If you want to make loyal “customers,” (people who don’t just show up once, but come back regularly) that doesn’t start in the pulpit.
That doesn’t start with your theology.*
People could care less about where you stand on the authorship of the book of Hebrews or how long it took to create the Earth. They don’t even care what you believe about the Bible.
When …
life’s fallen apart
they don’t have any idea what their next step will be
they’re a wreck financially
their marriage isn’t fun anymore
they’ve been burned by the church in the past
they’re coming because their spouse made them
they’re just looking for a little help
they don’t really want to be there anyway
they are skeptical of “church people”
… they could care less about your theology.**
What you believe doesn’t matter to them. All that matters is their “customer service” experience:
How they were treated in the parking lot.
How safe they feel dropping their children off.
How warm and welcome they feel walking in the front door.
How engaging the music was.
Whether the signage is clear enough to tell them where to go, so they don’t feel dumb walking around clueless.
Whether someone besides the “guy on stage” greets them.
How they were publicly addressed as visitors.
That’s scary, isn’t it? It means that a church with terrible theology, that doesn’t look to Jesus as the answer to hope, grace, mercy and truth, could swoop in and convince people that their message is life-changing. Because they love people and help them feel cared for.
Your theology isn’t the reason that a visitor is going to stay. Or leave. At least not initially.
You want to fulfill the Great Commission, but you won’t get people to hang around long enough to soak it in unless you give an eye to people’s “customer service” experience.
Does your church have an eye for customer service?
What do they do to show people they love them week in and week out?
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* This is really a theological issue at heart, though. What you believe about our God who loves us despite our sin, who gives us His best (Jesus) to cover our worst drives this others-first behavior. But the specifics about what you believe theologically don’t matter as much to new folks.
** Theology matters immensely. What you believe is of primary importance in the local church. And it drives what we do each and every week. But it doesn’t matter to people when they’re on the outside of faith, or when life has fallen apart. “Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care.” —Theodore Roosevelt
