You can read part 1 of this topic here. Basically, I'm sharing some thoughts from our experiences over the last four months visiting a different church each week. At this point, we are not looking for one to join. Rather, we are simply trying to relax and enjoy worshiping without any responsibilities. Plus, we just want to learn how different churches operate their services. We have enjoyed our time, but there have been a few negative things.
The Bad
Now before I upset anyone, let me just say that most of what I am about to relate is only "bad" in my opinion. I'm sharing based on my preferences more than biblical precepts or principles. I am very aware that there are plenty of people who absolutely love the things that I dislike. You can take my ideas and consider if others might also feel that these things are bad (in which case you might want to make application). If you don't think they would, then at least maybe you'll be entertained for a minute.
The first thing that I'm identifying as bad in our church visits is how poor churches are at nailing the friendliness factor. Obviously, as Christians we want to be warm and welcoming to anyone who enters our meetings. We want them to feel loved so that they will be attracted to Jesus. One complicating factor is that humans come in a wide variety of personality types and what one might consider as friendly behavior, another might consider as too invasive or too much too soon.
Let me clarify that I am not speaking here about the official time of welcoming guests (although that time can be hard to nail too). I'm just talking about how friendly people were to us when we were entering the campus, finding our way around, waiting for the service to start, leaving the service, etc. Unfortunately, most churches were underwhelming in this department. In some churches we were completely ignored or spoken to only minimally and with little joy or enthusiasm. On the other end of the spectrum, a church or two was way over the top. You really can be too casual and too personal with people when you are trying to make them feel welcome. Greeters and church members have to remember that people like their personal space and do not want to feel like you are trying to sell them something. Also, it takes time to build relationships. Don't try to act like you are someone's long lost best friend when you've just met them moments ago.
Why is this important? People form an opinion about your organization in the first seven minutes they spend on your campus. If you ignore them or overwhelm them in those seven minutes they are less likely to come back. Fortunately, a couple of the churches we visited did get this right. They made us feel welcomed and seemed genuinely interested in us. But, they did not overwhelm us or try to be too familiar.
Bad thing number two- -annoying worship leaders. First of all, don't sing the same chorus for 15 minutes. Second, don't do medlies. Just pick some good songs and sing them individually. Let them speak. Third, I really don't care to see you hopping around, jumping to and fro, swaying back and forth, looking like you're constipated, beating your chest, flailing your arms, and so forth. Just stand there and smile and sing the song. If you want to lift a hand every now and then, go ahead. But don't make a big production of it. I didn't come to see a show and hopefully neither did anyone else. Fourth, don't tell me what to do. I don't need you to tell me to "put my hands together" or "raise your hands to Jesus" or whatever else you think I should do. I'm going to sing the song to Jesus and if I feel the need to do something else, that is between Him and me.
Bad thing number three- -bad sound mixing. If your instruments are turned up so loud that I cannot hear anyone singing, that's too loud. If the guitar is so loud that I cannot hear the melody from the keyboard, that's annoying. If the band is so loud that I can feel the base in my chest, that's ridiculous. If you have multiple singers but I can only hear one of them, that's annoying and a waste of time and talent.
Bad thing number four- -Light shows. I know they are trendy and cool. I know they add ambiance. I know that you feel like you have to compete with the entertainment industry and lots of colored lights whirling around the sanctuary make you feel like you are. The reasons to have them are many. Personally, I don't think any of them are valid. However, if light shows make you happy I can deal with them . . . as long as you keep the spotlights OUT of my eyes!
Bad thing number five- -topical preaching. Okay, I know that sometimes there is a good reason to do this (I actually did it the other day when I was filling in for somebody). But for the most part you should be preaching expositionally and systematically through God's word. Let the text speak for itself and let God speak through the text. He knows what people need.
Bad thing number six- -churches with very few children in the service. Obviously, Covid has changed every church's attendance pattern but it is incredibly frustrating to me to see a worship service with few or no children. Come on moms and dads, let's get with it.
Gotta stop for now. Part 3 coming soon.
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