Effective Church Communications

The Effective Church Communication ministry from Yvon Prehn provides inspiration, training, and resources to help your church create communications that fully fulfill the Great Commission. It focuses on Bible-based and timeless principles and strategies that work no matter what digital or print channel you use to create your communications. The site has links to many free TEMPLATES and other resources, plus links to free TRAINING VIDEOS, and a RESOURCE LIBRARY for church communicators. 

The Effective Church Communication ministry from Yvon Prehn provides inspiration, training, and resources to help your church create communications that fully fulfill the Great Commission. It focuses on Bible-based and timeless principles and strategies that work no matter what digital or print channel you use to create your communications. The site has links to many free TEMPLATES and other resources, plus links to free TRAINING VIDEOS, and a RESOURCE LIBRARY for church communicators.

Don't hide your PR materials on your website

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One of the attendees at my seminar asked me to look at her online newsletter and website.

The website was attractive and welcoming, but there were no links to a "newsletter." However, because I see the publications from hundreds of churches each year, I suspected that the label "Messanger" was probably the newsletter. I clicked on it and it was.

I emailed her back and let her know that though both the website and newsletter were well-done and very seeker friendly, this was a good lesson for all of us--when we know and love certain publications in our church, we need to remember that unchurched folks visiting a website might not know the favorite name that we have for the publications.

A church newsletter is a great way to introduce your church to potential visitors who may be checking out your site to see if they want to attend your church--but if they don't know the name of your newsletter they may not be able to find it.

Application: make it easy for people to find things. Use their generic name: church newsletter (not The Messanger), children's ministry (not PromiseLand), single adult ministry (not OASIS) and so on.

Make it easy for people to connect, come visit and get involved.

Communication strategy frees captives

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A daring rescue of captives in the jungles of Columbia took place this week and as the details have been revealed, one comment I heard on NPR provides a useful challenge for church communications.

NPR commented on the critical part communication made in the rescue when it was revealed that the government was able to disrupt and confuse the communication of the rebel group so that the rescue could be made.

What a great analogy and challenge for us as church communicators—to disrupt the communications of the enemy so captives can be freed.

In our world today, the enemy of our souls holds the hearts and minds of people captive to all sorts of useless and soul-killing bondage and most of it promoted through the communications people daily receive. We have the message of freedom in Jesus, but are we getting it out there so that souls can be freed?

To do that won’t happen by accident. The government forces carefully studied the communication of their enemy and then strategically replaced them with their messages that resulted in freedom.

Here are some  practical suggestions for church communicators:

1.  In a world filled with websites for every imaginable media outlet, feedback and comments are solicited. Take the opportunity to comment from a Christian viewpoint.

2.  Whenever you attempt to speak for the kingdom of God, be certain you have your facts straight. One essential component of quoting correctly is that if you are going to use the Bible as a proof text, be sure you quote it in context. Don’t pull verses out of context and throw them out as a proof to support your viewpoint. Study the verse, in context, in history, in interpretation. Read the entire chapter and book it is in and commentaries on it to be sure you are quoting and using the verse with integrity. People to whom you speak may not be familiar with the passage, but most people have an innate sense of when someone is distorting a quote for private purposes.

3.  When quoting the Bible, I have often found that it helps to acknowledge that the people reading or listening to you probably do not view it as the Word of God. In a secular context, I will acknowledge that upfront by saying something like, “I’m not asking you to take this statement as words from God. For the basis of our discussion, think of the Bible as the historical text that reveals what Christians believe about this topic.” God’s word is true and powerful, whether your audience believes that or not.

4.  Always present your comments with “gentleness and respect.” Remember you are to be a witness, not the prosecuting attorney.

If you are a consistent, gentle, clear communicator of the truth of the Christian message, in time the Lord may use your words, spoken and written, in print and on the web, to free captives held by false messages of a world passing away.

One person can change the direction of your church communications

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Nehemiah has lessons for church communicators
Nehemiah has lessons for church communicators in terms of vision, hard work, and how to trust God.

Lesson 1 from Nehemiah for church communicators

Out of the 66 books of the Bible, 39 of them are the names of people.

Ordinary people no different from you or me with one difference--they allowed an extraordinary God to use them for his purposes. As you consider the communications needs of your church, you might be tempted to think there is nothing you can do, but God can use you in the same way he used the people of the Bible to change the course of your church, your church communications, and your community in extraordinary ways.

As an inspiration, let's look at Nehemiah. He was an official in the palace in Babylon, with no doubt a comfortable life. That changed when he heard about the situation of his fellow Jews back at Jerusalem, when the word came that they were, "in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire (Neh. 1:3)."

Most likely a lot of people heard that report. Many in Babylon and the thousands living in Jerusalem knew there was a huge problem. But one man let it break his heart and he took that heartbreak to God and did something about it.

My heart is broken over the state of communications in many churches today, where lots of time and money is spent creating things that might be technologically perfect, but that are not communicating the gospel and the basics of growing in the faith. That they are not accomplishing what they should be is clear with the number of churches closing, declining church attendance, and the lack of Biblical knowledge and lifestyle among professed Christians.

The evidence that church communication is broken is all around us, so what can we do about it? Through my ministry and this blog I hope to help build you up to be a more effective church communicator. I am committed to doing that. But my ministry aside, I want to take this example of Nehemiah as a challenge and encouragement to you.

Nehemiah was just one person, but God used him to change the course of a nation. As you look at the communication situation of your church, you may think you are only one person and you can't do much--but you can! Not because of any skill or creativity or wisdom in you, though you should develop all your skills and gifts to use in God's service, but ultimately because you serve an extraordinary God who can do extraordinary things through you.

I'm reading through Nehemiah in my devotions and I'll continue to share lessons that might be useful to church communicators.

Effective Church Com: why is it based on the Great Commission?

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Because the Christian gospel, the story of Jesus, which is the basis of the Great Commission is the only worthwhile and practically possible foundation upon which to do church communications.

Church communications is difficult and often thankless, underpaid, and under-resourced work. It is demanding, stressful, and repetitive. It has to be done for an audience that often doesn't want to hear what you have to say and if they do, they often don't like how you say it.

A love of technology, a desire to be recognized as a great graphic design artist, a brilliant and successful strategic communicator, or church marketing genius are not foundations that will hold you up working in church communications. Though earthly goals and skills can be useful in the tasks of church communications, if you do not have a foundation that reaches into eternity, it won't hold.

The Great Commission foundation is the rock-bottom belief that Jesus is God in the flesh, that he came to earth, died on the cross, rose from the dead, and that only by trusting in him, can people have their sins forgiven and spend forever with him. To share that message in its fullness, to move people from outside the church to become committed disciples is what it means to fully fulfill the Great Commission. To fully fulfill the Great Commission is what defines and motivates effective church communication.

If that is not your foundation, as the apostle Paul said, "If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men (I Cor. 15:19)."

To help you see how the Great Commission motivates effective church communication and to equip and enable you to do it is the purpose of this ministry. There are many great folks out there, both in the secular and Christian world who teach and focus on many aspects of technology and communication, and may the Lord bless them all as they contribute to equipping church communicators, but my focus and my way of evaluating church communications has at its core always asks this one question: are your church communications moving people closer to come to know Jesus and to grow up to maturity in Him?

You also communciate by what you don't do—the importance of the people channel

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True story here: a couple had started attending a new church. Excited about it, when the church asked for volunteers to work at various tasks for the Easter service, they signed up, adding a little note telling how they were looking forward to doing this, really wanted to serve wherever needed, would come early to make sure they could be put to work.

A week went by and two. No response from the church via email or phone.

At the Easter service, the person in charge of volunteers by chance encountered them, "Oh, I didn't get around to calling you—I have enough people now, but do you think you could stay after to clean up?"

The couple honestly had a firm commitment to be somewhere directly after the service, but I doubt even without it, if they would have volunteered to help. Sadly, I doubt if they will volunteer for much of anything again.

What you don't do can hurt deeply

I'm sure the person in charge of the big Easter production didn't mean to be unkind, but she was. She didn't mean to make these new folks feel unwanted and ignored but she did.

This illustrates the very important power of the people channel in communication. We pay close attention to our print and digital channels in our church communications, but the people channel is equally important. No matter how great your graphics or content, if you treat people rudely (and to not respond to a request for volunteers is very rude), that is what they will remember.

Never ask for something in a church publication, if you don't follow up. Even if you have to say you have enough volunteers, have the courtesy to call and let people know.

People are far more fragile in their emotions that they will often let on and we must honor every effort they make to reach out to the church. To not do that communicates loudly that you don't care.