The famous film producer Steven Spielberg really believes in surprise to communicate. So much so that he says disappointedly “I can usually only get one great surprise per film.” When the shark in his movie Jaws appears for the very first time, it’s a wide-mouthed super surprise!
The Power Of Surprise
In the film Jaws surprise caused people to do two very important things: REMEMBER the movie. TELL others about it. Surprise can cause the same thing to happen in your church. Include surprise in your Sunday message and people will remember it and tell others about it. This is outreach marketing at its best and a great way to reach new people.
Move Past The Familiar
It doesn’t take a lot to surprise a church audience. That’s because most of us are used to sameness on Sunday. We know what the style, order, and general content will be…before we arrive. Even the most contemporary church services are very predictable and use the same formula that has been used in church programming since the 1940′s: Welcome-Worship-Sermon-Dismissal. Repeat, repeat, week after week. That familiarity and consistency is great if you want to serve a fast food hamburger, but not if your mission is to reach the human heart.
A Shot Of Shark… Please!
When you add a shark (or a surprise!) to your Sunday message you will wake people up, cause them to tune in, and get more of your information to the intended target. REALITY √: When was the last time someone inside your church told someone outside of your church what happened in church?
