“The Lord is blessing,” he assured me.
The pastor in my office described the great spirit in his congregation and how well people worked together. I was an editor for the denominational magazine.
When he left my office after his 20-minute glowing report, this pastor walked to the area director’s office.
“I’m resigning,” he announced and dejectedly described the sad condition of his church.
I heard the success story; the director heard the failures. Which was it?
Another congregation I know boasts an attendance greater than the total population of its area-far more than the number their facility could accommodate at one time. They may believe their figures. They may be counting not only those in the main sanctuary and educational facilities but the satellite churches they’ve started.
“Can we support the validity of this statement?” is not the test of truth when advertising church attendance. A better question to ask is, “Is the perception of the facts true?” Misleading figures can cause outsiders to doubt the church’s credibility. And, if people feel misled, how can they believe us when we talk about matters of eternal consequence?
Exaggeration in advertising is nothing new. Commercials with phrases like “Here’s where you always save more money” and “Number 1 in service” and “You’ll never get another deal like this” are common. Although consumer groups challenge deceptive claims, we’ve come to expect hyperbole.
But your community doesn’t expect hyperbole from churches. “The world’s friendliest church” better be backed up with an impressive performance from your members or your credibility will plummet.
Honesty’s disarming power
On the other hand, when churches tell the truth, they can establish a solid reputation in the community. Moody Memorial Church in Chicago attracted national attention when one of the Sunday school children contracted AIDS and was asked to stay away from the classes until the church formulated its policy.
“The media got to us before we had time to formulate a policy,” said Erwin Lutzer, senior pastor. “The gay community was up in arms. Although we hadn’t established guidelines to deal with the media, I called a news conference for the following day to announce that we were allowing the boy to return to his Sunday school class.”
When Lutzer was asked if the media exposure in any way influenced the church’s decision to welcome the boy back, he said, “Yes, the media coverage moved us to make a decision sooner than we planned.”
Lutzer’s attitude of humility and honesty engendered sympathy with the press, and the church’s forthright actions shortly defused the situation.
Humble truth in advertising
When one church with thirty-five members looked for ways to promote its work to the community, the pastor decided to advertise in the local newspaper.
But saying something like “Come for the excitement” or “Be part of something big” didn’t seem right, and promising a “soul-stirring” or “life-changing experience” seemed presumptuous.
If we picture a church with so few people, who would want to come? he thought. Better to just show the building-or better yet, the drawing of the building.
But after further thought, he decided to represent the church as it really was. The ad pictured a portion of the congregation on the steps of the church building. The copy said this was a church “where everyone wants to know your name.”
“We might have attracted more people with other approaches,” the pastor said, “but the people who came because of the ad were not surprised at what they experienced. We felt good about what we pictured and said.”
Telling the truth is something we can always feel good about.
-Wayne Kiser
Glen Ellyn, Illinois
Copyright © 1993 by the author or Christianity Today/Leadership Journal. Click here for reprint information on Leadership Journal.
