Church Marketing Sucks: September 2009 Archives

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September 30, 2009

Purpose, Values, Vision & Mission

(Filed under: Philosophy)

If you're like me, whenever you hear words like "vision," "values," "purpose" and "mission," your eyes start to glaze over. Then your ears start ringing with all of the vision/mission/purpose/values statements you've heard. And finally, the books you've read about these topics become even more confusing because you can't remember who said what, what comes first, and why exactly it all matters in the first place. For what it's worth, I think the reason these words/concepts are so abundant is directly connected to the significance these hold for our life and the organizations we serve.

In an effort to sort through all of the noise, here is how I define these often ominous terms, taking them from wall art in the conference room to tangible realities.

I believe there are two categories we should be thinking in. The first is purpose and values. The second is vision and mission.

Purpose and Values
Purpose and values should never change. They are with you from the beginning of your organization's existence and they should be with you until the end. They don’t contextualize or change with culture. They should always remain. Jim Collins’ research shows that a relentless commitment to purpose and values is the one and only difference between organizations that are built to last and those that are not. It’s not vision, mission, strategy, inventions or money in the bank that makes organizations last, it’s a relentless commitment to purpose and values.

Purpose is the reason why you exist. It's not your vision or mission, or the values that guide you. It's the big idea for why you do what you do. For church communities, I've found this often comes directly from Scripture. It's the reason you're regularly bringing everybody together. It's not how you bring them together or what you're doing when you're together or how often you come together. It's why you come together. And again, purpose should never change.

Values should guide everything you do. They are the glue that hold everything together. Words like "integrity," "honesty," and "humility" are often found in value statements. Values should inform every decision, every strategy, every employee hire and fire, every marketing campaign and every relationship with a vendor. And again, values should never change.

Continue reading "Purpose, Values, Vision & Mission"

Posted by Brad Abare at 3:59 PM
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Boycotting Poll Results

(Filed under: Poll Results)

If you follow us on Twitter, you might have noticed a story we linked to about a church from Florida who was removing all of their Pepsi machines to protest Pepsi's support of the gay agenda. Churches tend to boycott tons of things--from Disney to the Da Vinci Code, so we got to thinking: Would you participate in a church boycott?

43% of you said that it's a toss-up, and it totally depends on what your church is boycotting and why. Perhaps you'd pass on boycotting the latest Pixar movie for using the word "hiney," but you'd be all about boycotting your local grocery store for being a hub for child trafficking.

33% of you went with probably not, while another 12% of you say, "No way!" You non-boycotters prefer to be known for what you choose to support, or you just think boycotts are silly and ineffective.

Only 12% of you would bet on the side of standing in your church's picket lines. Either you normally agree with your church or you choose to agree with them because God has put them over you. But either way, you think you'd probably participate in the boycott alongside your leadership.

This week, we're asking something a bit more personal: What ways would you like to see Church Marketing Sucks utilizing our Twitter account?

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:17 AM
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September 29, 2009

We're Sorry, One More Time

(Filed under: The Christian Walk)

Recently, I gave a little bit of a rough time to Christian apologists. All too often, I've found myself wanting to apologize because it's the cool thing to do in front of Christian friends, and it seems "spiritual." But what does a real and honest apology look like?

Apparently, it looks like the churches of Sacramento.

Reverend Rick Cole personally and publicly apologized to Christina Silvas and Ben Sharpe.

Eight years ago, Silva was working as a stripper while putting her daughter through the church's school. Due to her profession, the church asked her to remove her daughter from the school.

Ben Sharpe, 14 years ago, was asked not to attend his eight-grade graduation for having a buzz cut. Apparently his haircut violated school policy.

But on a recent Sunday, in one service, one apology was able to turn 22 years of pain and negativity into a net-positive for those involved and the community.

And the article doesn't stop there. It has more stories from the Sacramento area, including this:

At Impact Community Church in Elk Grove, congregants made gift baskets and dropped them off at gay civil-rights organizations and strip clubs with attached notes apologizing for the words and actions of some religious leaders.

It's so moving to see these churches reaching out in love. They're meeting face-to-face, apologizing for their actions and humbly repenting on behalf of themselves and their communities--showing grace to their neighbors, both secular and religious.

If you ask me, that's how you do an apology.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:30 AM
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September 28, 2009

Lord, Save Us From Your Followers

(Filed under: Reviews)

This weekend, my wife and I ventured out to the Portland screening of Lord, Save Us From Your Followers after some high praises from our own Brad Abare and friend of Church Marketing Sucks, Mark Horvath. Maybe I was afraid it'd be just another apology, maybe I was afraid it would just plain stink, or maybe I was scared of the web site's gratuitous use of Papyrus, but I wasn't so excited going in to it.

But the actual film put any of my worries to rest.

If you're not familiar with the movie, I'll give you a quick synopsis. A pastor from Portland puts on a white suit with tons of religious bumper stickers and magnetic fish, then he heads across the country interviewing people about their perception of Christianity and Christ.

Pastor Dan Merchant does his share of hilarious finger-pointing at mind-numbingly absurd efforts by the church. But even better, he tells the moving stories of churches that are healing wounds, loving the unlovable and truly making a difference.

It's the type of movie that will leave you reflecting on your own faith and positions and challenge you to make changes for the better. And not just that, it's the type of movie you can bring friends to who wouldn't normally step foot into a church. After wards, you'll probably have conversations you never thought were possible.

For me, the movie was both convicting and encouraging. I'd rate it as a must-see for anyone who is trying to live like Jesus or is involved in this little thing we call church marketing.

On Oct. 2 Lord, Save Us opens in five more cities.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:31 AM
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September 25, 2009

Cultivate 2009: See you in Chicago!

(Filed under: Events)

I've said it before: The best part of conferences aren't the speakers, it's the relationships and conversations that happen at the conference. A new conference, Cultivate, has embraced that and done away with the speakers and slideshows.

The speakers have been replaced by facilitators and the presentations have been moved out of the way to give plenty of room for conversation. Whether your world is about social networking, design, web, outreach or inreach, we'll be talking about it. Cultivate is all about collaboration and conversation as we focus on how to communicate who Jesus is and how He transforms our lives.

Don't just take my word for, it look at why Dawn Nicole Baldwin, Matt Knisely, Tim Schraeder, Cynthia Ware and Carlos Whitaker are all excited about this one day conference in the heart of Chicago.

Oh, and did I mention the proceeds are going to support Blood:Water Mission and the Center for Church Communication (our nonprofit parent)? If good causes aren't enough, how about affordability? Registration is under $70. And as a bonus, you can stay in the Chicago area a few extra days if you like and check out Story.

What conversations are you looking forward to?

Posted by Michael Buckingham at 7:44 AM
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September 24, 2009

MinistryCOM 2009 Recap

(Filed under: Events)

Two weeks ago the MinistryCOM conference came together outside Chicago, kicking off the Fall church communication event schedule (seriously--have you checked out the fall line up?). Our own Brad Abare emceed, Michael Buckingham hosted a couple workshops, Church Marketing Lab moderator Mitch Bolton talked Photoshop and fun was had.

Notes & Links:

JoBe Cerny, keynote speaker and advertising guru talked about nothing.
Keynote speaker and brand expert Kerry Bural talked change.
Brand strategist Tim Ellens talked story.
Cleve Persinger and Eric Murrell of MediaSalt talked about what's working and what's not working. Persinger and Murrell also have their slides available for a limited time.
Longtime creative Von Glitschka talked about living a creatively curious life.
Proliferate note-taker Tim Schraeder talked about do-it-yourself church communications.
Visual Arts Director Jody Wissing talked marketing and media on a small budget and shared her slides.
Designer Michael Buckingham talked about Ninjas in the church and shared his handy 140-character, ready-to-tweet slides.
Self-professed non-creative and regular attendee Paul Clark talked about the creative vibe at MinistryCOM and his own church's need to get creatives to the table.
The guys from MediaSalt shared some of their lessons as attendees.
You can also check out a set of photos from the event.

And apparently everyone enjoyed some geeky designer videos: Font Conference and Make My Logo Bigger.

MinistryCOM will be returning Oct. 20-22, 2010 in Dallas.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 7:35 AM
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September 23, 2009

Ramadan Poll Results

(Filed under: Poll Results)

Recently, we discussed Brian McLaren's celebration of Ramadan as an interesting way of him communicating love to his Muslim neighbors. As is always the case, some commenters agreed and some begged to differ. But according to our most recent poll, it looks like our readers are pretty skeptical of something like this.

43% of you call shenanigans. You think this is silly at best and blasphemous at worst. Mark Driscoll agrees with you. In the USA Today Driscoll said McLaren's fast is "...insane at best ... Sad, tragic, horrific, misguided, dangerous, wrong..." and that:

If Christians want to pray during Ramadan, they should pray not with Muslims but for Muslims--that Muslims would come to know Jesus. To pray with Muslims absolutely dishonors Jesus.

18% of you don't see it this way. You see it as a great expression of love and mutual interest, and you'd like to have thought of it yourself. The chairman of Islamic Studies at American University shares your sentiments:

There is a high level of anti-Americanism in the Muslim world ... Now they are going to say this propaganda that America hates us is not true. Here is a pastor who wants to understand us, who does not want to convert us, and who is even prepared to walk with us, to fast with us. That is a big gesture.

And then, there are a whole lot of you riding the fence. You're still trying to decide how you feel about it, or more likely, you've suspended judgment indefinitely and moved on. That's all right, I'm sure there will be something new for you to have an opinion on in the future. For example, this week's poll:

We're looking to know: If your church were organizing a boycott of a company, would you participate? Log your vote in the Church Marketing Sucks sidebar.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 11:57 AM
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Catholics Come Home: The Role of Denominations

(Filed under: Advertising)

It looks like the Catholic church is ramping up their "Catholics Come Home" campaign. The LA Times reported that the diocese of Sacramento is "preparing to air several thousand prime-time TV commercials in English and Spanish, inviting inactive Catholics to return to their religious roots."

With less than 15% of Catholics attending church on a weekly basis in Sacramento alone, they're hoping this campaign will change the tide.

In addition to Sacramento, dioceses in Chicago, Omaha, Providence, R.I., and four other cities will launch the "Catholics Come Home" advertising blitz during Advent, the period before Christmas.

Some of the video ads are pretty moving, including the one titled "Epic."

We've covered some of these "We Are [insert denomination name here]" campaigns in the past, and this one from the Catholics is no exception. As Kevin said, "Maybe it's the denominational hopscotch I've played throughout my life, but a denomination doesn't define my identity. I'm a Christian, first and foremost." I agree that we are definitely moving beyond the times when our religious affiliation defined our status in the community.

In my opinion, the opportunity for denominations lies not in their ability to rally around a set of beliefs, but instead in their ability to rally people based on the DNA of the gathered tribe. In other words, beyond doctrinal beliefs, what makes XYZ Denomination tick?

Continue reading "Catholics Come Home: The Role of Denominations"

Posted by Brad Abare at 6:00 AM
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September 22, 2009

The Case for a Communications Director

(Filed under: Church Business)

Tim Schraeder is exploring a simple question: should churches hire full-time communications staffers? Admittedly, he's got a bit of a bias, being the director of communications at Park Community Church and all.

Part 1: What is a Director of Communications?
Part 2: The Call to Communicate

It's an interesting argument for full-time church communication staff. Tim and most of the comments argue in favor of this type of person, but it'd be interesting to hear counter-arguments as well. Is this a waste of money? Should church communications be crowd-sourced to church members? Is it better to work with ad agencies and the like instead of staffing your own? Feel free to weigh in either here or on Tim's blog.

And for others still, this is exactly the permission your church needs to hire someone full-time to direct your communications.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 8:44 AM
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September 21, 2009

Is Advertising a Silly Place to Spend?

(Filed under: Advertising)

Thousand of churches in Australia are about to embark in "Christianity's largest ever Australian advertising push."

But one lecturer in consumer behavior and advertising says that this money is being spent foolishly:

Yes, advertising does have some influence over attitudes and behaviour, but the reality is that it can only really work as a "nudging" tool. In other words, an advertisement will incrementally move you toward a decision, but there are a whole bunch of other variables that will determine your final behaviour or decision. In reality, one-way advertising is a relatively weak motivator when it comes to consumer behaviour (although the ad agencies wouldn't tell you that when you are about to give them $1 million).

He argues that these ads only affect people who are already teeter-tottering on whether to visit a church, and that crowd is relatively small. What he fails to discuss, however, are the principles of brand recognition or the long-term affects of advertising. Regardless, it's a great exercise in thinking twice about where your dollars are going.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 8:02 AM
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September 19, 2009

Follow-Up to the Rick Warren/Spec Work Debate

(Filed under: Graphic Design)

On Thursday evening we posted an entry trying to address the issue of spec work through the current example of Rick Warren’s book cover design contest. In less than 24 hours the post wracked up 133 comments and some heated debate.

Unfortunately, that debate turned ugly and we had to shut down the comments. We wanted to explain our decision to close the comments and clarify our original intent in addressing this issue.

Comments
We ultimately made the decision to close the comments because people on both sides of the issue couldn’t have a civil discussion. That’s something we’ve never had to do in over five years of Church Marketing Sucks blogging.

In the end, comments are not the best place for this kind of heated dialogue because we’re not confronted with the reality of the people involved. We talk differently when the debate happens face to face.

We still value comments and the way they can bring important voices to the table, give an opportunity to hear dissent, get a reality check (like we received last month) and share ideas. The openness of comments has always been critical to blogging and we hope to continue that. But the commenters themselves need to behave. That’s not too much to ask. (And for the record, we’re keeping the comments on this post closed as well so as not to reopen the closed debate.)

Why We Addressed Spec Work
We also wanted to clarify why we addressed this issue in the first place.

Continue reading "Follow-Up to the Rick Warren/Spec Work Debate"

Posted by Brad Abare at 3:09 PM

September 17, 2009

An Open Letter to Rick Warren about Spec Work

(Filed under: Graphic Design)

Editor's Note: We closed the comments on this post as they took a turn for the worse. We explained our reasoning for closing comments and the rationale for this post in a follow-up entry.

Dear Rick Warren,

We saw your recent contest to design the cover of your next book for the chance to win $5,000.

It sounds like a pretty sweet deal. A designer could win some major acclaim, an awesome piece in their portfolio and a nice wad of cash.

Unfortunately, it’s not such a sweet deal. For the hundreds of designers who spent hours of time on your project, it’s a total loss. These kinds of projects communicate that their work is of little value.

As a double whammy, it’s not a very sweet deal for you, Rick. The quality of work you get is going to be sub-par (take a look—yep, that’s some mediocre work). One of the reason it’s sub-par is because the designers didn’t have the benefit of a working relationship with you the client where they could be privy to all the ideas, expectations, insights and everything else that goes into making a creative project work. In a nutshell: You’re not getting the best work because you’re not valuing the worker.

The best creative work happens in partnership. Not in disconnected competition.

Another reason it’s not so good for you is that you just used your position to take advantage of hundreds of designers who were hungry for the exposure. That’s usually called ~~oppression~~ exploitation. The church, of all places, shouldn’t be taking advantage of people. (Ed. Note: We realize this wasn't intentional, but that doesn't make it OK.)

We realize none of this was your intention, but we wanted to take the opportunity to do some education. Artists are frequently unappreciated and undervalued in the church. No other position in the church—administrators, accountants, maintenance workers, pastors, etc.—is asked to spend hours doing hard work and then submit to a competitive lottery for the slim chance of being paid. Respect artists by putting value in their work.

Continue reading "An Open Letter to Rick Warren about Spec Work"

Posted by Michael Buckingham at 6:14 PM
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Church Coaches & Reviewing the Pay-for-a-Mentor Model

(Filed under: Resources)

Have you noticed what could be the latest trend in the church world? Coaching. Seems like all the big names have been drafted, including Kem Meyer, Tony Morgan, Greg Surratt and Shawn Wood, Carlos Whitaker, and now Mark Batterson.

The opportunity for one-on-one time with smart people comes at a price: $800 to $4,500 (and some prices aren’t listed online). You get a lot for your money including a chance to go way beyond what you can learn from blogs, books and conferences. With so many coaches joining the team, it's kind of like job security for the church world. Or maybe peace of mind in a recession.

But as cool as having any of these big names as a coach would be, something made me a little uneasy. Mark Batterson kept talking about friends and mentors in the same breath as his pay-for-coaching. You can pay for a coach but you don’t pay for a friend or mentor. Perhaps it’s just semantics, but it looked like a foul.

Continue reading "Church Coaches & Reviewing the Pay-for-a-Mentor Model"

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 6:06 AM
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September 16, 2009

What Sucks Poll Results

(Filed under: Poll Results)

You don't have to read deep into our site to know that we think church marketing can suck. But you visit our site, so maybe you think it sucks, too. Well, what exactly is it that sucks about it? We asked you to find out.

40% of you think the problem is the product. Your churches might have gossipy members, a lame pastor or a bad theology, but whatever it is, good luck trying to fix it with marketing.

That's separate from the 17% of you who toss it up to product packaging--an ugly building, a crappy web site or terrible design. You think these things keep people from looking into churches the most.

Another 27% of you think the problem is promotion. Do churches really just expect everyone to talk about them enough to get the word out? They're going to have to try harder than that.

And finally, 10% of you think the pricing is off; it takes too long or they ask for too much money. While 6% of you tally it up to placement; it's simply silly to expect people to show up to your hidden church building on a Sunday morning.

This week, we want to know your opinion on Brian McLaren's recent actions: What do you think of observing Ramadan to reach out to Muslim neighbors?

Posted by Joshua Cody at 11:34 AM
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We're Sorry, Again and Again

(Filed under: The Christian Walk)

Recently, Just Wallpaper published an open letter to those who have been burned by churches. I've either heard or seen similar apologies other places, and I just can't decide how I feel about them.

This apology is certainly well-communicated, poignant and heartfelt, but will anyone read an apology letter on someone's blog and suddenly be ready to join a church? It's my hope that this apology letter won't stay on a blog, but it will become real, honest and unstated--manifesting itself in life change and real relationships far more than blog posts.

I'm not saying this blogger is guilty of any or all of these. But I think before we do what seems hip and loving, we should ask ourselves a few questions:

Who reads this stuff anyway?
Are all of these blog readers Christians? It's pretty easy to fall into the trap of in-talking amongst believers about all that we want to do or should do, without actually doing anything. I've definitely fallen into this trap myself. Hopefully the idea is to share this with some non-Christian friends. Even better, the author might have already shared it with some of his secular friends, and he's just posting it for encouragement. Teaching is all right, but doing is what matters.

Continue reading "We're Sorry, Again and Again"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:07 AM
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September 15, 2009

Faith in Action Day

(Filed under: Evangelism & Outreach)

A sad reality is that 97% of evangelical Christians will die without ever sharing their faith (Which calls the term "evangelical" into question, eh?), so on Sunday, Outreach, Inc. tried to organize Back to Church Sunday. Essentially, it was a newly-created church holiday to invite all of your friends to church to bolster attendance and get people "back to church."

If you missed it, you should invite your friends next September. But those of you currently in churches as well as your new church-going friends can now participate in National Faith in Action Day! It's a newly-created church holiday on Oct. 11 to invite all of your friends in church to put their faith into action.

All kidding aside, an initiative like this is great. It's churches working together to solve problems in their communities and show people the love of Christ.

Here's what their site has to say:

A church reaching out to its neighbors can have a transformational and lasting impact. Examples of this abound throughout the country as churches choose to not just go to church, but instead be the church. If one church can make a substantial difference, imagine the possibilities if multiple churches worked together for the benefit of the community! The resources and potential found in the Church is immeasurable—certainly greater than the sum of our parts—if only we are willing to join one another in service as the body of Christ.

It's a great idea, and apparently this whole, "Make a holiday for this idea" trend is working out well, because people keep organizing more iterations of it. So here's to great causes and sweet new holidays.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 8:32 AM
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September 14, 2009

Abercrombie & Church

(Filed under: Building Design)

The September 14 print edition of Fortune magazine had an article (no link) by Beth Kowitt on how mall owners have been thinking "outside of the (big) box" when it comes to finding traditional retailers to anchor and inhabit their monstrous consumer jungles.

For malls that are struggling to retain consistent tenants, they are looking to creative ways to fill their space and ultimately attract more crowds. The old idiom of a "rising tide floats all boats" is how malls live and breathe. One of their solutions?

Churches.

According to the article, at least 63 churches have moved into malls in the second quarter of 2009 alone, according to CoStar Group.

In general, I'm not a fan of churches building their own campuses, so this idea of tapping into real estate that already exists makes a lot of sense. It's not new. Churches meet in community centers, schools and theaters every week.

The idea of meeting in a shopping mall does add more dimension to the experience, both good and bad. On one hand, the association doesn't help the cause to distance consumerism from Christianity. On the other hand, it's a great way to make a church community very accessible (known location, parking, food court, etc.)

Posted by Brad Abare at 6:46 AM
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September 11, 2009

Church Marketing Lab: Seeing Improvement

(Filed under: Peer Review)

We always talk about how the community of the Church Marketing Lab can help improve your communications work. Well, how about we prove it? Check out how these pieces have been improved thanks to feedback in the Lab:

Round one of Ice Cream Social...

And the finished project.

Continue reading "Church Marketing Lab: Seeing Improvement"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:10 AM
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September 10, 2009

Helping People Find a Church: 25 Fair Warnings for Visitors

(Filed under: First Impressions & Beyond)

Scott McClellan over at Collide magazine talks about the coolest thing he's seen on a church web site. What is it? A feature that helps visitors find a church by linking to other local churches they might want to try.

That's pretty cool. After all, we're not in competition with the church down the street. If people come to Jesus, everybody wins.

Fair Warning
But what if we took the idea of helping people find a church to the next level? What if instead of just pointing to other churches, we were honest about what people would find at our church? What if we acknowledged our flaws up front so visitors could find out now instead of after six months of pew-warming? What if we gave visitors fair warning about our flaws, issues and firm convictions?

Continue reading "Helping People Find a Church: 25 Fair Warnings for Visitors"

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 3:48 PM
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We're on Twitter

(Filed under: News & Updates)

After much suggesting and prodding we've finally joined the Twitter party as an organization. You can follow us here: @cmsucks.

We're hoping to share short-form content that doesn't necessarily warrant a blog entry. Links, quotes, stats, tips and fun stuff like that. We've been giving it a try for about a month, so hopefully we've worked out the kinks.

Of course you probably already know that the Church Marketing Lab has been on Twitter since January. You can also find a list of Church Marketing Lab members on Twitter. And if you're really a geek you can follow our team on Twitter (though some of us are more active than others).

Let's keep the Twitter train rolling with a look at some of our past entries on the micro-blogging service:

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 7:14 AM
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September 9, 2009

The Nines

(Filed under: Events)

The big buzz in the church world today is going to be the Nines. It's a free, online conference that's going to consist of some 75 speakers sharing nine minute video leadership lessons. That's right, you can sit down in front of your computer for a bite-size portion from a firehouse of church leadership content.

Here are the details:

Leadership Network asked some of the church's greatest communicators: "If you had nine minutes to talk one-on-one with thousands of church leaders, what is the one thing that you would tell them?
The format is simple: Nine minute video leadership lessons that can help multiply your church's impact. You will be stretched as a leader, and motivated as a church.

We'll ignore the fact that one person talking to thousands of others doesn't qualify as one-on-one communication, but there are tons of big names involved: Rick Warren, Mark Batterson, Dino Rizzo, Ed Stetzer, Perry Noble, Margaret Feinberg, Brian McLaren, Mark Driscoll, Greg Surratt, Anne Jackson and the list goes on. There are also loads of less familiar names that will likely have good stuff to share as well. (A schedule seems hard to come by, but here's a vague run down .) You could also wait until the event is over and catch the videos you want when they're posted online.

It all starts today, Sept. 9, 2009 at 9:09 CT (notice a trend?). You can follow along at the Nines or one of the many sites hosting it. You can read more about the event from The Christian Post.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 7:32 AM
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Online Moderation Poll Results

(Filed under: Poll Results)

Online moderation has always been a hot-button issue, especially for churches. Opinions on what role institutional churches have in accountability, oversight and moderation cover the whole gamut of options. But we wanted to know, among our noble and intelligent reader, which opinion reigns supreme.

The biggest chunk of you, 44%, want very little filtration. Filter it if it's completely obscene, but other than that, let it slide. It won't be worth your effort. While 11% of you even take it a step further and go completely laissez-faire. People should be able to look at what they want, when they want and act as they wish on your watch.

35% of you prefer a slightly more active approach to make sure things stay clean. You like to keep an active role in keeping the focus in the right place and avoiding sin. And finally, 10% of you like the idea of generous moderation. After all, it's your online reputation alongside people's souls, and you don't want to toe the line on either one of those issues.

This week, everyone can play. We've got a pretty basic question for you: Where do you see church marketing sucking the most? Log your vote in the site's sidebar.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 6:46 AM
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September 8, 2009

The 3d Retreat: Sept. 25-26 in Holland, Mich.

(Filed under: Events)

It's been a while since we've discussed Local Labs on Church Marketing Sucks, but we want you to know that some of them are still going strong. Don't believe us? Check out what the Grand Rapids Local Lab is cooking up:

Are you stuck in in a creative rut? Want to attend a creative conference, but can’t afford it? Or maybe it’s too far away? Well, if you’ve struggled with these issues, have we got a deal for you!
the 3d retreat is two-day, one-night retreat based in Holland, Michigan, for only $50! Join your fellow creatives from local churches, ministries and freelancers for a rad, two-day creative experience at the beautiful Camp Geneva on Lake Michigan!

The Church Marketing Lab is great, but the real power comes in when you decide to get together and get offline.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 6:22 AM
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September 4, 2009

Communicating Hate Sucks

(Filed under: Off the Wall)

Steven Anderson, pastor of Faithful Word Baptist Church in Tempe, Ariz., recently preached a sermon titled, "Why I Hate Barack Obama."

Whether you're for or against President Barack Obama isn't the point, but this next part is where it gets weird.

"I'm gonna pray that he dies and goes to hell when I go to bed tonight," Anderson said in the sermon. "That's what I'm gonna pray." Anderson has elaborated that he doesn't condone killing but hopes Obama dies of natural causes so he doesn't become a martyr. "I'd like to see him die, like Ted Kennedy, of brain cancer."

This seems like a real live case of Lord, save us from your followers.

When Paul encouraged Timothy to pray for government leaders, I don't think he had death and eternal damnation in mind. You don't have to like the president, but this is a long way from the forgiveness and repentance at the heart of Christianity.

If you hate what Obama stands for, pray that God would change his heart, change his mind and change the nation for good. You don't pray for his death.

All this communicates is hate. Where is the love for your enemies? Where is the compassion? Where is the grace? In a political landscape that's as heated and polarized as ours is, shouldn't the church of all places be able to preach love in spite of our differences? Not too long ago the church did preach love in the face of hate and it changed the world.

And apparently this story isn't weird enough: In an ironic stumper, Anderson and his congregation are now receiving death threats for preaching, um, death.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:02 AM
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September 3, 2009

Free Church Graphics

(Filed under: Resources)

Recently, we discussed North Point's creative process. But in case you're looking for something more pre-packaged, we wanted to let you know about a number of churches and a few other places that offer free resource graphics:

Of course free resources aren't a great long-term solution. If you value good design and communication, you should invest the time and effort to do it yourself. Easier said than done, but communities like the Church Marketing Lab can help you learn and grow. You can't live off other church's resources forever.

But we certainly thought you should know that some other churches are doing it well and willing to share.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:20 PM
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September 2, 2009

YouVersion Live Brings Events to Life

(Filed under: Technology)

Do you believe in tweeting in church? Do you always see people on their cell phones during the service and would like to tell yourself they're "participating"? Do you think that it's dumb when John Piper wants you to "just preach"?

If you answered yes to any of the above or if you're into checking out sweet new technologies, then YouVersion Live could be for you.

Essentially, people participate in polls, prayer, note-taking, giving and more through their phone while you preach. You set things up how you want them, and then your congregation can participate. Bobby Gruenewald of LifeChurch.tv (the church behind the app) shares some of the benefits, including replacing or augmenting the bulletin, encouraging participation and contribution, and getting anonymous responses on touchy subjects (youth group sex talk?).

Can't wait to see the full implementation over the next couple of months. It looks like everything should go full-speed in October.

ChurchCrunch has all the details and a recorded demo of the service.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 6:34 AM
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September 1, 2009

Church Buildings Poll Results

(Filed under: Poll Results)

There are a thousand different types of buildings where church is being held: theaters, schools, cathedrals, strip malls and more. But do any of them have an inherent advantage over any other? When a friend asks you to church, is there any sort of building that would make you more inclined to show up?

39% of you would feel most comfortable checking in to a contemporary church building. Something snazzy and contemporary that feels like an American church to you.

Next up, 24% of you are more likely to visit somewhere that feels historically significant. Whether you have an interest in architecture or connecting with tradition, I don't know, but you'd like to go to church in an older building.

That barely beat out a secular option--you know, a bar or a night club or something to that effect. 23% of you would go that route given the option.

A realtively-small 8% of you would prefer a house church, while 7% of you would prefer to spend your time somewhere rented on Sunday mornings.

This week, want to know about moderation in your church: How much should churches moderate how individuals use their online resources and offerings? (Facebook, blog comments, Internet usage, etc.)

Posted by Joshua Cody at 6:29 PM
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Creatively Communicating Love

(Filed under: The Christian Walk)

Communicating love can be unbelievably difficult--especially to those unlike ourselves. I don't know if it's a deep-seeded psychological issue, a fear of the unknown or some other strange side effect of an apple in a garden a long time ago, but it's certainly something.

Recently, I've seen a couple examples of creative, extraordinary love that I wanted to share. Hopefully, they'll get you and your church inspired to experience and show love in ways you'd never dreamed of.

I might be called a heretic for applauding this move, but Brian McLaren is observing Ramadan. He explains himself:

"We are not doing so in order to become Muslims: we are deeply committed Christians. But as Christians, we want to come close to our Muslim neighbors and to share this important part of life with them. Just as Jesus, a devout Jew, overcame religious prejudice and learned from a Syrophonecian woman and was inspired by her faith 2,000 years ago (Matthew 15:21 ff, Mark 7:24 ff), we seek to learn from our Muslim sisters and brothers today."

Continue reading "Creatively Communicating Love"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:02 AM
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