Church-wide campaigns build anticipation.
What’s coming next? Church-wide campaigns can be managed like weekly cliff-hangers. When you provide exciting, relevant messages for everyone, young and old alike will want to return. They may even change their Sunday plans to make sure they don’t miss what you have in store. Not only does anticipation kick in, but the educational concept of “interval reinforcement” takes effect.
Repetition helps cement the point you want to make. Research tells us we need to hear things multiple times in order for it to stick. If the brain registers information just once, less than 10 percent of the message is likely to be remembered. But if there are six exposures to the information over 30 days, 90 percent of the message is likely to be retained. Repeating the main message helps it sink in and prime people’s hearts for the next insight into God’s Word.
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For example, Friendship First uses the stages of a friendship to build anticipation and reinforce the idea that God wants to be your friend. From getting acquainted, acceptance, listening, growing in trust, companionship, commitment -- people see how a progression of a human friendship becomes the metaphor for them and God.
Church-wide campaigns offer an excuse to try new things.
If your people have been lulled into a “same ol’, same ol’” mindset, you can use a church-wide campaign as an excuse to test creative techniques. Jesus used memorable experiences to maximize His impact. Like Jesus, your sermons could add elements of experience, intrigue, and surprise. Instead of being “a talking head,” you can use visuals, object lessons, and experiences.
For example, Friendship First provides a smorgasbord of suggestions that pastors choose from, depending on their appetite for risk-taking during a sermon. From illustrations that make the point to quick dramas, you choose. For example, the sermon that introduces the concept of a “relationship with God looks a lot like a relationship with another person,” suggests the pastor preach from inside a tent to reinforce the message of isolation and the need to be in relationship and move come out of your shell. The “visual” of the tent makes the message unforgettable.
This is Jesus-style preaching. Think of His message of humble servant hood. He washed his followers’ feet. They weren’t too sure what was happening. Even Jesus said, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand” (John 13: 7). Graphics, object lessons, visual aids, experiences -- all help make your point. Jesus used seeds, bread, sheep, coins, common objects of His day to cement biblical truths. You can do that, too. And when all ages are focused on a common theme, they’ll anxiously await the next surprise you have in store to make God real.