I would like your input regarding our Sunday night services at First Baptist Petal. (If you are not an attender of FBP, please feel free to comment regarding your feelings about Sunday night worship services.) Here are a few facts in case you don't know. Our PM service is different in content from our AM services. By that I mean the songs we sing and the message that is preached on Sunday nights are different from the music and message on Sunday mornings. (Some churches now have a repeat of Sunday morning on Sunday night.) Year to date, our average attendance on Sunday night has been 34, compared to 227 on Sunday mornings. That means that roughly 15% of our Sunday morning folks show up on Sunday night. (If you'll allow me some commentary, by almost any measurement that's not a good percentage.) Time and effort are put in by the staff in preparing for Sunday night -- it's not just shoot from the hip.What are your thoughts about this? Do you consistently attend Sunday PM worship? If so, why? If not, why not? If Sunday night is not a part of your usual schedule, are there any changes that if made would cause you to become a Sunday night participant? Is Sunday night pretty much a "dead" time for worship services? Should we designate Sunday nights as a time for small groups and family rather than coming to the church building? Do you think that a Sunday night worship service is the very best use of our time and energy? Would you say that we need to just stay the course as is?
By asking these kinds of questions I do not mean to imply that those who show up on Sunday nights are not important. Of course they (you) are. The staff is not trying to get out of work. We're pretty much wide open either way. We just want what is best and don't want to be blinded by tradition or habit. If Sunday PM worship services are what God wants (which means the very best) then let's carry on full steam ahead!
Again, you input is needed. Let me know what you think.
Bro. Jay, Great site! I love that I have a venue in which to voice my opinions. And as you know, I have plenty of them! Regarding sunday night services:
ReplyDeleteTIME:I know that my group used to meet on sunday nights and it was very convenient. To attend PM service and small group in addition to sunday morning worship and service is probably to big a burden for most. If Sunday nights were available for small groups perhaps there would be more groups and perhaps they could meet more regularly.
SPACE: While I believe homes are a great place for small groups, having church space for newly forming small groups would be nice. I think at times that homes may seem too intimate for new members/believers, or for members new to the small group setting. They may feel more comfortable getting to know the group better before moving into a home environment.
There's my thoughts for now- Looking forward to Sunday! Keep up the great work! God Bless you and yours-Pat
Hey Pat, thanks for the comments. I agree that people doing PM service AND small group would not work long term. They would have to choose and small group should be first priority if that is when their group meets. Thanks for the input.
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