Download - Christianity Today

Church in the Fast Lane

Aussie drive-thru offers a great combo—sermons and a Coke—for free!

If it works for McDonald’s, why shouldn’t it work for the church? A Sydney, Australia, church has turned its driveway into a drive-thru, dispensing the gospel on tape.

Saint David’s Anglican in suburban Forestville sits beside a six-lane highway, but Pastor Richard James admits it hardly got noticed. “I didn’t know this church was here, behind some beautiful gum trees, until I became the rector.” That’s one reason James started the drive-thru.

Several times each year, volunteers from the church of 150 line a two kilo-meter stretch of road during morning rush hour, beckoning commuters to pull in for a moment. James welcomes those who stop and gives each a tape of several sermons.

At Christmas greeters also shared canned Cokes and birthday cupcakes. “We wanted them to know whose birthday this is,” James said.

The tapes he produces have become more overtly evangelistic since the first outreach in 1997. His most recent series was called “There Must Be More to Life.”

Saint David’s repeats the drive-thru several mornings just before Easter.

The community knows Saint David’s now. More than 10,000 pass the church each morning of the drive-thru and many drop in. Some motorists have stopped at three or four of the events. His congregation has adopted a “Kingdom growth” mindset, James said, glad for their efforts to reach unbelievers.

“I don’t mind using marketing techniques, if you have a precious product and pure motives.”

Princely? SomeBut it’s not Heston’s purple reign

Noting the success of Dreamworks’ animated movie on the life of Moses, we suggest the following—

A traveling photo exhibit: Prints of Egypt
A film strip produced by Biblical Archeology Review: Prince of Egyptology
A new biography of church tax advocate, Irving Findgold: Prince of the Gypped
For the urban church, the rap version: Fresh Prince of Egypt
And Moses’ story continues, post-Sinai, in the sequel: The Prophet Formerly Known as Prince of Egypt

Currents

In revival? 54% of pastors and 50% of church-goers believe spiritual revival is happening in America, but only 14% of goers can accurately define the term.

(Barna Report, Jan.-Mar. 1999)

Few experiencing God. Barna also reports of the 75 million who attend church weekly in the U.S., fewer that one-third say they regularly feel God’s presence there.

(Good News, Jan.-Feb. 1999)

Touched by a boomer. Widespread interest in angels, miracles, and a spate of movies on the afterlife are evidence of a cultural shift, and baby boomers are responsible. Now in their 40s and 50s, the generation is asking profound questions. Their search, often outside the church, is driving the spirituality movement. A Gallup poll shows 8 in 10 Americans want to grow spiritually, an increase of 24% in four years.

(Daily Herald, 12/30/98)

Matters of life and death. Churches are developing new rites of mourning after failed pregnancies, in response to the large number of older women, fearing they’ll never become mothers, who want ritual closure. Listen for ethics discussions as 85% of U.S. deaths involve removal of life support. And some colleges offer a new major in death: thanatology.

(Trend Letter, 1/7/99)

MARKETING

Reaching the Ad-Savvy Shopper

Some things people get from Madison Avenue that they also expect from your church.

We must resist the notion that “marketing” is only for toothpaste and condominiums if we love the church and want others to know about it. Congregations need to be skilled in marketing their churches. Consider these elements:

Product. In the church the product is relationships. The consumer world talks about its product at every opportunity. In the church each person is in the business of building relationships. Can you say about your church, “You can find a friend in this fellowship”?

Price. Advertisers convince us that the price doesn’t matter when you consider the product. Our price in the church is commitment. “When you join our church, you are going to have to get involved. It is going to take time and effort from you. We are not going to give you free parking passes and privileges. In fact, we may even ask you to park in the lot next door in order to make room for new people.”

Place. Realtors say the three most important words in business are location, location, location. For the church, the word “place” means “presence of believers.” Each church is unique because of the mixture of its members. You can say, “There is no church like this church anywhere near this church.” Acts 4:31 says, “When they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled.” Your place can shake.

Promotion. Let people know the Good News. What are you doing to increase the flow of guests into your church? Do you introduce yourself, invite them to be a part of the family of God? Just as you prepare your home for guests coming for dinner, you need to prepare your church with the same anticipation. Treat guests as special people. Make sure your property is kept clean, painted, and well-marked.

Can people find you in the yellow pages, or find your driveway from the road? Do you promote your church on radio spots or through press releases and ads in your local newspapers? Develop attractive pamphlets and brochures to distribute in the community or by mail for your special programs or campaigns. Offer night classes for the community on single life, computer literacy, making the Bible user-friendly, or building your marriage.

If you have a great place, make sure that the right people know about it.

—Stan Toler Used by permission from The People Principle (Beacon Hill Press, 1997).

My PC

Pastoral Computing

Are you a typical computer user? Compare your habits to this survey:

INNOVATION

Selling Your New Idea

And the church members who will help you

Growth requires change, so you need to know how individuals will respond to your initiatives. They fall into one of five catagories.

Innovators(2%). Dreamers and visionaries, they are not often acknowledged as leaders or policy makers.

Early Adopters(18%). Respected and influential, they know a good idea when they see it.

Middle Adopters(60%). The majority, they react to ideas rather than generate their own. Inclined toward maintaining the status quo, they are more influenced by those opposing change.

Late Adopters(18%). The last to endorse a new idea, they often speak against change. They may never verbally acknowledge acceptance of a new idea but will eventually go along if the majority supports it.

Never Adopters(2%). Committed to the past, they often sow discord after change is adopted and will eventually leave if they don’t get a following.

The battle is for Middlers. You won’t need to work hard to convince Innovators and Early Adopters of the value of your new idea. Late Adopters will not be convinced before the idea actually becomes reality. But if you can convince the majority of Middlers to support the initiative, you are on your way.

Most Middlers prefer the known to the unknown, the present certainty to the future’s uncertainty. This does not mean Middlers are closed to reason or cannot catch the excitement of a new vision. But they tend to support the status quo unless they are given a good reason to change, or are assured that change will not result in a loss of quality.

Make Earlies your allies. Earlies are generally well-respected in the church. Their words are given serious consideration and their leadership is usually followed. Make a list of your Earlies, then solicit their active support. Ask them to endorse the new proposal in formal meetings and informal discussions. Explain that hallway conversations often influence Middle Adopter members more than anything else. And let them know that in committee meetings, their support may make the difference between failure and success.

—Charles Arn Church Growth, Inc. Monrovia, CA

Counter-culture

Pastors Call “TimeOut!”

And oppose Sunday games that steal church attenders

In some cities, the pastor’s competition isn’t the church down the street—it’s Little League. Massachusetts pastors, seeing their pews emptied by Sunday morning sports events, protested. And their campaign is getting some results.

The Massachusetts Council of Churches, representing 1,675 congregations from 15 denominations, called on planners to stop scheduling youth sports events during church hours. “We think kids deserve the right to play and pray,” said Scott MacLean, pastor of First Congregational Church in Stoughton. “But when the soccer league starts in the spring, our Sunday school attendance is cut in half.”

MCC had addressed the issue in 1984, but Sunday morning games reappeared a couple of years ago.

The MCC resolution also pointed to conflicts caused by marathons, bicycle races, and parades. And it prompted a letter writing campaign. In Westbridge, the public school superintendent cancelled Sunday morning practices. More important, said Rev. Stephen Mott of Cochesett United Methodist Church, is that a diverse group of churches agreed on one thing, keeping worshipers on the bench.