Ideas For Church Growth
The following are ideas generated by a Committee on Church Growth during a brainstorming session on February 23, 2004. Perhaps one or two will work for your church!
Leave the lights on every night to increase visibility
Fix up the garden out front - put lights on the trees.
Make the church the center of the community for our neighborhood
Be on the local garden walk – partner with school
Have community garden for kids, folks who rent who want to have a garden
Add an Easter sunrise service
Create an after-school care program, day care
Classes in church for stay at home moms
Use the "Catechesis of the Good Shepherd" curriculum
Hold First aid classes
Babysitting classes - Mom's day out
Have a fresh, welcoming ,well-equipped and staffed nursery
Use our parking lot – street hockey league or basketball league
Kitchen – cooking classes and donate food to a homeless shelter
Host a homeless shelter in the parish hall
Partner with Richmond city jails
Add praise and worship singing to worship - one service with alternative music
Hold an Outdoor concert
Bring your dog to church Saturday evening
Send info to new homebuyers – hand written letters
Help with the local fun run
Have a table at the community yard sale, give away coffee, soda and church info
Put events into community newsletters
Metro Business news free calendar
Find out how to get free press
Girl Scouts, boy scouts using our space – Saturday car washes
"Gotta Go; Go with God" - Outreach to people traveling to NASCAR
Arts Festival
Hire a bluegrass band for bluegrass festival, pig pickin
Halloween event
Concerts at church - organ recitals, choir concerts
Blessing the animals – October – get press for this event
Pamphlets and pizza day - deliver pamphlets, eat pizza
Have a removable sign to advertise special events cheaply
Portable sign on special events
Two part sermon – specialty sermons to real world
Contact book clubs - have sermons related to popular books
Hold speaker series on issues of concern to the community
Lenten series pamphlets – email to everyone in church and ask them to forward to 2 friends.
Bring a friend to church on Palm Sunday
Hold High Church services
Covered dish picnic in the park
Community Plant exchange - host it at our church
Get involved with the election – become a polling place
A.A. or N. A. meetings
Give a flower to visitors
New sign in book to accommodate email addresses
Singles night
Healing service – first Saturday
Add a daily Eucharist to intensify church involvement
Do you have ideas that aren't on this list? E-mail us and we will add them!
For more information, contact:
The Rev. David Keill
