Easter is the Super Bowl of Christianity. More people come to church on Easter than any other day.
More people come to Christ on Easter than any other day. It’s the day we put forth our best effort.
Here are five suggestions for making this your best Easter service ever:
1. Dress up the décor.
Many churches buy Easter lilies for the Easter stage. Here at New Song, we ask a local nursery to donate his overgrown plants.
We’ll group these into a mound of beauty the size of two pick-up trucks. After the final service, we invite our volunteers to take them home.
2. Include a meal.
Easter guests are the hardest to assimilate. Slow them down by offering lunch afterward.
Most moms don’t really want to cook on Easter, so if you can offer them an alternative, they’ll jump on it.
We invite local restaurants and food trucks to set up in our parking lot. Add some tables, chairs and hosts, and you have the makings of a feast and a chance to get to know your guests.
3. Throw a party.
People like to party around the holidays. Provide them one by hiring in jumpies and other inflatables.
For the past three years, we’ve hosted a carnival in our atrium. It includes inflatables and also simple games where kids can win toys.
Add a cotton candy booth, popcorn and some music, and you’ve got a great excuse to invite the neighborhood.
Host this on Saturday, and guests are likely to return for church. Host this immediately before or after your services, and guests are very likely to attend your service.
4. Entice with eggs.
We know the Easter bunny has nothing to do with Jesus, but years ago I did a survey of our pre-Christian neighbors and discovered that they were far more likely to attend Easter services if their kids could participate in an Easter egg hunt there.
Our church doesn’t have a lawn area, so we promise eggs in all our promotions, but skip the hunt. Instead, we hand each child a bag of eggs (with candy enclosed) at the end of their Sunday School class.
The kids go home happy. Which means parents go home happy, too.
5. Teach on location.
Want to really impress the guests? Take a camera to Israel and film part, or all, of your sermon on location.
For a small fee, the folks at the Garden Tomb will let you in after hours. Most historic locations (except The Church of the Holy Sepulcher) will let you film on site.
Last year, I did portions of our Good Friday and Easter messages on location. People are still talking about it.
