[As this is a long piece, one may also simply download a PDF version here.]
Most churches take significant steps to prepare their Sunday gatherings…or similar primary weekend gatherings. Worship leaders prayerfully form worship sets. Teaching pastors work throughout the week developing a message. Administrative roles line up everything that is needed to welcome people with hospitality. When people gather, there is a quality that everyone can appreciate. This seems fitting given that the weekend gathering is the central point of engagement.
So what could be missing in that process?
I have come to see that the pattern of preparation is not lacking in effort… but in the danger of familiarity. The weekly pattern is so constant that it is only natural to have each part go about preparing their part… based on what has always been expected. While we should appreciate the qualities that have been serving us well, we also do well to recognize that familiarity can become our weakness. We can become so familiar with what we have been creating that we don’t step back to consider what could better serve the overall experience.
Some of the elements I raise below I began to recognize during my 33 years in serving as a Lead Pastor. Others come from seeing now what I wish I had recognized earlier. As some of these may not seem to fit your needs or priorities, I would encourage simply identifying one or two that strike you as helpful. You could even copy and paste a single section as a source of discussion with your team.
1. Develop a clear culture that permeates all planning (…where values are clear and consistent).
Carey Nieuwhof says that “Mission is what you do. Vision is what you see. But church culture is how your church feels. It’s the unspoken rules, the vibe, and the climate of your church experienced by members, staff, and visitors.” [1]
Sam Chand, describes church culture as “the atmosphere in which the church functions. It is the prevalent attitude. It is the collage of spoken and unspoken messages.” Such culture is said to be the strongest force of an organization… more than that of vision or strategy. [2]
It’s not uncommon for an organization to state a value that they sincerely want to embrace… yet the way the organization actually operates simply does not reflect the stated value. A church’s leadership may state that they value reaching the lost….but who show little thought and perhaps even a little hostility toward the unchurched. Perhaps a church states that it is multi-generational but offers very little opportunity for younger lives. In such cases, something in the culture is not allowing the value to be realized. Therefore, it can be valuable for a church’s leadership team to take time to dare and both assess and adjust it’s culture. This means considering what values it wants to have…and then considering if those are or are not being affirmed by the actual dynamics of the way the organization operates. [3]
For example…
• Some churches create a culture of highly prepared performance… some of a casual family atmosphere… and some in between.
• Some churches relate to the wider culture with hostility… some with an unspoken desire to simply avoid all such potential cultural conflict… and some reflect a desire to be in conversation with cultural issues.
• Some churches are focused on the gathering as a family…some on a more intentionally diverse gathering of the committed and curious… and some as more strictly an audience.
• Some churches tend to focus on their past history….some are always focused on the next new thing….and some seek to refer to past only as it provides guidance as they face forward.
Not to be missed is the value for creating a culture of improvement itself. The goal is not perfection, nor is the goal to be a church of excellence. The goal is improvement. The church will only improve on a regular basis when the goal of improving becomes part of the culture. One of the best means to developing a culture of improvement is the Natural Church Development program. This creates a positive way to maintain assessment and focus on developing the weakest area… which generally leads to seeing improvement without being overwhelmed with too many needs at once. [4]
While the topic of creating church culture is far more extensive than is fitting here, the specific point to recognize is that weekend gatherings should have a clear set of values that they reflect. While church culture is the collective ethos experienced throughout every part of a church’s life, including hallway conversations, handling conflict, how finances are used, and how decisions are made… we do well to recognize that the widest influence on a church’s culture comes in the main weekly gatherings. This is when the most lives will experience how the church welcomes those who come, what kinds of lives are valued, what is celebrated, what is scorned, and so much more.
The weekend gatherings can be served when everyone who is leading understands that they are not simply fulfilling a particular function, but they are also shaping the culture. The hosting team are culture shapers… the worship leader is a culture shaper, the host providing announcements is a culture shaper. The teaching pastor is not just teaching…but shaping the church culture.
When every role understands the desired culture…and how they can reflect that in how they do their part…. something more cohesive and ideally more positive is experienced.
Here are some elements to consider…
• Is there a set of cultural values that you can currently identify with clarity?
• Is there a context in which at least those who serve the pubic gatherings can review and reaffirm these values?
• Is there a time you could set aside to assess the culture… and consider what may be needed to better embody these values?
2. Develop strategic macro-planning (…where the parts are able to serve a greater whole).
Some may be familiar with an experience in which “the whole can be greater than the sum of the parts.” This can reflect the power of synergy in which each part serves the others. This can be true for how each part of a weekend gathering contributes in collaborative way with the other parts… or how various elements in a sermon series are brought together to reinforce and expand the potential impact.
For a single weekend gathering, strategic macro-planning can involve having planned ahead far enough to allow every part to know well ahead what is needed and how the parts can be coordinated. This can make the difference between a pastor preparing a message which either flows well with other special elements…or potentially conflicts with one another. A weekend gathering that includes a special time of baby dedications followed by a slightly shorter than average message on family relationships or caring for life relationships offers synergy… while being followed by an unusually long message on death can reflect dyssynergy where the combined effect of elements is less than the sum of their individual parts.
For a more extended season, strategic macro-planning can involve having planned ahead so that strategic balance and opportunity is brought into play. Is there an Alpha Course or sermon series in the coming year that will connect well with the unchurched? If so, could it be launched following a holiday? Will those already attending be well aware in time to invite friends? Are there plans to support this with social media?
Here are some elements to consider:
• Does the Lead Pastor or pastoral team develop a tentative plan for the weekend gathering topics in the year ahead? If not, could this be developed?
• Is there a similar means for all other programs and classes to be planned…and adjusted so that all fits well…in a way that such activities coalesce rather than compete?
• Are there plans for the “big days” to be prepared in a timely way so as to take advantage of the opportunity they offer?
3. Develop your space to best serve the size of your gathering (…where the energy is brought together with comfortable spacing.)
I believe that any size gathering can be experienced in a more positive way by simply scaling the space to a size that naturally serves to connect those who are gathered. Not surprisingly we are told how the early church met both "in the temple courts and from house to house” (Acts 5:42)… each space naturally serving a different size of gathering.
Scaling the seating to the size of the gathering brings the dynamics of connection and energy together. When you enter a church gathering in which people sit far apart… it creates a sense of disconnection from others. The communal worship will tend to feel less communal because bodies and voices are not united together. When one speaks…they are speaking across disparate groupings in a room rather than focusing on a group gathered near them. The goal is to be gathered close enough to experience one another’s presence…while allowing some natural comfort such as a seat between strangers.
Working to scale the open space in a gathering is often one of the easiest ways to serve the experience… yet is often ignored for far too long. In a rented large high ceiling auditorium with fixed seats, this may be limited to using pipe-and-drape, ropes, or black curtain over the rear seating. In many spaces it is as simple as removing rear seating.
A few general guidelines:
• The common goal is to provide seating so that it is generally 80% full …which is seating that is 125% that of the current crowd. (If a church has pew seating, the sense of separation in seating is less and a good seating capacity can be 65-75%. If a church has theater style fold up seats with arm rests, the sense of separation is greater and a good seating capacity can be 85-95%.)
• Many churches may also find it helpful to keep rear sections closed until the front begins to fill. As attendance grows, additional sections are opened in stages. This approach keeps the room feeling full and engaged, avoids the appearance of emptiness in front sections, and minimizes distractions for late arrivals by guiding them to available seating in the back.
• If removing rear seating creates a large empty space in the rear of the room, it may help to reduce lighting in that portion if possible.
• It is also valuable to scale the space between stage / pulpit and audience to that which feels natural as well. While it is good to maintain some space for prayer teams up front, it is best to avoid creating more distance than is necessary. So if the seating is flexible, it may be wise to move the front seats closer.
Here are some elements to consider…
• How could the current seating be changed to better serve connection and energy?
• If people tend to sit further back, how could we gently shift that dynamic to help bring the energy forward?
• Is there a way to allow parents with very young children to have space to sit in the back where they can more comfortably slip out of the room if their child is crying?
4. Develop a greater view of what “announcements” can be (…where cultural formation is valued over just communication of information.)
Through the years I have come to see that the announcement portion of a weekend gathering is often one of the least considered… yet in many ways…one of the most challenging. It is common for a worship leader to develop a well-prepared worship set… and a teaching pastor to have been highly investing in preparing a message… but the announcements are often just a list of information that someone is tasked to deliver.
We found that when those on the pastoral team were tasked with this role, they could do this with some natural comfort and freedom because they had a natural pastoral presence and familiarity with what they were speaking about. However, as we both needed and wanted to expand who served in such a role, it became clear how challenging announcements were….and in many regards…how challenging they had always been no matter who was sharing them.
The common assumption is that anyone can be given a list and communicate the information reasonably well. If that is all that is expected, that may be true. However, such a limited idea of the role will be felt throughout the room. Too often those who are there can feel that someone has been given a task to simply give some information…and that they are tying to get through the list. This can involve limited enthusiasm… limited grasp of the information (…many even reading from a phone)… and little thought to how what is being said adds to the basic information that could have just been communicated in writing.
So how could this element of the weekend gathering be better served?
Announcements are served by a hosting heart and mindset. The person who shares “announcements” is serving as a host… because they provide the more extended welcome…and shape the culture by both what and how they speak to what the community is doing …what they are celebrating…what they say to newcomers…and often how the church understands giving (…which is arguably the most sensitive of topics.) While those who serve to bring the announcement don’t have to be vivacious extraverts, it is important that they can naturally embrace the role of “host.” This includes being comfortable up front… extending good eye contact…and being relaxed enough to be present rather than rushed.
Announcements are served by a mental connection to the newcomer.
When we stand in front of a group, it is natural to mentally connect with the majority of familiar lives. As such, our natural tendency may be to simply say “hi”…and remind them about some things we know they are already familiar with. The challenge is to choose to embrace that you are hosting a gathering that exists to welcome the newcomer…including both those who may be unfamiliar with your church as well as those unfamiliar with any church. While there can be a tendency to assume that we should only concern ourselves with the unchurched when they actually come, the truth is that we should build what we want, not what we have.
Announcements should provide an immediate means to respond.
If we spend the time to tell people about an opportunity or need…and offer nothing they can do to respond to follow up or sign up…we are usually wasting time. If we have taken time to compel the value for something… that is the moment to provide a means to respond. Such a response could include visiting a table in the lobby after the gathering…but even better is something immediate such as texting a response to a number on the screen, scanning a QR code, or filling out a card provided.
Announcements are served by more….not less preparation.
As many people know, the investment in TV commercials per minute is far higher than that of TV shows themselves…because they must create connection with the briefest of time. Similarly, the role of “announcements” is to draw people into the life and activities of the church in the fewest of words. So while many presume it takes the least time to prepare, the truth is that if we appreciate the value and challenge, we will see that it may be served by more preparation per minute of stage or video time.
It is easy to assume we can just review a list or script and provide a rough version on the spot. While that is possible, our words will likely get drawn out and some key lines will likely get lost. It can serve better to have one member of the staff or volunteer leadership who develops basic scripts or key lines for every element that gets shared. For events that arise regularly, it is a matter of developing the key phrases once. For the invitation to giving, this may involve developing a rotation of several different brief ways to invite people to give. For more unique evets, this may involve helping refine the key points in conjunction with the leader of that event. These can then be arranged and given to the one or two people who will serve in sharing these announcements.
What leads to being genuine and fresh…is the next step…which is the individual who will be sharing these, taking time to write out a script or bullet points in their own words. They should use the more defining words or phrases from what they have been given, and then give it a little natural and personal revision, forming that which one will then become familiar enough to share without much reference to notes.
As an example, we had a “Getting Planted” class, similar to what many refer to as a membership or “101” type class, and realized that it was important to be very clear who this class was for. We realized that it wasn’t for first time visitors. (We had a “newcomers” meeting after services for those lives.) However, it could serve both those who had recently been coming and felt positive enough to want to find out more to better assess their potential commitment …and for those who were already settling in and perhaps even serving…for whom it would be mutually healthy to have a clearer understanding of who we are. As such, we chose to always describe this class as being for those who want to “explore or establish” commitment / membership. These are clarifying words that we recognized should be used whenever the class is promoted.
Some further points:
• Do not make references about “doing announcements” but perhaps just “we want to let you know about some opportunities” or “what God is doing.”
• Try to not simply transfer information but inspiration…more the “why” than the “what.” (It is best when the most details such as cost, phone numbers, childcare info are shown on screen or in a bulletin so you can emphasize the purpose it can serve in people’s lives…and direct people to the source of those details.
• Begin with introduction of oneself, or in the case of two hosts, the first can introduce both. This can feel awkward if you already feel known to the majority of lives, but it communicates a value for the newcomer by more properly introducing yourself to them.
• Similarly, references to names of people or programs should always add a simple reference to who a name represents or what the ministry is (i.e. Rather than “Ron is going to come up / lead / meet…” say “Ron, our Youth Pastor, is going to come up / lead / meet…” Rather than “Come help at The Learning Zone”… better “Come help at The Learning Zone”, our afterschool program for local children…..”) It always helps to imagine you are speaking to your neighbor who just came for the first time.
• Unless vital for some reason, do not use a cell phone as your source of notes unless in a fashion similar to a note card to just refer if needed to get a detail correct. Staring down at a small screen breaks eye contact with the congregation, reducing personal connection and engagement.
• Avoid rhetorical questions that you do not intend to engage the answer to (i.e. How are you doing today?... Are you loving this series?) It is not uncommon that there is a lack of response that can leave something negative hanging in the air.
5. Develop a gathering that genuinely welcomes the unchurched (…where the curious and committed can both know they belong.)
I have found that nearly every church professes and presumes that they value engaging the lost….but the way that many churches actually gather is less accessible to the growing majority of unchurched culture around them.
While many may value conversions… their gatherings are more defined by competing with the expectations of a “Christian culture” that has developed it’s own sense of what is comfortable… and inspiring… and successful.
The result is that many churches encourage their people to invite friends and family to come to the church services… but they don’t cultivate a culture that understands how to naturally welcome them and include them. Inviting and including are two side of the process….and need to be developed together. Many attenders may consciously, or unconsciously, fear that their friends and family may find their experience more weird than welcoming.
The truth is that as western culture has become more distant and distrusting of “Christianity” and “the Church”, few churches have changed their tone and tenants to help engage the unchurched. As such, even if they should grow by appealing to elements of churched culture, they generally don’t help their congregants learn to connect and converse with the unchurched in their daily lives.
It’s important to recognize that the “not yet believing” unchurched know that they are “outsiders.” As such, they don’t expect to fully understand what is new to them. What they do want to know is if there is a real place to be in the exploring process.
So find the fitting moments to welcome those who are exploring…perhaps to your particular church…but also Christ. In general, if this is acknowledged once in the announcements…and once in the sermon, wherever it naturally fits, it will establish a space for the unchurched… and ultimately to growth by conversions.
Most churches could be served by making an intentional choice to review every aspect of their gatherings and consider how they could better engage the “not yet believing” unchurched.
Here are some elements to consider:
• Sit through an entire weekend gathering as if a skeptical unchurched friend or family member was sitting with you. As you imagine what they may be trying to understand, how would you experience each part of the gathering?
• Discuss and develop a list of common phrases or practices expressed in weekend gatherings, that might be difficult for someone outside any Christian background to understand. After completing that list, consider how each could be expressed or explained in a way that would offer more understanding.
• Discuss and develop a list of common issues that are currently raised against belief in God or the Christian faith in particular. After completing that list, consider how these could be addressed in a way that could serve the unchurched either directly or by helping the churched engage them in their own relationships.
[For a far more extended focus and guide for such, see: Creating a Church Culture that Engages the Unchurched at https://pastorbradbailey.com/ministry-resources-1/creating-a-church-culture-that-engages-the-unchurched]
Notes:
1. 5 Essential Building Blocks of a Healthy Church Culture by Carey Nieuwhof - https://careynieuwhof.com/guide-on-how-to-create-an-amazing-church-culture/
2. Sam Chand - Cracking Your Church’s Culture: Seven Keys to Unleashing Vision & Inspiration (Jossey-Bass, 2010, a Leadership Network publication)
3. For more regarding the shaping of a church’s culture, see:
5 Essential Building Blocks of a Healthy Church Culture by Carey Nieuwhof - https://careynieuwhof.com/guide-on-how-to-create-an-amazing-church-culture/
How to Create a Culture of Church Improvement – Leaders.church - https://leaders.church/culture-church-improvement/
Leading a Church Through Culture Change (CPAS) - https://www.cpas.org.uk/blog/lead-on-3/leading-a-church-through-culture-change-20
4. See: Natural Church Development - https://www.naturalchurchdevelopment.org/