One spring a church staff member informed me he was taking Easter weekend off. (It felt like Tom Brady telling Bill Belichik he was skipping the Super Bowl to take Gisele skiing.) He said he didn’t think missing Easter Sunday was a big deal, at his last church Easter was just another Sunday. Why did we make such a big deal about Easter?
Obviously Easter is a big deal because it is the day we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, the single biggest event in the history of the world. Easter is also a big deal because it is the one day of the year that a majority of Americans still consider going to church. Getting someone to attend one day a year isn’t the point, of course, but it is a great place for people to take a first or next step toward God.
I’ve seen pastors work hard on a creative message to share the Gospel, worship leaders pull out all the stops for a moving service and children’s directors put everything they have into making Easter a day kids will remember; only to miss incredible opportunities to help people to connect to God through their church on the one day they show up. With that in mind here is my list of things not to miss this Easter.
Five things to do before Easter:
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Anticipate the challenges of a first time attender
Grab a small team and walk through a weekend experience at your church from the parking lot to the lobby to the children’s spaces to the worship center to the kids pickup back to the parking lot and out to the street. Be sure to think through every entrance to your parking lot and building. Where do you need to post hosts? Where do you need to add signs? How can you help ease the anxiety of the introvert who walks in for the very first time?
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Prepare to capture stories
After Easter you will want to share the story of what happens with staff, volunteers and attenders, so you need to prepare in advance. Enlist volunteer photographers to capture everything that happens on the weekend. Reach out to your congregation and I guarantee you will find volunteers photographers. Provide a Dropbox or Google folder for them to upload their photos, give them a few common sense directions, and then ask them to fire away.
Also designate one or two staff members or volunteers to be on the lookout for stories to capture. They can interview families before and after church to collect quotes and pictures to share later. Give them common sense instructions and see what they collect. Nothing encourages leaders and volunteers like stories of life change.
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Make a plan to gather contact information
How will you invite people to share at least their email address so you con follow up? For many years Rick Warren has had everyone who attends Saddleback at Easter fill out a simple three question survey on their faith. It is a great way to get a look at the faith journey of the congregation and to collect contact information.
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Have strategy to invite people back to what is next
If I visit your church on Easter why would I ever come back? I listened to the music and heard your sermon. My kids got their Easter eggs. We’ll see you Christmas Eve, or maybe next Easter.
I attended a church a couple of weeks ago where the pastor did a great job of intriguing me to come back by giving a preview of the next week’s sermon. He didn’t just announce the topic and show a graphic, he actually set up the problem he’d be unpacking next Sunday. If the church wasn’t two hours from my house I’d show up just to hear the next sermon. How can you do more than simply announce your catchy series title to encourage guests to return?
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Build a team for follow up
Make sure you have a team of staff and/or volunteers ready to follow up on everyone who identifies themselves as a first time guest, and be sure they are ready to respond within 24 hours. Make sure your follow-up isn’t just a mail-merged impersonal email. Follow up in a way that isn’t creepy, but seems like a real person read my information and really wants to make a connection.
Easter is a really big deal. Easter is a day when people who normally pay no attention to the Gospel come willingly to our churches to consider the invitation of God. Don’t miss it!
(Be sure to check back next week for Five Things Every Pastor Needs to Do After Easter)
Email me at geoff@ministrytogether.com if you are interested in more help with church strategy.
