Not Getting the Picture: 3 Ways Churches Confuse

Not Getting the Picture: 3 Ways Churches Confuse

by Franklin Dumond, Director of Congregational Ministries

When our older grandson was about 18 months old he spent one of his afternoons with us.  We did all the usual stuff: playing outside chasing birds, playing inside with toys, and reading books.  Then while I was preparing a healthy supper (Grandma had already baked cookies for him) he chose to color.

Grandma strapped him into his chair, pulled him up next to the kitchen table, and with crayons and markers in hand he began the creative process of coloring.

The vegetables were on and the meat was sizzling so I decided to listen to Garrison Keeler’s Prairie Home Companion. (Yes this was a long time ago!)  Often on Saturday evenings, I used to listen to parts of that classic radio entertainment.

In our kitchen, we have a replica radio that mimics those styles of cabinetry from the radio heyday of the 1930s and 40s.  I switched it on just as a song concluded and one of the comedy routines began.  The busy grandson looked up from his coloring.  He turned in the direction of the sound.  He looked puzzled but turned back to his crayons.  The sound changed again when the comedy routine concluded.  He turned again toward the sound.  He looked puzzled.  Then Grandma figured it out.  “There’s no picture!” she announced, “No wonder he is confused.”  In our house sound from a box had always been accompanied by a picture.

Because I spend a great deal of my time working with churches, this concern over a missing video component to the sound he was hearing caused me to wonder if a church ever puzzled first-time guests by what happens before, during, or after worship services.

Here’s some of what I think becomes confusing.

  1. While casual is the new norm for worship it is possible to become careless and even haphazard to the point of distraction.  If casual becomes careless and haphazard it is likely that the newcomers and the old-timers may conclude that the content is about as important as the level of attention it seems to be getting.
  2. When technology is underused or misused it becomes confusing and puzzling to participants.  I get especially concerned when spelling errors show up in song lyrics displayed on screen and when the technician uses a mirror image rather than a presenter’s view with the result that the audience sees every move of the mouse and every setup feature that is clicked.
  3. Language that is dominated by code words or a religious vocabulary that goes unexplained is puzzling.  E.S.A.T (enough said about that).

Our church buildings were closed for several weeks this spring due to the pandemic.  Now that we have been back in our buildings with in-person worship for a few weeks now, what do you think confuses newcomers and old-timers in our worship?

O we need to intentionally make some changes now that we are dealing with the “New Normal”?

How would you go about introducing changes in your church’s culture?

Making It On A Pastor's Pay

Making It On A Pastor’s Pay

by Franklin Dumond, Director of Congregational Ministries

Four Attempts at Fairness

A prayer on behalf of a pastor was short and direct, “Lord you keep him humble; we’ll keep him poor.” Even if this prayer was never prayed the result in the local church has often been the same. Sometimes the result was never intended but the method to determine fairness was itself the culprit. I have seen four attempts at fairness when it comes to pastor’s salaries. Some are more fair than others.

1. WHAT IS THE AVERAGE INCOME FOR THE CHURCH?

On the surface this seems the most fair since it is based on incomes for the families in the church. Beneath the surface, however, the fairness may be lost if:

  • a) the salary package does not properly account for benefits that are also given to wage earners in the congregation,
  • b) the report from the congregation is incomplete,
  • c) the congregation includes a large number of retirees who have a smaller, retirement income that is adequate to their status as mortgage-free homeowners,
  • d) the pastor is an entry level pastor but the average income is substantially above entry level income. (Here the fairness to the church is lost since they would be paying more than necessary. In the other cases the fairness to the pastor is lost since he is being paid less that should be expected.)

2. WHAT DOES IT COST TO LIVE IN OUR COMMUNITY?

What a church needs to do to make this method work is to find the value of a respectable middle-class home in their area, factor in the pastor’s student debt, loan on the minivan, etc. and then figure out what kind of salary he needs to make to qualify for the mortgage on that home.

3. WHAT CAN WE AFFORD?

While this may be the actual bottom line issue for most churches “What do we choose to afford?” may be the real question. Church budgets should generally allocate 40-65% of income to employee costs.

4. WHAT IS THE PROFESSIONAL EQUIVALENCY IN OUR COMMUNITY?

The suggestion is that a church look at a secular profession that is most similar to pastoral work and pay accordingly. Most of the time this will be the high school classroom teacher. Local school districts will have salary scales developed based on educational level and tenure. So when the church looks up the education level of its pastor along with his years of experience in full time ministry a community-based standard of pay will be in hand. If the pastor manages a number of staff, then pay him as a building principal using the school district salary schedule.

Of all the systems reviewed this one seems most fair to all concerned. All pastors (not just senior pastors) receive a decent middle-class salary that directly compares to salaries being paid in the community. All pastors are compensated in accord with their education and experience with proper benefit packages. Those pastors who pastor larger churches are compensated in line with their expanded responsibilities.

The New Testament calls for fairness in pastoral salaries by insisting that “The worker deserves his wages.” (I Timothy 5:18 NIV) Continue reading

7 Suggestions to Help Make Easter a Big Day!

by Franklin Dumond – Director of Congregational Ministries

Make Easter a Big Dat!1— Start Early!

At the beginning of every calendar year pastors can look ahead to predict the most likely higher attended and lower attended days of the year. By planning ahead to accentuate the high days and mitigate the low days the overall average attendance may be increased and more and more people won to faith in Jesus Christ. What are my most likely higher attendance days? Look at the attendance records from last year on a line graph. When does your attendance spike? Why? Take a hard look at your current programming. There must be something in your congregational culture that brings these high points.

2 — Add A Special Feature.

How many people are usually involved in leading worship on a given Sunday? Add a special feature whereby more people can be involved in meaningful participation and watch the visitors arrive…especially if you use the Children’s Choir and its members rehearse for a few weeks in advance! For Easter a wise pastor can plan for a Spring Baptism. Easter celebrates the new life of the risen Christ, which is also the Christian symbol of Baptism. The now secular tradition of new clothes for Easter can be traced back to the ancient church when Easter Sunday was Baptism Sunday and each baptismal candidate was given a new white robe. Make Easter a fabulous family celebration with an Egg Hunt on the church lawn following Morning Worship. The beauty of the modern hen is that she lays plastic eggs so you don’t have to worry so much about the eggs spoiling by being outdoors for a while. (Note: While plastic eggs are undisturbed by warm temperatures, chocolate will melt if left in the warm sunshine for any length of time.) Is an added worship service needed? If Easter already brings the church to capacity should the plan include doubling seating capacity by adding another service? The church already offering a 10:30 a.m. Morning Worship may be well served to offer 9:00 a.m. Easter Worship, too. Always ask the key question, “What will I need to do to make sure that these special features work well?”

3 — Develop specialized promotion.

How will everyone know of the special day if you don’t tell them? How will they realize what’s going on if they only hear it once? Newspaper ads and yellow pages listings do little to attract the unchurched. Consider a saturation mailing. You can develop your own material, but you may want to bring in the professionals for the first time or two. Always be sure you have proper contact and location and schedule information included in your promotional piece. Continue reading