Tuesday, October 16, 2007

The best places for churches to get more attendance...

Is in places that people occupy who don't know that the church exists.

I've long been an advocate of churches to advertise in secular environments. The main argument against is simply that it's support (by paying advertising revenue) to secular media, who may not share the values of the church.

Why should the church maintain such supposedly high standards?

The point of the church is to reach the unsaved. How can the church reach the unsaved without using all the tools that are available? For that matter, why should the church be on the Internet, when it's a conduit for porn? What does the church's internet service provider moneys *really* pay for? Should one expect that all churches only subscribe to authorized filtered internet service providers, and only pay for phone lines through companies that are Christian based?

How much of an isolationist should the church be from the media that exists and has existed for years? Does one expect that the church's missionaries have their own transportation that doesn't also transport people who disagree with the church's position?

I'm not advocating, necessarily, that churches should start advertising on programs that are anathema to the church. Then again, who, really, is the church trying to reach? Is the church supposed to reach the righteous or the lost? Shouldn't the church be light and salt in a dark and tasteless world? Wouldn't a subtle reminder that, "If you're still searching for refreshing content, come see what's around the corner, in your neighborhood," be of importance to growing the base that the church needs?

So many questions, to be sure. Pray, for sure. Then consider: should the Great Commission stop when the TV comes on?

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