Bigfoot & the Summer Ministry Lull
What if I told you that it's possible for your Sunday morning attendance to grow during the summer?
Intrigued? Doubting my grip on reality? Wanna find out more?
One of my favorite recent television shows was the Animal Planet hit Finding Bigfoot. The show featured 4 members of the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization (BFRO). The team included my favorite - a guy named Bobo. Their quest is to accomplish the unthinkable - find Bigfoot. Prove that he's real. Find evidence that is so convincing that even the harshest skeptic would be forced to admit the existence of Bigfoot.
And so the members of the BFRO travelled all over the country, donned night-vision goggles, whooped and hollered in all kinds of secluded woods, interviewed lots and lots of Bigfoot believers, and tried all kinds of crazy schemes to lure the elusive Bigfoot out of hiding.
But, it never worked. And, it never will. Because Bigfoot is a myth.
It's a fun myth to believe in. Doesn't hurt to hope. But it's wishful thinking.
Because Bigfoot's not real.
(Sorry if I ruined the secret ... we all have to find out sometime!)
This show makes me think of another myth that we sometimes buy into. Or, at least, one that I've bought into. Here it is:
There is a summer lull in ministry. Nothing much can be accomplished in July & August.
There's definitely evidence. Attendance drops. Our "regulars" all head to the beach or the cabin. Volunteer teams are patched together with bubble gum & the sub list. Giving declines. And things pick up again once school gets back in session.
And, in ministry, we make decisions based on that evidence. Sunday ministry options are downsized. Attendance and service expectations are minimized. Curriculum is chosen based on what will be easiest to execute with the fewest number of volunteers. And we spend our summer treading water and getting geared up for the fall ministry season.
When September rolls around, things slowly return to normal (whatever normal is in children's ministry!). And, our expectations about the summer lull are confirmed.
It's an easy myth to believe in.
What if I told you that it's only a myth? That it's not real?
This spring, the staff at my church chose to believe a different narrative.
The summer ministry lull was only a reality because it fulfilled our pre-existing expectations.
Sounds crazy, right?
We declared that the summer ministry lull was really a self-fulfilling prophecy. We had believed people were going to be at the beach all summer. So we downgraded our expectations. We minimized our Sunday experiences. We planned on fewer volunteer team members. And we chose to tread water and gear up for the fall.
So, this year, we chose to operate out of a different paradigm.
We decided summer was going to be an opportunity for growth. That families had more discretionary time, not less, in the summer. That the opportunity to invite friends and neighbors was higher. That an intentional and exciting summer would allow us to head into fall with momentum and more people experiencing Jesus on Sundays.
What did that look like in children's ministry?
Our Kids' Church hosted a summer-long Game Show (based on The Game Show curriculum from Elevate). Grade-based teams earned points all summer long. Wackiness ensued. Kids were engaged. Kids had fun. Kids experienced God. And we emphasized the importance of being there on Sunday mornings. The importance of bringing friends who needed to experience God for the first time.
And kids & families responded. New families started to trickle in. And stay. And join the team to serve this fall.
We finished the spring averaging around 80-85 kids on a Sunday morning. We've started the fall averaging about 100.
Sure, there were plenty of families who missed for vacations and the beach. Our weekly attendance dipped. Giving dropped. There were lots of subs who helped execute The Game Show. Patching together serving teams was difficult. It was a ton of work to communicate this vision to the children's ministry team, to families, and to the congregation.
But I'll take a 20% increase in attendance any day. That's 20% more kids who are hearing the Good News that God loves them. Has a plan for them. Forgives them. Has eternity in store for them.
No doubt - I was a little skeptical that the summer ministry lull was a myth. It seemed so plausible.
But I'm ready to declare it now. These two things are true.
The BFRO will never, ever, ever find Bigfoot. And the summer ministry lull is a myth!
And here's my challenge to you.
Find out for yourself. Plan an incredible, intentional, exciting summer. And see what happens.
I think you'll become a believer, too.
Intrigued? Doubting my grip on reality? Wanna find out more?
One of my favorite recent television shows was the Animal Planet hit Finding Bigfoot. The show featured 4 members of the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization (BFRO). The team included my favorite - a guy named Bobo. Their quest is to accomplish the unthinkable - find Bigfoot. Prove that he's real. Find evidence that is so convincing that even the harshest skeptic would be forced to admit the existence of Bigfoot.
And so the members of the BFRO travelled all over the country, donned night-vision goggles, whooped and hollered in all kinds of secluded woods, interviewed lots and lots of Bigfoot believers, and tried all kinds of crazy schemes to lure the elusive Bigfoot out of hiding.
But, it never worked. And, it never will. Because Bigfoot is a myth.
It's a fun myth to believe in. Doesn't hurt to hope. But it's wishful thinking.
Because Bigfoot's not real.
(Sorry if I ruined the secret ... we all have to find out sometime!)
This show makes me think of another myth that we sometimes buy into. Or, at least, one that I've bought into. Here it is:
There is a summer lull in ministry. Nothing much can be accomplished in July & August.
There's definitely evidence. Attendance drops. Our "regulars" all head to the beach or the cabin. Volunteer teams are patched together with bubble gum & the sub list. Giving declines. And things pick up again once school gets back in session.
And, in ministry, we make decisions based on that evidence. Sunday ministry options are downsized. Attendance and service expectations are minimized. Curriculum is chosen based on what will be easiest to execute with the fewest number of volunteers. And we spend our summer treading water and getting geared up for the fall ministry season.
When September rolls around, things slowly return to normal (whatever normal is in children's ministry!). And, our expectations about the summer lull are confirmed.
It's an easy myth to believe in.
What if I told you that it's only a myth? That it's not real?
This spring, the staff at my church chose to believe a different narrative.
The summer ministry lull was only a reality because it fulfilled our pre-existing expectations.
Sounds crazy, right?
We declared that the summer ministry lull was really a self-fulfilling prophecy. We had believed people were going to be at the beach all summer. So we downgraded our expectations. We minimized our Sunday experiences. We planned on fewer volunteer team members. And we chose to tread water and gear up for the fall.
So, this year, we chose to operate out of a different paradigm.
We decided summer was going to be an opportunity for growth. That families had more discretionary time, not less, in the summer. That the opportunity to invite friends and neighbors was higher. That an intentional and exciting summer would allow us to head into fall with momentum and more people experiencing Jesus on Sundays.
What did that look like in children's ministry?
Our Kids' Church hosted a summer-long Game Show (based on The Game Show curriculum from Elevate). Grade-based teams earned points all summer long. Wackiness ensued. Kids were engaged. Kids had fun. Kids experienced God. And we emphasized the importance of being there on Sunday mornings. The importance of bringing friends who needed to experience God for the first time.
And kids & families responded. New families started to trickle in. And stay. And join the team to serve this fall.
We finished the spring averaging around 80-85 kids on a Sunday morning. We've started the fall averaging about 100.
Sure, there were plenty of families who missed for vacations and the beach. Our weekly attendance dipped. Giving dropped. There were lots of subs who helped execute The Game Show. Patching together serving teams was difficult. It was a ton of work to communicate this vision to the children's ministry team, to families, and to the congregation.
But I'll take a 20% increase in attendance any day. That's 20% more kids who are hearing the Good News that God loves them. Has a plan for them. Forgives them. Has eternity in store for them.
No doubt - I was a little skeptical that the summer ministry lull was a myth. It seemed so plausible.
But I'm ready to declare it now. These two things are true.
The BFRO will never, ever, ever find Bigfoot. And the summer ministry lull is a myth!
And here's my challenge to you.
Find out for yourself. Plan an incredible, intentional, exciting summer. And see what happens.
I think you'll become a believer, too.
Comments
Post a Comment