It’s already October which means one thing: Christmas is right around the corner. If your church is on the ball, you are already be having conversations about what you’re doing for Christmas. If you’re like most churches, though, those conversations aren’t happening yet.
For most churches, Christmas is a key time for outreach through special services and marketing targeted to their community. To help inspire pastors, church leaders, and creatives, Shawn McCarthy and the team at OurShirtsDontSuck.com (no affiliation with Church Marketing Sucks, but still a great name) launched Planning Christmas in 2009. Planning Christmas is a site that brings together different church leaders to share their ideas on how they are planning for their Christmas services.
This year, Church Marketing Sucks is excited to partner with OurShirtsDontSuck.com to present Planning Christmas 2011. Beginning on Wednesday, Nov. 2, each week we’ll be posting a new video and resources from different church creative teams that are in the trenches and planning for Christmas.
We’ve already got a great lineup of presenters including:
- Pace Hartfied – Fellowship Church (Dallas)
- Stephen Brewster – Cross Point Church (Nashville, Texas)
- Shawn Wood – Freedom Church (Charleston, S.C.)
- Cassandra Langton – Hillsong Church (Sydney, Australia)
- Gary Moldander – Floodgate Productions, author of Pursuing Christ, Creating Art (Fresno, Calif.)
- Shannon O’Dell – Brand New Church (Harrison, Ark.)
- Jonathan Pearson – Cornerstone Church (Orangeburg, S.C.)
- Neil Greathouse – New Life Church (Little Rock, Ark.)
More speakers are being added, so stay tuned.
Kristen LaValley
October 12, 2011
Yea, we’re “planning”. Meaning we’re doing what we did last year and hoping it works again. But seriously, it’s a big improvement from previous years where they just sang. With this program, we incorporate people’s personal testimonies in video and relate them to different parts of the christmas story. And of course, the manger scene always manages to make it’s way onto the stage. Pretty excited about getting some fresh ideas though. Looking for some ways to get the student ministry involved.
Brian Certain
October 13, 2011
We have started planning for the Christmas Pageant but not for the actual Christmas services. That is still months away right?
Mike Barker
October 14, 2011
We’ve been planning since August. We have our series named, sermon titles named, marketing theme completed and production is in process. Everything from from Impact Cards, Video Trailer, Radio, Social Media, Video Testimonies, How to invite someone using the impact card video, and a interactive website. It’s not up yet but you’ll be able to view it sometime in November at http://www.seechristmas.com. (Obviously the name of the series.) We’d be happy to share what we are up to if you need someone else.
Blake
October 18, 2011
But Christmas is on a Sunday, right? Don’t you remember the big brouhaha from six years ago?
http://www.churchmarketingsucks.com/2005/12/closed-for-christmas/
Jon Morris
October 19, 2011
You’ve got to add Whitney George and Church on the Move to that list. They are Christmas PROFESSIONALS!!! Seriously check out there stuff at http://seeds.churchonthemove.com
Chris
November 17, 2011
Yeah, we’re starting to plan for Christmas and we were looking at how to seat more people and might need to switch from pews to chairs. There is a strange issue I am facing as the company I work for (I am only a part time pastor) wrote an article on how “unwise” it might be to buy one of these cheap hercules chairs:
http://saveyourchurchmoney.com/blog/2011/08/01/review-cheap-hercules-church-chairs-from-bizchair-others/
Yes, some shameless self promotion of our article with that link!
But when looking at the price difference, even at the cheapest recommended chair:
http://churchfurniturepartner.com/category/featured-furniture/church-chairs-seating
We’re talking about $32 per chair. The good news is both can be in by Christmas, but we have no idea which route to go? CHEAP AS POSSIBLE or BUILT TO LAST!??
Also, it is my first time pastor-ing a church so I want to be sure to make good decisions so I don’t get early notice to leave!