What message is your church sending?

Col. Harlan Sanders life is a true life rags to riches story.  During his life he had a number of jobs none of which were successful. It was not until he was in his 60s that he found success with Kentucky Fried Chicken. For the rest of his life he was a popular spokesman for the franchise even after he sold it. Today, the company that owns KFC has used various actors to portray Sanders in their ads. Personally, I've found the commercials offensive to the memory of the founder of this company and haven't eaten at KFC since they began airing.

Dr. Pepper is another company that has turned me off with their commercials. That is my favorite soft drink, but I haven't had but one or two bottles since they began running an ad with some screeching guy promoting the drink. This commercial doesn't offend me; it just seems dumb and annoying. Instead of making me want to drink a Dr. Pepper I don't want to take the chance of running into Lil' Sweet!

What message does your church send to people, especially to those who might be looking for a church to attend? First-time guests decide whether or not they are going to return within the first few minutes of arriving at your property, so those first impressions are important.

The appearance of your property is the first thing most guests are going to notice. Is the lawn mowed? Is the front of the building clean and attractive, or is the paint chipped and falling off the front door? Are the shrubs trimmed and the flower beds weeded? Are there people at the entrance to greet them and give directions. Is there good signage to direct people where to go? Is your church telling guests it is glad to have them, or is your message one that says that this church is for our members who know where everything is and how we do things?

Your community ministry also sends a message. Is your church active in the community ministering to the needs that exist there, or is it primarily focused on itself? A friend of mine has grown disenchanted with her church because of its inward focus. Although this is a larger church, it has little involvement with the community. It is constantly conducting fund raising efforts to pay off or purchase things for the church, but it does little to serve those outside the church. As a result, many have left this church, and my friend doesn't attend it as she once did. Her family is discussing visiting other churches.

The church has been given the greatest message of all to share with the world. It is a message of grace and forgiveness. It is a message of a God who wants to have a personal relationship with every individual for all eternity. But, before we can share that message we have to deal with the message our church is giving. When our message is right we earn the privilege of sharing God's message with others. If our church's message is wrong we'll never have the opportunity to share God's message.