Wayne Hedlund

Category: HEALTHY CHURCH

  • How To Know If Guests Will Want To Return

    How To Know If Guests Will Want To Return

    I visited a popular Mexican Restaurant with my 14 year old son a while back.

    He was convinced I would love the place. I was doubtful, which means I went into the experience already critical of what might happen. As you might expect, I had a terrible experience while my son loved it and was left scratching his head why I hated it. Here’s my short list:

    • The line was long, so I had to stand and wait for 10 minutes.
    • The floor was a simple, and dirty, concrete floor.
    • They didn’t serve ground beef, which is what I love on my taco salad.
    • They didn’t have any normal lettuce for my taco salad.
    • I had to pay extra if I wanted some nacho’s (where I normally go they are free.)
    • The ice machine was broken and the soda was warm (really.)
    • The place we chose to sit at was dirty and I had to clean it off myself first.

    Most people reading that list will agree with me that I had a right to complain, and not want to return. And yet, there was a line of regular customers (like my son) who loves the place and will come back over and over, despite some minor (or even major) problems with the overall experience.

    Why is that? Because loyal customers don’t need to be treated extra special to remain loyal. But that’s not true for first-time guests! Successful organizations will know how to roll out the red carpet for new people, and they will know how to invite them to return for a second visit!

    THE SAME IS TRUE FOR THE LOCAL CHURCH!

    How to know if your guests will want to return.

    There are several proven strategies that, when embraced by local churches, will ensure most 1st time guests will be likely to come back for another visit. Here are just a few.

    VIP Treatment the Moment They Arrive

    The best greeter teams are those that know how to identify and host guests. From the moment guests arrive on the scene (as early as the parking lot in some cases) there are people available to kindly direct them to others who will then explain where things are, what to expect and, if necessary, help them find a seat. The most anxious first-timers will begin to relax and focus on God when their worries and fears are dealt with within the first 2-3 minutes after they arrive.

    A Warm & Welcoming Environment

    The moment churches forget they are hosting guests is the moment they stop caring about the floors, windows, bathrooms and rest of the building. That’s the moment when the church has decided to hold outsiders at arms length and just focus on insiders. This will be immediately obvious to visitors and may play a much larger role in deterring their return than just about anything else. First time guests should never be distracted by a dirty or run-down facility. 

    Handling Kids With Care

    Church leaders and greeters will do well to always treat the children and teens of first-time guests with the utmost respect and care. They will over-communicate where they will go and what to expect and they will exceed those expectations. Many long-standing church attendees around the world will confess in private that the real reason they came back was because of their children. Alternatively, ignore children and offer them a bad experience and your guests are almost sure to never return again.

    Friendly Attendees

    It makes a huge positive impression when the regular attendees are genuinely friendly and reach out to first-time guests. The subtext behind this environment is, “People are really nice here, and I can use friends who are nice to be around. Maybe I should come again.” I’ve visited churches who would label themselves as friendly, but who treated me like I was invisible. And I’ve visited those who are so obviously friendly towards outsiders. The difference between the two might be compared to the difference between the winter weather in the northern versus the southern United States.

    Strategic Follow-Up

    Unless your first-time guests are already committed ‘church goers’ it’s unlikely that your guests will think of coming back anytime soon. After all, they hold no loyalty toward the church or God yet. For the truly unchurched guest, church attendance might be viewed as something to do on a rainy day, when they think about it or simply when time permits. So churches need to strategically follow-up with their guests, preferably within hours or a day or two of their visit. And they shouldn’t forget about their guests after their ‘obligatory follow-up’ either. Rather, churches should consider methods by which they can occasionally invite past guests to upcoming events or sermon series that may potentially draw them back to the church for another visit.

    What other ‘first-time guest’ strategies would you recommend?

    (don’t forget to check out my webinar on this very topic later this week!)

  • How To Maintain Unity in the Local Church

    How To Maintain Unity in the Local Church

    A while back I was asked to create a devotional video for christian leaders focusing on the topic of character. I decided to discuss character as it relates to unity in the local church. The passage I shared from is found in 1 Peter 3:8:

    “Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.”

    This may be a great video for your leadership team, eldership or board of directors to watch and discuss together, just to keep the conversation about unity in the church alive and in the open. Enjoy.

    Questions:

    At the end of this teaching, I ask a few group questions. Here they are for your reference as well.

    • What relationship are you dealing with right now that’s causing strife, division, or discord?
    • What part, if any, are you playing, to fan the flames of that discord?
    • Which of the following words do you feel need to be applied, based on the passage I just read?
    • What is the Holy Spirit speaking to you right now?
  • Why Churches Struggle Finding A New Pastor

    Why Churches Struggle Finding A New Pastor

    My son loves to fish. A couple summers ago he caught a great fish (see picture) in a pretty small pond. He and his friends even landed a huge snapping turtle! The thing is, Ben has a somewhat unique fishing method. His primary fishing hole is at a pond near our home that has a bridge spanning the middle. He and his friends simply “pick their fish” while looking down over the bridge, and then focus on that catch. They’ve been pretty successful too!

    I was talking with a leader the other day about succession planning for the local church. I told him there’s a big difference between Succession Planning and Replacement Planning. It’s a crude illustration, but I found myself sharing about my son’s fishing strategy.

    I likened Succession Planning to what my son does at that bridge on the pond. Pick your fish, then focus on that fish until you’ve successfully hooked and brought it in.

    Replacement Planning is going to be a lot more like the traditional fishing methods most of us use. Bait, cast, catch a bunch of green stuff. Try again, set the hook, pull in something small and ineffective, try again and again and again, until we catch something close to what we’re looking or hoping for. 

    Every pastor wants to find the right person to replace him when it’s time to pass the baton. The problem is, most don’t think to look for that person until it’s too late. Sometimes I’ll receive a call from a pastor who is ready to resign or move on. They ask me, “Can you help me develop a succession plan?” After a few questions I have occasionally answered with, “No. But I’ll help you work on a replacement plan.” 

    Succession is about finding one or more candidates for pastoral leadership and then mentoring them until one has shown him or herself ready for leadership. By then, it’s usually obvious to the senior leadership of the church, if not the congregation as well, that the new pastor is in the house. The transition usually goes a lot smoother for everyone.

    Replacement is about finding one or more candidates who hopefully fit the bill, and putting them in the saddle, with a prayer that they were the right one. Too often, it turns out they aren’t. By the time you find that out, it’s too late and the church is often sidetracked for months or even years dealing with the repercussions.

    Here are a few more differences between succession and replacement planning.

    Succession

    Replacement
    • Is a process.
    • Is an event.
    • Begins 2-3 years before the transition.
    • Begins 3-6 months before the transition.
    • Is proactive.
    • Is reactive.
    • Prepares the congregation for change.
    • Surprises the congregation with change.
    • Yields expected results.
    • Yields mixed results.
    • Values are embedded into the new leader before succession happens.
    • Values are discovered in the new leader after replacement happens.
    • The new leader holds a high degree of trust by the congregation.
    • The new leader holds a mixed degree of trust by the congregation.

    You get the idea. It’s wise to begin developing a succession plan for your church sooner than later. You can begin this process at any time and build it into your overall leadership strategy. It doesn’t matter if the Lead Pastor is 35 years old or 65 years old, it’s worth starting now.

    Which plan will your church implement when it’s time to find a new leader?

  • How To Deal With Volume Complaints

    How To Deal With Volume Complaints

    In the same Sunday morning service I’ve had two people approach me with differing complaints – one asked if the worship could be turned up while the other asked if the worship could be turned down. In most churches it seems like the sound is never quite right. The fact is, it’s one of those, “you can’t please everyone” areas. Many years ago I had to navigate a different problem though. The volume was driving people away.

    It’s one of the reasons why I wrote the following two posts: Turn the Volume Down! & Turn the Volume Up! as well as why I asked my friend, Josh Cummings, to write this follow-up post: Unlocking the Secrets of Church Sound.

    I’d like to offer some advice on dealing with volume complaints. These ideas will help leverage what you believe the volume levels should be each week with the myriad of volume adjusting requests you may have to entertain.

    Acknowledge Mistakes.

    If the shoe fits, wear it with grace. You should know if the sound was off on a particular Sunday. If it was, simply acknowledge to your listener that he or she is right and that you will be looking into what happened. If you are unsure about whether the sound was grossly off from the standard, still let them know you will be looking into it (and do).

    Respect Others’ Opinions.

    Intellectually, we know everyone is entitled to their opinions and ideas. Practically, it can be a lot more difficult to respect and honor them. Make sure any person who has a concern or frustration in this area gets your undivided attention. Listen closely to their perspective. Seek to understand it fully. Honor them by recognizing their thoughts are important and matter. Do not try to ‘defend’ or ‘answer back’; let them have their say. Once that is done, kindly seek to help them understand where things stand with the sound.

    Know Your Target Audience.

    It was a lot easier for me to respond to people’s complaints simply because I knew who our target audience was. Because Elim Gospel Church has a strong desire to reach the younger generations, they are willing to push the envelope a little on volume issues in order to reach them. That’s not to say I would blow people’s complaints off, but I would be armed with the “Why?” behind our reasoning – which often resulted in my listener respecting and sometimes embracing our decision when we were done talking. 

    Understand The Challenges.

    As I just suggested, volume challenges are often beyond our control because of a lack of training, poor equipment, or bad acoustics. Although none of those difficulties should be given as the ultimate excuse, they should also play a role in helping others understand that resolving volume problems aren’t as simple as they might think. It is extremely important, however, that you ALSO give your listener the confidence that your team is working on solutions to those challenges.

    Create and Hold To Your Standards.

    It’s a lot harder to argue with well defined, tried and tested, standards. This is why I recommend your church purchase a dB meter and spend some time determining the best sound levels for your room, and sticking with them. This removes some of the ‘personal opinion of the sound person’ challenge. If they are aware of the standard and held responsible to hold to it, then you are much less likely to get complaints, and when you do, you are more likely to be able to respond with confidence. Even better, if you have a digital sound board, learn how to program it for individual bands or band members so that your sound tech is less likely to make mistakes when mixing.

    I also recommend reading Willowcreek Church’s Audio Volume Policies. Understand, they are a huge church, but the fact that they have taken the time and energy to figure these things out should be a testimony of the value they find in getting it right. 

    Write A Position Paper.

    If volume ends up being an ongoing issue for your congregation, consider writing a position paper underlining your values, standards, and limitations. Again, this simplifies communication. You can be sure people are hearing it said the way you want it said, and you can always follow up with people after they’ve read it over. The link mentioned above also points to Willowcreek Church’s Audio Volume Open Letter. It’s a great example of what your position paper might look/sound like.

    Ask Your Sound Team To Subscribe To www.behindthemixer.com.

    You can address concerns with your congregation a lot easier when you know your team is well trained and not just doing a ‘hack job’ of it. Ask each sound tech to subscribe to www.behindthemixer.com to keep them focused, sharp and on the cutting edge of all things church sound!

  • Why Young Adults Don’t Attend Your Church

    Why Young Adults Don’t Attend Your Church

    I used to visit a restaurant that had two separate dining areas, one slightly larger than the other. The larger dining area was always where I sat to eat, even though I had to walk right by the smaller dining area to get there. To be honest, it never occurred to me that I could sit in there if I wanted to. The reason was quite simple. It was where all the ‘regulars’ sat, who were also all much older than me. There was sort of an ‘exclusive club’ feel to the place. Everything about that space screamed, “Private Party” even though it wasn’t.

    Sadly, our churches often send this same message to the younger generations, without even realizing it.

    Let’s split up the ‘younger generation’ demographic into two categories, those (1) not interested in God and those (2) interested in or pursuing God, and focus on the latter group. It’s not hard to miss these people in our churches today, especially in the small to mid-sized churches. 

    Why aren’t they attending more of our churches? 

    I suspect the following 5 reasons might answer that question.

    1. It feels like an insiders club.

    Young people aren’t interested in learning the secret handshake so they can be part of the church. If they visit the church a few times and feel like an ‘outsider’ for very long, they’re not going to stick around. It is super important church leaders ask the question, “What (formal & informal) hoops have we created that people have to go through before they are accepted and integrated into the life of our church?”

    In other words, how long will it take & what needs to happen before they are treated like family? More than any other age group, we need to be intentional about making this process simple, both practically and emotionally. 

    2. It reminds them of their ‘mom & dads’ church.

    I’ve heard young adults echo this phrase many times over the years. They leave the church they grew up in and find themselves at college or on their own. Eventually, they check out some churches in the area. From the moment they walk through the doors until they leave, their experience reminds them of church growing up. Only, for many of them, the Sunday morning experience growing up wasn’t for them, it was for the adults, for mom and dad. 

    Although technically “adults,” many young people aren’t interested in acting like the ‘older’ adults they’ve been around their whole life. They want to express themselves as the younger generation. Churches who are actively reaching this group of people are also finding ways to enhance the Sunday morning environment to better appeal to them.

    3. There is nothing interesting for them to do.

    Despite the fact that young adults have a history of sitting in front of their devices, TV’s and xbox’s growing up, they don’t want to just sit around at church. They’ve grown up having a lot more freedom and control over what they get to see and do than those before them. And they are going to get bored real quick if they are forced to just do and go where everyone tells them to. They want to have a say in what’s going on and they want to do something important and interesting.

    Churches who are thinking of this generation will quickly get them involved in ministry. They will encourage them to reach out to felt needs in the community. And they will provide lots of fun activities that are designed to keep young adults engaged with one another and the church family.

    4. There is no one interesting to hang out with.

    Many young adults who visit your church are looking for new connections. Surprisingly, not just with peers, but with people who can act as mentors and leaders in their life. That said, peers are important. Many a young person will walk in a church, scan the crowd, and determine to never return simply because there is no one else around their age. Churches that can reach a small ‘quorum’ of young adults have the beginnings of a foundation to build on, relationally.

    It shouldn’t stop there. One of the best ways to truly connect to this auspicious group of people, is by inviting them into the homes and lives of your church families. I’ve never heard of a young person who turned down an invitation to dinner and who doesn’t secretly enjoy experiencing ‘family’ away from their own family.

    5. Their questions are not getting answered.

    Young adults hate watered down and pat answers. They have questions and they are genuinely interested in the answers. They want to know the Truth. But they have little patience for flowery speeches, big words, and long explanations. They want it simple. They want to get it. They want it fast.

    Communicators need to brush up on their skills and not assume what worked ten years ago will work today. They need to know how to tell great stories and they need to be consistently asking themselves how they can connect with young adults. More than ever before, church leaders must, “be prepared in season and out of season.”

    What other reasons are young people staying away from our churches?

  • Seats on the Bus

    Seats on the Bus

    In his book, Good to Great, Jim Collins says, “We expected that good-to-great leaders would begin by setting a new vision and strategy. We found instead that they first got the right people on the bus, the wrong people off the bus, and the right people in the right seats – and then they figured out where to drive it. The old adage, ‘People are your most important asset’ turns out to be wrong. People are not your most important asset. The right people are.”

    He hit the nail on the head. Ministry is not just all about having people around doing things; it’s also about paying attention to what they are doing as well. Unfortunately, I think this ideas sort of locks many of us up. We think, “How am I supposed to find the exact right seat for everyone?” Ugh. Some of us can hardly figure out where WE fit in, much less trying to figure out which seats on the bus everyone else is supposed to fit.

    MY RECOMMENDATION: START WITH SECTIONS.

    What if we just started by getting people in the right section of the bus instead? Generally, we have three kinds of people in our church: Creatives, Doers & Leaders. Yes, I know. Sometimes people can be a mixture of one or more of those. But generally speaking, if we know what kind of people we’re dealing with, we can seat them where they fit best and worry about finding their exact seat as time goes on.

    The back of the bus – Creatives

    Everyone knows that the troublemakers like to sit in the back. If you’re sitting back there, you probably want to be far away from what’s really going on. You aren’t interested in where the bus is going right now. You just want to utilize your creativity to dream, talk, and get into just enough trouble that the bus driver doesn’t notice. 

    This is where strategic thinkers and creatives sit. They are big-picture people. They like to try new things. They are sometimes critical thinkers (I didn’t say critical people!) They are the ones you want in the room when you’re dreaming about the future, evaluating how things are going and discussing creative, new things to do or ways to do them. 

    These people don’t need a lot of authority to make choices, they just need a platform for their thoughts and ideas to be heard. Great leaders will gather them together to hear them out and learn from them. They also tend to be early adopters, ready to jump in with both feet when it’s time for change.

    The front of the bus – Leaders

    If you’re sitting at the front of the bus it’s likely because you want to be close to the action. You want to see who’s coming in and out the door. You want to talk to the bus driver. You want to see where the bus is going next and you want to play a part in how you will get there.

    This is where the the leaders sit; the ones who make decisions. These are the people in your organization who will actually decide the future and direction of the church. Sometimes the Creatives & the Leaders are the same people. However, often it’s wise to have them sit in a separate section of the bus. Of course, if you’re driving a small bus (a small church/ministry) you don’t always have that luxury. 

    In a perfect world, the Creatives come up with some great ideas, feedback and insights and the Leaders can then determine which one’s will work best for the bus based on it’s mission and where it’s going.

    The middle of the bus – Doers

    If you’re sitting in the middle of the bus you are likely in your own world. You’ve got your iPod in or your just hanging with everyone else in that section. Sometimes you like to listen in on the talk in the back of the bus and sometimes you like to sit near the front to get a feel for the action, without having to be involved. You aren’t cut out for the intensity of the back of the bus and you aren’t really super interested in where the bus is going. You just like being IN the bus.

    This is where the doers sit. These are the people who will do whatever is necessary to keep the bus moving and support the vision of the leaders. They are the ones who will dig their heels in and grind out the plans you have made. Your doers don’t make a lot of decisions, and they don’t want to. They do the work based on the decisions that have already been made, and they do it well.

    About Your Bus

    Here are a few closing observations about how these sections work (or don’t work) in different ‘buses’ or ministries.

    • In my experience, the middle of the bus (Doers) is where the vast majority of people sit, like 90%. There are usually only a few seats in the front and a few seats in the back dedicated to Creatives and Leaders.
    • If a bus has too FEW Doers, it end up coming up with a lot of ideas/plans that never get done. Innovative ideas & new paths don’t get built. The bus doesn’t stop when it should to take on new passengers. It sometimes doesn’t get cleaned properly and needs a fresh coat of paint. You get the idea.
    • If a bus has too FEW Leaders, the bus tends to take loopy circles and gets distracted going places it doesn’t need to go. It also runs inefficiently and needs to spend a lot of time in the shop with repairs. Often, the bus looks great but is going nowhere important.
    • If a bus has too FEW Creatives it takes the path it’s always known, even when there are better paths to take. The bus stays old and eventually becomes uninteresting to prospective new passengers. 
    • The smaller the church, the more Creatives and Leaders have to double up and also be Doers. There is less of a clear demarcation between the different seats.
  • Four Terrible Assumptions Church Leaders Make

    Four Terrible Assumptions Church Leaders Make

    I was standing in the lobby of a local church talking to an unchurched first time guest. It was one of the first times he had ever visited a church and he knew nothing about God or christianity. The service had just completed and people were filtering out of the sanctuary and collecting in small groups, visiting with one another. It was a warm, friendly atmosphere. I was so glad when the pastor noticed me and came over to talk to us.

    Alas, my joy was short-lived. The pastor introduced himself to my new friend and then proceeded to talk about his sermon and how important it was for “us Christians.” It was sort of an “insiders” conversation. I wanted to step on his toe or something. I wished he could read the urgency in my eyes. In desperation, I finally interrupted him and blurted out, “Pastor, I didn’t know if I mentioned this or not, but this is our friend’s first time here this morning. Did you get to meet his wife and kids yet?” I’m still unsure if the pastor got the message, but I was at least able to distract him from the unhelpful conversation and redirect it to a more safe topic. Ugh.

    I happen to know this pastor has a heart of gold. He’s a great guy, a seasoned minister, and truly loves both his congregation and the people in the community. I know he has a heart for the lost.

    But he has fallen into a trap. One that, unfortunately, is very easy for pastors and church leaders to stumble into. He’s forgotten that the people who sit in his congregation are not like him. He’s making several bad assumptions about the people in his church, and I’m afraid it’s potentially turning them away.

    Four Terrible Assumptions Church Leaders Make:

    Since I visit a lot of churches as a ‘Mystery Guest,’ I have the chance to experience their church from a very unique perspective. Following are four terrible assumptions I have seen church leaders make way too often. 

    Assumption #1: Guests Know What To Do

    It saddens me greatly when church leaders assume guests have experience attending churches and know what’s going on, what they are supposed to do, where they are supposed to go, etc. They forget that the church environment, one they are intimately familiar with, is a brand new environment for many guests. Even those who have, perhaps, attended church before may still be in the dark, especially if their ‘church experience’ was from a different denomination or style of church.

    Imagine visiting a place that you have never visited before, where everyone but you feels at home and nobody thinks to help you get acclimated. Even better, go find that place and check it out. Perhaps your local health club or golf club, I don’t know, try the New York Stock Exchange. Visit that place and be reminded that your guests are experiencing something similar.

    They don’t know what to do with their kids. They don’t know the words to the songs, and probably feel a little uncomfortable singing them. They don’t know if they are supposed to give money or take communion. And they don’t know when to stand, when to sit or what to say. At one church I visited, everybody quotes, from memory, the Lord’s Prayer and sings the Doxology every week. Your guests know neither of those things.

    Assumption #2: Guests Know the Bible.

    Walk up to just about any adult in America and you will discover that they know how to drive a car. It’s a given – and it’s pretty much assumed. After all, everyone we know eventually ends up behind the wheel. Sometimes we ride with them while they drive. That sense of familiarity has seeped into many churches regarding the Bible. Church leaders spend a ton of time with other people who read the Bible, understand what it’s about, and know all the stories. So it’s not that great a leap for them to assume that anyone who is in the church has Bible knowledge.

    Imagine walking into an advanced physics class at your local university. Even better, go visit it sometime. Don’t tell anyone who you are or why you are there. Just let the instructor & students talk to you as if you’ve already been through the other physics courses, like everyone else. You get the picture.

    You’re guests probably don’t know where to turn in the Bible, if they even own one. And it’s likely they don’t know the story of Jonah, David & Goliath, the parting of the Red Sea, the Last Supper, Pentecost and quite possibly even the story of Jesus’ death & resurrection. You learned all that as a kid in Sunday School; they didn’t. For many of your guests, the most they know about the Bible and it’s stories is from what they’ve seen at the movies. Do you really want to briefly mention Noah after they just watched Hollywood’s rendition of the story? 

    Assumption #3: Guests are Christians

    Perhaps one of the worst assumptions church leaders can make is that guests are already Christians. The tragedy behind this assumption is that, by making it, there is little to no room to actually open up the most important conversation that individual may ever have. When we assume someone has already discovered Christ’s love and forgiveness, we no longer think to share the Good News with them. Even worse, when we talk to unbelievers like they are already believers and part of the family, we may even give them the false impression that they are, in fact, Christ followers. They may end up attending and serving in the church for months or even years, and have never truly grasped the simple, yet profound message of the Gospel.

    Imagine being invited to a football party with a bunch of people you don’t really know. What if, without being asked, everyone assumes you’re rooting for the same team as everyone else in the room? When a touchdown is made, everyone cheers and slaps five and nobody even stops to think that you aren’t rooting for that team, and maybe don’t even like football! Is it possible that our Sunday morning environment and the way we talk to and treat guests aren’t too far off from that hypothetical situation?

    There is no guarantee your guests know God, or understand God. Jesus Christ may simply be a religious and historical name. Salvation? Forgiveness? A loving God? Atonement? All may be totally foreign words or concepts. The next time you shake the hand of that guest, assume nothing about their faith in God. Realize that they could be completely unchurched, or an atheist or agnostic; or to complicate matters, even possibly a Mormon, Buddhist, Muslim . . . you get the idea.

    Assumption #4: Guests have it all together.

    I’m convinced most Christian leaders would make terrible police officers. We have no idea how to truly profile another person. I’m pretty sure if we were sitting in the police car with an officer, watching the same people, we’d point out the nicest people as being potential criminals and totally miss those truly guilty. Sad to say, but I think a lot of church leaders look at our guests and falsely assume that, if they’re smiling, dressed well and friendly, then they are happy, well off and emotionally healthy; and if they’re scowling, dressed poorly and want to make a quick exit, then they are grumpy, in loads of debt and emotionally unstable.

    Think about what you’ve gone through, personally, this year. I know you’ve faced a few challenges of your own – we all pretty much do. If this has been a good year, then go back a couple years until you hit that particularly difficult situation. Now, how many of the employees knew about your challenge at the local supermarket when you were buying milk? No. They thought you were fine. 

    Philo of Alexandria once said, “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a great battle.” That includes your guests. We don’t know if the battle is a recent loss, an addiction, a broken relationship, a serious illness, major debt or a lost job. Whatever it is, you aren’t going to see it when you introduce yourself and welcome them to the church. Don’t be fooled. They need the hope, love, healing, peace and forgiveness of Jesus Christ.

    How about you. Which assumption are you most guilty of making?

  • Behind the Mixer

    Behind the Mixer

    I hear a lot of pastors express frustration about the people behind the mixer. Evidently, getting the right mix, sound, volume, etc. is nearly impossible. I know. I was in that place for many, many years. In fact it’s what prompted me to write the following posts:

    And finally, I strongly recommend you ask your sound techs (and worship leaders) to subscribe to behindthemixer.com. Besides some great ongoing articles on running a mixer, there is also a section entitled, “Church Audio 101”. Check it out!

    Behind-The-Mixer

    www.behindthemixer.com

     photo credit: fensterbme via photopin cc

  • Get Your .church Domain While You Can!

    Get Your .church Domain While You Can!

    A couple years ago I remember my wife and I discussing the idea of picking up a particular toy for one of our gradeschool kids for Christmas. We looked it up and saw that there were a few available. The problem was that we hadn’t decided if we wanted to get it or not. So we waited. And we missed our opportunity. A few days later, they were out of stock and we were hard-pressed to find it anywhere at the price we could afford. It was a serious bummer.

    Believe it or not, YOUR church is likely in that same place.

    You have a very UNIQUE opportunity to get something for your church, right now, that may not be available later. This past July, the ‘powers that be’ in the internet world, released a new web domain to the public. A web domain is the last few letters of your website, after the dot. So .org is the domain of my website here: www.waynehedlund.ORG.

    What’s cool is that you can now get a .CHURCH domain. And if you’re quick, you can get “JUST THE RIGHT ONE”. I suspect some of you still don’t get why this is cool. Let me give you a couple of examples of real churches I know of right now. 

    Current Web Address (as of today) Could Actually Be:
    www.elimgospel.org www.elimgospel.church
    www.elimgrace.org www.elimgrace.church
    www.lovejoy.org www.lovejoy.church

     

    By adding the .church domain, you are pretty much giving your community the literal name of your church. It looks professional and sounds good. 

    What about all the people who are used to our current web address?

    Not a problem. You can still keep your current web address. Many people don’t realize it, but you can actually have SEVERAL web addresses and have them all point to one real address. So you could own www.yourchurchname.com, www.yourchurchname.net and www.yourchurchname.church all point to www.yourchurchname.church. If anyone typed in any of those three, the web will automatically redirect them to the one you prefer. 

    Why do I have to hurry?

    It’s pretty simple. Eventually, a lot of churches will also figure this out. If they have the same name church as you’re church and they get the .church before you, then you missed it. After all, you probably don’t want to have your website named: www.elimgrace2.church! 

    So if it’s still available, you should grab it up before someone else does. For all that matters, you DON’T EVEN HAVE TO USE IT right now if you want. Just get it so nobody else can snatch it first! This is called ‘Brand Protection.’ With an entire globe having access to .church domains, there’s a good chance someone, somewhere beats you to it if you don’t leap soon.

    How much will it cost?

    It will probably cost you between $20-$30 for the first year. After that, you might have to pay as much as $50/year. Hopefully, those prices will get lower as time goes on. But if you wait until they’re ‘lower’, you still might miss out.

    Where do I go to buy it?

    As of the time of this writing, 1and1.com is offering a special discount, allowing you to get your .church domain for $19.99 for the first year. I recommend you check them out at www.1and1.com/church-domain.

    What do I do next?

    After you’ve bought your new domain, you’ll want to talk to your web programmer or someone in your church who understands this stuff, and ask them to set it up for you. It’ll be up to you how much you want to promote the new domain name or not. For instance, do you want to replace all of your promotional material with that new name? Food for thought.

    Here’s another idea for you. If your whole website is in need of an upgrade anyway, perhaps it would be a good time to give your whole website a facelift. Check out my website services, created specifically to help churches with their web presence, at www.tlsites.com.

  • Undercover Jesus

    This article was originally posted in April of 2012. I thought you’d appreciate reading it (or reading it again!) Enjoy!

    What if Jesus began attending your church, incognito? There’s a question worth considering! I wonder what His experience would be? Would He feel welcome? Would His experience be relevant, engaging and impacting? What would it be like if He came as ‘Undercover Jesus’?

    I’d like to share a very familiar Scripture and then make two intuitive leaps. Stay with me, I’m pretty confident you will be challenged in a unique way by the end.

    In Matthew 25 Jesus shared the very vivid illustration of the sheep and the goats. Among other things, He was communicating that there will be a sifting on judgement day; not everyone will be accepted into the kingdom . . .

    “He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.  “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’””

    Intuitive Leap #1
    Jesus’ obvious intent is that we are active in feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, welcoming the stranger, clothing the poor, caring for the sick and visiting the inmate. However, the audience of people He expects us to minister to and care for is much larger than that select group. ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine….’ That statement changes a lot. Jesus is not JUST interested in people who are experiencing one of those unique challenges. He is interested in anyone with a felt need. That is the common denominator among circumstances like hungry, thirsty, sick, etc. Christ is exhorting us to expand our reference of who needs care to the hurting, the needy, the lost, the lonely, the broken . . . you get the idea. This especially includes people considered ‘the least of these brothers of mine’.

    That pretty much covers your congregation and community. Specifically, it includes church attendees who are particularly needy. It includes every guest that darkens your door “the stranger”. It includes the people who don’t have much of a voice in the life of your church “the inmate” as well as those who suffer from physical or mental disorders “the sick”.

    Intuitive Leap #2
    The final four words of this passage also requires major consideration: “you did for me.” This passage is much more than a declaration of the kinds of people we should reach. Jesus is clarifying a very big “WHO?”. The answer of ‘Who?’ goes way back to our childhood Sunday School days. It was the only answer that nearly always worked when asked a Bible question: Jesus.

    Jesus made it personal. He didn’t stop with, “Care for those needy people.” He played a very different and unexpected card. He connected every single thing we do (or don’t do) for this group of people to His personal relationship with us. Our personal devotions is no longer carried out in the privacy of our home, all by ourselves. It’s public. It’s out there with every person we touch. Jesus told us how to connect with and care for Him. He showed us the key to His heart. And in this passage He vividly declared that it matters.

    When we combine these two ideas, it’s clear how important it is that we honor, respect, and genuinely care for every individual in our church, regardless of their circumstances, character or influence.

    How does this reminder affect your ministry teams? Do you think you and your leaders genuinely love and care for individuals in your church as if they were Jesus Christ Himself?

    Image from pxell66 at istockphoto.com