Evangelism Coach

Printed Announcements

Many churches still use a bulletin or program to share the news of community life.

• Do you proofread your announcements?
• Is the font easy to read?
• Does the bulletin appear professional (not a 7th generation photocopy)
• Are contact names and phone numbers included?  If not, what central point can a person go to to get information.
• Do you have group names that don’t indicate who that group is (see below about The eagles).

Our church doesn’t use print announcements with the exception of a monthly newsletter that is distributed 1st Sunday every month.   More immediately announcements are given via video.

Video Announcements

Many churches make announcements via video screen these days, or in color bulletins, or so forth.

At the church we currently attend, these are shown at the end.  They keep attention, are short, and prevent a person from extending their announcement too long.

Contact Persons

Many video announcements conclude with “For more information, see Jack Smith” or other contact person.

As long time visitors, we realized

• that we don’t know Jack Smith. 
• we still don’t know who to ask to find Jack Smith.

We’d like to participate in Jack Smith’s event, but it’s hard to find information.

A better idea for video is to show a photo of Jack Smith.  For more information see Jack Smith, and include his picture so that people know what he looks like.

Simply including a picture would help get around the “everyone knows who Jack Smith is” mentality.  Visitors don’t know everyone.

Groups

Another video announcement really caught my eye.  It was for a group in the church going to hike in a park.  I thought it was a great idea to help our family connect.

It also was for a group in the church called “The Eagles.”  The narration didn’t describe who the eagles are. 

• Are they a football team? 
• Are they the pre-k kids? 
• Are they the old wise men? 

The video featured all sorts of imagery, but no faces of contact people in the church.   Looked like fun.

Who do I talk with?  I want to go to the park.

For more information

The narration also didn’t include where to get more information. 

When I asked someone about where to find more, their answer to me was “Everyone knows to go to the table at the back.” 

Well, not everyone.

Not visitor friendly.

Church insiders know

• who the group leaders are. 
• where group leaders can be found
• where information is distributed.

Visitors do not  know

• who Jack Smith is
• your sub group names
• if they are welcome to come. 
• information is available at the back table.

With those barriers to hospitality, visitors may not connect at the events in the life of the church you expect them to come to. 

Let me suggest this:

Take a look at your announcements over the past few weeks and see what kinds of barriers you have placed in front of visitors.

If you would like more information about evaluating your hospitality, check out our articles on hospitality and feel free to give us a call at 804-335-1445.  Send an email to pastor_chris@evangelismcoach.org and I will send you a hospitality audit form.

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Stop Being a Friendly Church challenges the church with an interesting twist on hospitality (thanks to Tony Whitaker for highlighting this in the April  Web Evangelism Bulletin).  Essentialy, quit trying to be a “friendly church” and be a church “where you can make friends.”  There is a big difference and the article points out how.

Two items from the Web Evangelism Bulletin:

• Cynthia Ware (TheDigitalSanctuary.org) has written a 10-point guide to sharing your faith in Facebook, which she has generously allowed us to incorporate into our page on social networking:
  http://ied.gospelcom.net/social-networking.php
• Eric Robinson has written a ‘Facebook Application’ called ‘Life Questions’ which allows you to incorporate a block of evangelistic content within your Facebook profile. You can currently link to a range of pages within the EveryStudent.com site, according to your preference:
  http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=6611135350

Southern Baptists statistics report a decline in the Number of Baptisms.  According to the Annual Church Profile (ACP) compiled by LifeWay Christian Resources, baptisms in 2007 for the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) dropped nearly 5.5 percent to 345,941. That number compares to 364,826 the previous year.  According to the report’s author, many factors contribute to the decline.  But in response, he says local churches must make the Great Commission a priority.  Evangelism will be a key topic at the upcoming SBC annual meeting in Indianapolis in June. During the meeting, the SBC is expected to unveil a ten-year evangelism strategy. The report also showed that total mission expenditures topped $1.3 billion last year.

Have a great weekend.

PS: If you have not taken our reader survey, chime in and get a free download on evangelism definitions.

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I’d like to welcome the several new subscribers to our monthly newsletter and several new subscribers via RSS feed.

I got a email last month from a subscriber that I have made confused between these two forms of communication.  Perhaps blogs and feeds are new to you.  Allow me to introduce the differences:

Newsletter:

Our newsletter is a monthly feature, typically near the end of the month.  It usually offers a summary of popular posts, members only downloads, and practical tips only for subscribers. 

When you first sign up for our newsletter, you’ll get a series of emails about our website, with links to some popular articles in the past.  After that series finishes, you’ll get a monthly newsletter and the occasional announcement from me.

Free bonus: You’ll also receive Avoiding First Time Visitor Nightmares, an article I wrote for Net Results magazine. 

Two ways to get your RSS Feed

The RSS Feed is a publishing tool that will automatically send you new articles that are posted here at EvangelismCoach.

RSS Feed by Reader

Many people use feed readers such as bloglines or google feedfetcher (nearly 50% of my feed subscribers use these two readers). 

A feed reader collects all your feeds, highlights the new articles and allows you to follow all your favorite blogs, news, gossip.  I use Bloglines.com for mine.  The list of blogs I read (plus several others not shown) are in the column to the far right of this screen.

RSS Feed by Email

Others choose to receive the RSS Feed by email.  Whenever a new article is published, it is automatically emailed to you. 

Thus, if you get the monthly newsletter, and subscribe to the RSS Feed by email, you will get lots of email from me, based on how many articles are published.  If I start going to multiple articles a day, your email volume will increase.

What to change how you get your RSS Feed?  Simply visit the RSS Feed Subscription page.

Now what?

	Get your free copy of Avoiding First Time Visitor Nightmares and signup for our newsletter if you’ve yet done so.
	Grab on to our feed, or modify your feed subscription.

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I was recently asked about the use of questions in spiritual conversations.  How do you get an evangelistic conversation started?  Check out the questions category for some articles that have a free download.

I found this article from That Guy with the Nametag about 62 types of questions and why they work. 

Randy Newman wrote a great book called:  Questioning Evangelism.  Here is an free form excerpt from the section on Responding to the charge: “Christians are Hypocrites.”

This question comes in a variety of ways:

• Why is history littered with such hatred by Christians (e.g, Crusades)?
• Why do some non-Christians I know behave better than Christians?
• Why are they so full of self-righteousness, and full of hatred (e.g., homophobic)?
• I thought Christians were to be _____________ (fill in the blank).

Listen for the question behind  the question

‘If this is what Christianity is all about, why should I want any part of it?”

Jesus railed against hypocrisy (see Matt 23), so He, too, is against it. 

But we might need to remind people that profession (what people say) often doesn’t line up 100% of the time with what they do.  It’s a lack of authenticity that people are reacting against.  The Christian experience is not about perfection, but a journey towards perfection, where our character is being transformed.

Possible questions to defuse the tension of the charge:

• Do you think ALL Christians are hypocrites?  Why do you think that?
• Are you saying that the church is FULL of hypocrites, or some?
• Do you think hypocritical behavior is the NORM for all Christians?  Why or why not?
• Do you think hypocritical behavior is the kind of behavior that Christianity teaches?

Possible statements when the conversation brings up personal experiences:

• If given an example of a hypocritical Christian, we can certainly agree it was and explore it a little.
• If the example was personal, we could “see why that’s so painful for you, I don’t blame you for being upset.”
• Some agreements that can pave the way for questions
• Your right, church is full of hypocrites.
• Well, sometimes I can be a hypocrite as well.
• We’re all hypocrites if we think hard about it.

Turn the tables

• Aren’t you a hypocrite some of the time?
• Don’t you fail to live up to your own standard at times?
• Don’t you, on occasion, say one thing and do another?

Some questions to explore

• Why does hypocrisy bother us so much?
• What is it about hypocrisy that makes you want to scream?
• Why are you bothered about hypocrisy?

A possible question to lead into further discussion

• I think that hypocrisy bothers us because it points to some sense of right and wrong, you think?
• If we hate it so much, could be be a sign that there are some other way to be?  What do you think?
• The fact that we are all hypocrites points to the hardness / evil / deceptions  in our own hearts (the sinful nature).
• The fact that it bothers us points to a sense of morality and judgement.
• Following Christ can help us deal with our hypocrisy, find forgiveness for it, and find the Spirit’s help to overcome that failing.

Source:

Randy Newman wrote a great book called, Questioning Evangelism  Order your copy from Amazon.

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I found this interesting press release the other day.  (Source: Presbyterians focus on ascension and evangelism).  In case it’s taken down, here is most of the text.  See my comments below the article.

At 10:30 a.m. worship on Sunday, May 4, in both sermon and song, Tyrone Presbyterians will focus on the Ascension of the Lord, 40 days after Easter, and on the evangelism, which Christ called His followers to exercise every day after His exit from Earth.
      Many Christians around the world celebrate the Ascension of the Lord on Ascension Thursday, May 1, 2008. In the Christian year, Ascension Thursday occurs 40 days after Easter, and 10 days before Pentecost. Before his message, Epworth Chaplain and Presbyterian Preaching Pastor Mark Liller will read the story of Ascension Day found in Acts 1:6 through 14. In that Bible reading, Christ’s followers gather at Mount Olivet, just outside Jerusalem, and the narrator writes, “After Jesus had said this, as they watched, He was lifted up, and a cloud took Him out of their sight.”
      Following Reverend Liller’s Ascension Day scripture reading, the Westminster Choir will sing an anthem entitled “A Hymn Of Glory Let Us Sing.” Composed in about 700 A.D. by the British church historian Venerable Bede, this choir anthem has been considered the first hymn about Ascension Day written as Christians celebrate Christ’s exit from Earth.
      With the Ascension Day scripture as his foundation, Pastor Liller will deliver a message with the terse title – “Evangelism.” In his homily, Liller will challenge Tyrone Presbyterians with Christ’s Ascension Day commandment to His followers – “You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
      Hearing Reverend Liller’s message about evangelism, Tyrone Presbyterians will respond by singing two beloved Sunday school hymns – “We’ve A Story To Tell To The Nations” (1896) and “I Love To Tell The Story” (1866).
      As the days of Easter hasten toward Pentecost, and churches all across Tyrone energize to increase their membership, why not join Tyrone Presbyterians for 10:30 worship this Sunday, May 4 while they look toward a hopeful future, as expressed in this Sunday school hymn – “For the darkness shall turn to dawning, and the dawning to noonday bright/And Christ’s Great Kingdom shall come on Earth, The Kingdom of Love and Light.!”

As I read this press release, I find it very confusing.  I’ve read it multiple times and finally seem to have gotten the general gist.  Yet it is so full of flowery language that those steeped in the Christian tradition would recognize, but those who have not been at church would find confusing:

• Homily
• Ascension Thursday
• Respond by singing
• Energize to Increase Membership.
• Days of Easter hasten towards Pentecost
• If the title is terse, will the sermon be terse?
• Westminster Choir?  Is that a different church or the name of your choir?
• Beloved Sunday School hymn: I didn’t go to Sunday school in 1896 or 1866.
• Any visitors are not invited to sing?  (The Tyrone Presbyterians will respond . . . .)
• What is the pastor’s title?  How do I address him?  He’s called by 4 different labels in the press release (Chaplin, Presbyterian Preaching Pastor, Reverend, Pastor).

Is the goal of this press release to to get members?  Is the goal of the service to get members?  Are we to exercise every day per paragraph 1?

If your church is issuing press releases, think how this press release could be simplified and geared towards non-churched visitors. 

• Simplify language structure.  
• Are hymn histories necessary?
• Answer the question: Why should I come?
• Fix grammatical and punctuation errors. 

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What kind of impression do visitors get when they come into your church for the first time?  Every church thinks it’s friendly. 

But I and many others have experienced the fear factor of walking into an unknown place and knowing immediately that we don’t fit and are not really welcome to remain.  (Download: Avoiding First Time Visitor Nightmares.)

During my last book buying binge (to add to the six overloaded bookshelves on evangelism), I picked up two specifically on assimilating visitors, or how to welcome and help visitors join your church community.

The first one I have already finished.  Gary McIntosh’s Beyond the First Visit: The Complete Guide to Connecting Guests to Your Church.  (Click image or link to order yours direct from Amazon).

The cover promises to offer the reader a complete guide to church hospitality, and is written by well know church growth scholar Gary McIntosh.

Get Visitors To Church

If you have NEVER picked up a book on welcoming visitors, this can be a helpful introduction. 

This book does have some strengths in looking at the visitor flow of your church. 

1. Attracting Visitors — Getting them to come.
2. Welcoming Visitors — The art of Hospitality, dealing with first impressions and service.

But there are better books on the market (a preview of what I’m reading now — I’m really jazzed about it). 

How do YOU welcome a visitor

McIntosth begins with reminder of how important it is for churches to welcome the visitors that come. 

He asks: How do you react differently between a guest and a visitor? 

A guest is invited, expected, and thus you make sure the house is clean and in order. 

A visitor shows up unexpectedly, uninvited, and typically when you’re doing laundry or dressed in your painting clothes.

McIntosh encourages the church to think through how it welcomes guests, to review what it thinks about guests, and to encourage churches to see themselves through the eyes of a guest.

In the 2nd chapter, he reminds of how to be a great host.  Welcoming guests doesn’t happen accidentally, but on purpose with some careful planning and attention to the process (which is where a consultant can help you). 

He cites research from the 80s that churches need to keep 25 to 30 percent of their first time visitors to grow rapidly, while churches that only keep 5 to 8 percent will decline. 

Assuming those numbers are still current, let’s settle on a average of 16%.  How many visitors does your church need to grow?

See what the visitor sees

What is the first impression of your parking lot, your building. 

Signage?  Check out these church signs I found of churches — what do they communicate?

Upkeep of the Building?  What does this communicate?

First impressions — Do visitors have a positive interaction with the people in the church?

Disappointments

Though McIntosh offers some excellent advice, most of it is clearly dated, and most of the supporting research is from the early 1990s.  Most all the footnotes cite citations before the year 1995, the majority of which stretch all the way back to the 70s.  I kept feeling like I was reading late 1980s church growth stuff all over again. 

Our society may have changed, but this book doesn’t have any current research to make sure those conclusions are still valid. 

I’ve read widely on assimilating visitors, and if you have as well, you’ll find this book disappointing. 

It has a throw away chapter about the emergent church that feels like an attempt at being current and not really relevant to the book.  A few times I had to persevere through rabbit trails that had very little to do with welcoming visitors (for example, a whole chapter on launching new ministries).

Order yours

Gary McIntosh’s Beyond the First Visit: The Complete Guide to Connecting Guests to Your Church.  (Click image or link to order yours direct from Amazon).

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You’ve got to see this collect.  Fellow Blogger Tony Sisk seems to find some good ones.  I thought the ones I found were just about as awful as can be, but this one takes the cake (the one in the image about 1/2 down): The Rambling Prophet: Lousy Church Signs!!!.  Don’t let it mess up your Sunday.

Here are a few typos:

	No, not my entirety.
	Bible Stud anyone?
	I’ve never received Th Ho.Y Chost

Images found in the Flickr Group for Church signs.

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