"Why bother to do church communications?"
"Who do we do the church bulletin for?"
"What are some of the biggest mistakes people make in church communications?"
"How did you get started in this ministry?" [Read more...]
Outreach Church Bulletin inserts, an idea you can use all year around
Churches go all out at Easter in outreach and in inviting people back to church after Easter. Though it's wonderful to do this at Easter, outreach needs to be a priority always. Obeying the Great Commission isn't only for special events. Bulletin inserts can intentionally give people information that tells them about the church and gives them a reason to come back. The inserts can highlight programs and upcoming events that might interest visitors.
The short video here shows two samples of real church bulletin inserts that were used at Easter to do this but that could be easily adapted to any Sunday. They were sent in by ECC Members. PLEASE send us any samples you have with permission for us to use them. We all learn best from the experiences of each other. If you have some you'd like to share, please check out our Great IDEA SWAP!
Update note: though the basic flyers are great, Microsoft no longer lets you access clipart (bummer, some of us still like it), but you could find the clip art on other sites and put it in.
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Bulletin insert example: compassionate, timely fund-raising for current spring disasters
W
hen disaster happens, some of the first responders are always the churches. Their work doesn't often make the evening news, but I know it brings joy to our Lord.
How we respond is also a powerful witness to our world, not only in our work, but our works. A blog linked to the ECLA disaster site (http://blogs.elca.org/disasterresponse/) quoted one pastor who challenges us during this Lenten season before Easter: “There is resurrection even in this life. You can live again in houses that looked like tombs." That is a message we all need to hear and share with our world.
Disaster assistance is costly and raising money for it always a challenge. I've long been a fan of the power of church bulletin inserts and I just received one as I was finishing up my newsletter to church communicators that I wanted to pass on to you. There are few other tools that can be quickly and easily created plus providing immediate impact to and a plan for action for your congregation.
This example is from the ECLA church. The example is to the left and if you click on the image you can download a copy of it.
It is an excellent example of this type of publication because:
- It states the need clearly and concisely
- It asks for help
- It tells you what will happen to your donation
I'm passing this along to you, not only as a great example of what can be done to tell your congregation about needs and to ask for donations, but if your church does not have an outreach program like this, I'm sure ECLA wouldn't mind at all if you used theirs.
Take a minute to pray
In the midst of your busy day, take a minute to pray for all the people going through these very hard times.
- Pray for victims and first responders.
- Pray for those who clean up and rebuild.
- Pray for strength, peace, and healing of communities.
- Pray for comfort for those who have lost loved ones and healing for the injured.
- Pray that the church of Jesus Christ will bear a strong witness to the world that no matter what the storms of life (literally and figuratively) that we have Savior who is with us in the storm and who will see us safely home.
