minutes late is surprisingly high. And there is some logic behind starting late. Some churches who have car parks some distance from the actual auditorium deliberately allow their service to start late to give newcomers “five minutes grace” to get from their car to the auditorium without missing the start of the service, but this has its downfalls. As soon as churches allow their services to start late, people start realising, which then causes the people to deliberately arrive late themselves, knowing the church will wait for them. We want to encourage our people to be self-disciplined and prioritise church enough to arrive on time, and starting services late can sent the wrong message about the seriousness of why we gather. The church I visited started at 10:30 on the dot. The room was mostly empty — everyone was still talking or drinking coffee in the foyer, but they started anyway. By the end of the first song, the room was full and God’s people were singing, but by starting on time, the tone of the meeting was set to be one of high regard and importance, not casual and flippant. Yes, it felt awkward seeing the service leader speak to an almost-empty auditorium, but maybe churches should embrace the awkward, start on time, and train their people that church is worth arriving on time!

We were taken right to the door of Sunday School

As we entered church, child-in-hand, we were greeted by a welcomer who asked if we needed some help navigating our way to the children’s facilities. Although he, himself, wasn’t 100% sure which classroom was the right one for our child, he promptly found someone who could help us, and they walked us right to the door of our son’s classroom, where we were asked to sign in and make known any allergies or medical conditions. I left the kids’ department feeling confident that my son was in good hands and would be taken care of by volunteers who were organised and prepared. Filling visiting parents with confidence is one of the best ways to ensure they’ll come back the next week!

A slide displayed where the Bible reading fit in the context of the whole Bible

This was an idea I had never seen before — the reference for the Bible reading was displayed on screen, and above the book’s name, the previous two books of the Bible were listed. The following two books of the Bible were displayed underneath. I thought this was a clever way of helping newer Christians (or not-yet-Christians) navigate their way through books of the Bible without feeling confused, overwhelmed by page flicking, or lost in contents pages.

Things that could have been better (make sure your church doesn’t do this!)

The Service Leader announced he would be waiting in the visitors’ lounge, but never showed up

The church had a beautiful, dedicated “Welcome Lounge” where visitors could come and chat with volunteers and staff after the service. The Service Leader who announced this said he would be waiting at the lounge to meet visitors (and we later found out it was standard practice for the Service Leader to always head to the lounge after church), but he never showed up. No harm done, as there were other volunteers around, but that one familiar face could be all that was needed to put a visitor at ease. I get it — things come up. He probably got caught up in a conversation — things happen. But church leaders should do all they can to follow through with what is announced on stage, and if there is some doubt as to whether something will eventuate, it’s better to not mention it at all.

The musicians looked bored

This may be bordering on a stylistic preference, but my feeling was that during the singing, everyone on stage looked miserable. As a muso myself, I understand that playing well requires concentration, and sometimes we just don’t think to smile — but for the leader and singers especially, it’s important to reflect in our faces the joy we’re singing about in our songs. We can’t be sending mixed messages. The singing will probably be one of the first things a visitor experiences, so let’s ensure guests to our church see that we’re glad to be worshipping God!

Final thoughts

Aside from the “building envy” I encountered enjoying all their beautiful facilities, we had a great time at church and it was a privilege to hear God’s Word preached once again. This was an amazingly equipped church, both materially and spiritually, and it was encouraging to God blessing the ministry of this church.

Church #4

Full disclosure: we didn’t actually attend this church’s service, but not for lack of trying. Twenty minutes after arriving our son started throwing up in the garden, so we (reluctantly) needed to leave early…But we were around for long enough to gain some insights into what a visitor would experience coming to this church for the first time.

This church was a small afternoon congregation of mostly young adults. They don’t have a building of their own, and instead utilise another church’s building and facilities.

Things that were awesome (other churches should follow suit!)

There were people to welcome us right from the car park

As soon as we stepped out of the car and headed to the building, people were ready with a smile to greet us and welcome us to church. We knew we were in the right place, and could see they were glad to have us there.

They embraced technology

This church made intentional decisions based on its people. Instead of printing paper sermon outlines and newsletters that were never read or used, the leadership identified their congregation’s demographic, and began using free Bible apps to distribute sermon notes, Bible readings and church notices. They were tapping into the culture and worldview of their people and embracing it, rather than fearing or avoiding it.

Things that could have been better (make sure your church doesn’t do this!)

The tap didn’t work in the ladies’ toilet

Okay, so this wasn’t their fault — it wasn’t their building. But my issue was the fact that it was simply assumed that “everyone knows to use the men’s toilet instead”. I didn’t know to use the men’s toilet. A simple sign on the loo saying “tap broken, use men’s toilet instead” could save saved confusion, as well as making it clear that they were aware of their issues and were dealing with them, rather than ignoring problems and assuming everyone knew the work-around. When it comes to making your church visitor-friendly, my motto is “never assume”. Make everything crystal clear, over-communicate, and leave no room for doubt or uncertainty!

They didn’t have any info to give me

Although I couldn’t stay for the service, I would have loved to have received a brochure, booklet, flyer, or even business card, to find out more about their church, but they had nothing to offer me. Although I’m a huge advocate for digital and social media, print media still has its place, and churches ought to be ready with even a basic “visitor info sheet” with service times, contact details, location, facilities for babies, children and youth, and maybe a mission statement or message from the pastor.

Final thoughts

We were so sad to not be able to stay for the service — this church is very dear to us and we have a great love for the people who lead it, so we were really looking forward to mutual encouragement by coming along. But even our brief encounter was enough to see that they have some great initiatives in place to reach a very particular demographic for Jesus.