Watch the news, and you’ll see that nearly every day there’s another story about a corrupt politician or an out-of-control law enforcement officer. Some of these stories turn out to be true, and others are false. Many have elements of both. But in our age of immediate and prolific news, these stories—true or false—spread quickly and foster negative attitudes towards entire professions.
However, the greater number of people in public service are good people who are just as appalled at these stories as the rest of us.
This presents the church with a grea
t opportunity! Your church can generate goodwill in the community as well as positive “advertising” for the church by sponsoring a Public Officials Appreciation Day.
Your church can host this special event each year to recognize and thank your community’s public officials. The event not only brings those officials (mayor, police chief, fire chief, etc.) to the worship service, but also often brings their families. If your church can handle it, you could also recognize all those in their departments.
Having a Certificate of Appreciation for each official would also personalize the experience for them. Of course, it should be emphasized in the service that one of the ways we serve our God is by serving one another. Always keep in mind that He is the reason we worship together on Sunday mornings!
This is a great event to schedule around Independence Day. The church could recognize the public officials in the morning service, then have an after-church cookout or carry-in lunch with ice cream, games, music, etc. for a “get-to-know-you” time with them. The more they get to know your congregation, the more comfortable they would be to come back at another time.
_______________
This is just one of the many ideas I present in my Four Step Plan for Outreach and Church Growth seminar. I’d love to come to your church to share this program!
© 2015 by Jim McLoud. All rights reserved.
