MOCGA – Make our church great again this fall.

How to you publicize your church?  I am writing this to give you ideas that some of the great churches in the country use to bring new visitors to their church and if you want to Make Our Church Great Again you should use these ideas.  Besides door to door visitation, bus ministry, Sunday School visitation and many other kinds of visitation every church needs something to bring excitement and energy to your weekly services.  Here are some great ways to do just that will bring energy to your church and get the people involved in growing your church.  You should plan your church calendar with these types of things on them every year and plan them a year ahead, doing it every year:

1. The first thing to do is plan the natural high days.  These days will include Easter, Promotion Day, revival Sundays, etc.

   Do not plan special activities on these days, for these days take care of themselves.  People come quickly to Sunday school on Easter just because it is Easter.  Consequently you should save your big drive and big push for other Sundays, realizing that Easter and other high days like Thanksgiving and Christmas will take care of themselves.

2. The next thing to do is plan natural low days.  There are always natural low days in a year.  One is Memorial Day weekend.  Another is Labor Day weekend, the Fourth of July weekend, etc.  Every pastor should plan something special for these natural low days.
3. Then you should plan something for a naturally low season.  The natural low season is the summertime.  Many churches have a summer camp.  There is always the fact that people take vacations of four, five, six, seven, eight, nine and even up to 13 weeks vacations.  So the church should plan something during the summer.  A great idea is what is called a “Cary the Load Sunday.”  Each department of the church is requested to “carry the load” on one of the Sundays during the summer.  On that Sunday, the department which is “carrying the load” will plan a big super colossal Sunday.  The first day would be Beginners’ Day.  The beginners promote a big Sunday.  When the beginners have a large crowd it also means that the adults have a large crowd.  Since there is not a single beginner that can drive a car it means that their parents will have to drive them to Sunday school.  The next summer Sunday is the Primaries big day.  Then comes Junior I, then Junior II, then Junior High, and then High School.  You can do the same with College age for those who come home for the Summer or live in the community.  The idea is that each department has a big Sunday and because of the bigness of that department the whole Sunday School is helped by the attendance of that particular department.  So, whatever department is having the Big Day will be blessed to have the pastor or one of the assistant pastors go to that department on that Sunday.  He preaches a gospel sermon that fits the particular age group, gives an invitation, trying to get people saved in that department during their Big Day.  Then those that were saved on the “Carry the Load Day” for that department are instructed to walk down the aisle during the main church service during the invitation.
4. The fourth thing a church can do in planning for the year is to plan for special holidays.  Plan something for Mother’s day like a flower for every mother or a ball point pen engraved with “Happy Mother’s Day” or other fine gifts that you can create specially for mothers on that day.  You can give a bouquet of flowers to the “Oldest Mother,”  “Youngest Mother,” “Mother with the most children,” “Mother with the most Grand children” and any other idea your church has for recognizing mothers.  Additionally you can do similar things for Father’s Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas and other special days that in the normal yearly calendar.
5. The fifth thing that can be done is to plan for special seasonal days.  You can have “Back To School Day” when school starts in the fall, “Old Fashioned Day” during any season, fall “Kick-Off Sunday,” or “Round-Up Sunday,” the church anniversary of the day it was started, the Pastor’s anniversary, including other types of anniversaries and seasonal days which are all easy to promote.
6. The sixth thing to do is plan for special activities.  If you are having Vacation Bible School during the summer then you can have “Vacation-Bible-School Sunday” and let it help your Sunday School attendance.  If you have a youth camp during the summer you can have “Youth-Camp Sunday where the church brings the campers to see them off and it can be a way to promote and get more in attendance.
7. Seventh, and this is one of the best you can use, is to plan a ten-week spring program and a ten-week fall program.  You can begin on the last Sunday in March, go through April and May and into the first Sunday of June.  You can give prizes for the most visitors each week and have a big day at the end trying to double your attendance and make a big deal out of the one the brought the most during the program and also the one that brought the most on the big day.  In the fall you can start on the last Sunday of September or the first Sunday of October and have the fall program run through October culminating on a Big Day on the first Sunday of December.  One idea is to have new testaments engraved in gold with an image or name of the church and give the new testament to every visitor that attends the services.  During these spring and fall programs have a contest in every department as well as a contest for the whole church.  These programs will be the life blood of your church.  Try to have a first prize that is attractive to all like motel rooms and meals in a nice hotel or motel for the family bringing the most visitors including meals and send them to a good Bible conference like the Sword of the Lord Conference in your area during the year.  You should have several prizes, first, second, third, and more.  When I was in college one of the bus divisions bought an old Dodge sports car with a wing on the back, painted it and offered it to the one that brought the most visitors.  I think it cost $500 but a Greek kid filled six busses on the big day with family members to win the car.  You will be amazed at what this will do for your church.  It will be the life blood of the church from now on.  Your prizes should also be spiritual in nature, Bibles, Family Bibles, great books, Bible Study Software, and many other things you can find on the Sword of the Lord website.  You can use many of the find things on that site for promotion in every department of the church.
8. Plan for four big, super colossal days each year.  Have one big day each quarter, the kind of day that will double your attendance.  If a church is running 100 in Sunday, don’t shoot for 150, rather make it a huge day by doubling the attendance.  The bigger the goal the more the people will be challenged.  A big goal inspires the desire in people to do something big for God.  Isn’t it time that we quit playing church, playing a little church and do something big by faith?  Why not grow your Sunday school for the Lord Jesus Christ.  Here is a list of some big days your church could do:
   1. “Old-Fashioned Day.”  This annual occasion, one of the most enjoyable times in any church and the people will want one every year.  On this day have a collection of antiques from people in the church, antique cars, or other collectables like old-fashioned churns, wash pots, spinning wheels, clocks, Bibles, curling irons, smoothing irons and other things that everyone has at home.  Someone may have an old fashioned pump-organ.  On old fashioned day pass a hat for the offering rather than an offering plate.  Have an old fashioned mourner’s bench at the altar covered with old worn-out quilts.  Do the baptism in a creek nearby.  In the evening service have only candle light with the main lights turned off.  Everyone wears old-fashioned clothes and you can even have a price for the one or family with the best old-time clothing.  There is an old fashioned message!  The offering is unique, the ushers say “Amen” for a $10 bill, “Praise the Lord” for a $20 bill, “Glory to God” for a $50 bill, and “Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah” when someone puts in a $100 bill or more.  Sing songs like “The Old Time Religion.”  Have an old time Gospel Quartet.  We used to have 4 men come with overalls, rope belts and have them pantomime to a quartet number.  The biggest guy pretended to have the high tenor voice and the smallest guy was the DEEP BASS.  People loved it.
   2. The church’s birthday once a year, the same day as they had their first service.  Have a big birthday cake in honor of the church birthday.  One church had a HUGE birthday cake weighing 700 lbs.  A candle is lighted for each department that reaches their goal.  It is the church’s birthday.
   3. Another day is “Back-To-School Day.”  Personal letters (you can use the voice broadcasting system also for all of these promotions) are sent to every school student.  A corsage is given to each lady school teacher and boutonnieres are given to every man school teacher.  A prize is given to each child who gets their own school teacher to come to church with them.  There is a special prayer of dedication for every school teacher that attends on “Back-To-School Day.”
   4. Another day can be “Baby Day.”  A special letter is sent to parents of babies (also use the voice broadcast system to call every parent and invite them to church.  There is a little gift for every child, perhaps a New Testament (blue for boys and pink for girls) and maybe a corsage is given to the mother of the baby.
   5. You can have an annual “Home-Coming Day” that fits your church.
   6. “Picture-Taking Day” is one is one of the best days your church can have.   Each class can have a picture made, pictures can be made on “Record Breaking Day” or other ideas can be “Absentee Day,” Good-Neighbor Day,” “Christmas Sunday,” “Ladies Rally,” “Men’s Rally,” “Pack-a-Pew Day” and any other day you and your church can come up with.

Remember that with every promotion mentioned here the very best tool for advertising each of your promotions is the Automated Voice Broadcast System.  Your church will never be the same if you have a plan, work your plan, and don’t get sidetracked.  Be like William Carey, “Expect something big from God and attempt something big for God.”  Just like a recent political campaign entitled MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, your slogan for the year can be “Make Our Church Great Again.”

If you don’t have one of our Automated Broadcast Systems go to the front page and sign up.  We will give you the system for life with no monthly payments and a database for your area included.  The only thing you will need to do is pay for the minutes like a pay-as-you-go phone.  The calls normally come to 1.5 cents per call.  You can call 10,000 people for around $40.  There is no better and cost effective way to reach people for Jesus Christ.