Church Marketing and more

One of my goals this week was to get or info in the local newspaper.  Up to this point, we have done virtually ZeRo advertising for Bayou Community Church.  That's about to change.  I'm going to look into billboard advertising next week as well.  I read something Mark Batterson wrote some time ago and I'm paraphrasing here, "The church has the greatest story ever told and the greatest story deserves the greatest marketing".  

My hesitation up to this point has been the idea of pulling people away from their current churches to "try" ours.  I'm not at all interested in this type of church growth.  I am believing God to open doors to share the gospel with non church attenders.  Those are the people I want at BCC...not the church shopper. 

I think we can effectively market our church to that demographic or try real hard to do so anyway.  

I talked with the owner of the newspaper today and something cool happened.  He asked if I would be interested in writing an editorial each week for the paper.  He said, "We live in a world that needs encouragement so desperately and I'm looking for pastors to write weekly articles to help encourage our community".  

I accepted the invitation without hesitation.  Just a few hours prior, I was on the phone with my brother, and was telling him how much I'd like to write an article for the paper each week. The problem was, I didn't think I could afford the cost right now.  As God would have it, the paper is offering this as a free service to the community.  To write weekly articles isn't going to cost us anything!  I was sToK3d! 

Questions: 

1.  How do you view church marketing?  Should churches market themselves?

2.  Is marketing the church further playing into an already consumer saturated "church" experience?

Bus Driving has its Privileges

I had the opportunity to drive the Varsity Boys Golf team to a 2 day tournament Monday and Tuesday of this week to Augusta Pines Golf Course.  The weather wasn't ideal but the course was beautiful and I even bought a new "golf" hat. :)

I snapped a couple of 

pictures with my phone so the quality isn't so great. :)

Club House

Course

I hope to go back to this course and play it for myself, soon!

One BIG Experiment

Have you ever felt as if life is that way, just one big experiment? Just over six months now into our new pastorate I'm feeling this way. So we're approaching 2008 as if everything is an experiment. The thing with experiments however, is you have to be willing to fail. Yep...willing to fail. I'm reminded though of Thomas Edison's words after having tried 200 different elements before he found the right element to make the incandescent light bulb.

He said, "Don't call it a failure, call it an education. I now know 200 ways that don't work".

So, we're going to brave the chilly waters of experimentation. If experimentation leads to discovery, we will soon discover what the heart of our community is, and then be fully prepared to reach in and touch it. 

Coca-Cola, in it's first year of business only sold 400 bottles of Coke.

Dr. Seuss's first book, "And to think that I Saw it on Mulberry Street", was rejected by 28 publishers. The 29th publisher Dr. Seuss approached sold six million copies of the book.

Chicken Soup for the Soul was turned down by 33 publishers. The 34th publisher sold over seven million copies in 20 languages.

There is not to be found a successful businessman, inventor, writer or even pastor who hasn't had to fail before they discovered the dream they believed so much in. I believe Bayou Community Church can and will become the church God has destined her to be. The question that remains is, "Are we willing to overcome all obstacles, discouragements, frustrations and fears to discover it?"

2008 is the year of Experiment! God will lead us to discovery. I've heard it said, "the greatest risk is to take no risk", this is my personal motto for 2008!

January 2008 Newsletter