The Ten Minute After Church Rule
One of the biggest challenges for people trying to find a new church is connecting with the people at the church. We heard this rule from our Pastor at church this last Sunday to help people who are new at your church connect with the people there:
“Ten Minutes after church your friends will still be here. Take those ten-minutes to meet and get to know someone new or someone you have not spoken to before.”
I thought that this was a terrific rule for people of your church congregation to follow after the church service. This will help to make your church much more “seeker” friendly, and feel a lot less “cliquey” to people who are new to your church. It’s hard to feel welcome at a new church if everyone is talking with someone else and no one talks to you or gives you the time of day.
The ten minute rule can also help your congregation get to know other members of the church, rather than the same group that they always gravitate towards. This can be great in developing church unity and a greater sense of church family. People will have a much greater desire to stay a part of your church if they have that feeling of unity and family.
When looking at overall church growth we need to not only look at new people coming in, but also look at retention of current church members. The ten-minute rule can help both of these areas by providing a more inviting and friendly atmosphere for both the new and the old people at your next church service.
Avoid Trademark and Copyright Issues Choosing Your Church Name
Don’t Be Naive Choosing Your Church Name
A recent lawsuit involving the International House of Pancakes (IHOP) and the International House Of Prayer (IHOP) reminds us that we need to be aware of trademarks and copyrights when we are choosing a name for our church.
The International House of Pancakes filed law-suit against the International House of Prayer because they claim the church group selected and adopted the International House of Prayer name, knowing it would be abbreviated IHOP. IHOP-KC intended to misappropriate the fame and notoriety of the household name IHOP to help promote and make recognizable their religious organization".
International House of Pancakes is wanting the International House of Prayer to look at rebranding their name to avoid confusion. The International House of Pancakes has been around for about 50 years, and has used the trademarked name IHOP for the last 30 years. The International House of Prayer has been around since 1999.
Although Prayer and Pancakes are not often confused, you can get food at both locations, and IHOP the pancake place has a responsibility to defend their trademark if they believe it is being violated. If they do not defend their trademark then they loose it.
Whether we agree with the lawsuit or not is besides the point. When choosing a name for a church or ministry we need to be aware of trademark and copyright issues so that we can avoid issues like what the International House of Prayer now finds itself involved in.
Link to more about the IHOP vs IHOP lawsuit:
- CNN.com – Pancake house takes on prayer group
- Consumerist – IHOPPING MAD – IHOP sues IHOP Over IHOP Trademark
Church Fundraising Guide
To help facilitate the growth of your church, and to make room for more people and ministries, you don’t want finances to get in the way. Financial concerns are prevalent everywhere in our lives, and they are something that we do not want to get in the way of God having His way in our lives, and in our church.
Some of the things that we need need money for in the church are:
- Fund new ministry initiatives
- Pay pastors and other church employees
- Help in our community
- Maintain existing church building and facilities
- Build new church buildings and facilities
Every church is different, and has different needs, but I think we can safely say that every church needs money to survive and to grow.
There are many different ways that we can look at fundraising for our church and ministries. Here are just a few ways that are available to us:
- Direct donations from Church members
- Free public advertising
- Government Grants
- Corporate Grants
- Golf Tournament (I saw one of these run very successfully recently)
- more …
A guide that can help you to sort through all these ideas and provide you with a step by step guide for church fundraising is the Church Fundraising Idea Guide by James S. Brown.
Increase Attendance
