‘How can I make my church more fun?‘ is a question we all try to answer every now and then.
Coming up with new church event ideas every year might start to feel a little difficult as time goes by. However, knowing that 49% of people looking to attend a church are also looking forward to social activities for the community might help bring things into perspective.
So, if you were wondering ‘How do you attract crowds to a church?‘, this might just be the answer!
Church events are vital in influencing attendance, community engagement, and church growth. A well-organized, well-planned, and fun event will help you:
- Market the church: Get more people to know about you.
- Improve attendance: Give church members something exciting to look forward to.
- Improve involvement: Encourages church members to participate in church activities (a step further from just attending).
- Bring people closer to faith: Allows spending more time with the church.
- Raise funds: Encourage participation through giving.
We’ve thought of all these benefits before coming up with a list of church events ideas you can use. However, you might need to hold on for a second, grab a paper and pen, and consider a few factors before deciding on the big idea. Let’s explore.
Factors to consider before selecting a church event idea
How do you plan a successful church event?
A lot goes into making a church event idea turn into reality. While some event ideas are easy to put together, others may need a lot of consideration on many fronts. We’ve listed a few factors to consider before choosing a church event idea.
The objective of a church event
There are many reasons why a church would want to conduct an event. Pinning down these reasons will give you more clarity about the church event ideas to choose from.
Here are some common reasons why churches host events:
- To raise funds
- To promote the faith
- To serve the community
- To involve the youth
- To attract new church members
- To bring back old members
- To improve in-person attendance
An event planned to raise funds might look very different from one designed to involve the youth. Choose an idea keeping your objective in focus. Additionally, narrow down on your church’s pressing needs to determine why an event would make sense at this point.
Read Also: 13 Strategies To Grow Your Church Attendance In No Time
Available budget
Before planning an ‘Around the World’ themed dinner party, you might want to consider all costs attached to hosting such an event. Ask yourself what kind of funds are accessible to you and plan an event accordingly.
For example, if you are a small church with a tight budget, you could think about an event with more members and volunteer participation rather than a costly affair.
On the contrary, if you have a reasonable budget, you could hire event experts to help you execute a big event effortlessly.
Event location
How can I make my church popular? An aspect of the answer lies in location. A location is vital when it comes to selecting a church event idea. The number of location options determines the options of church event ideas at your disposal.
You can host an event in a community club, park, at a member’s home, library, a local restaurant, etc.
An important thing to remember if you choose to host your event in a public space is to obtain all necessary permits well in advance to avoid objections and legal confrontations.
Volunteers available
All church event ideas require people to be able to execute them well. A large team of volunteers means a more extensive scope of things can be covered without worry. If you have a small team, you might want to be frugal about the number of things you can accomplish.
Figure out the number of volunteers you could gather to determine the scale of your event. An alternative to volunteers could also be hired event workers, but that points back to your budget 🙂
Events you conducted last year
Yes – Throwback Thursdays and Flashback Fridays are popular for a reason! They help you fondly look back at memories, think about how much you’ve grown, the mistakes you made, and what you learned.
Use the same concept but apply it now to your church event ideas. Here are some questions to ask yourself:
- Which were our most popular events last year?
- Which events did not work?
- Can you repeat an event that members truly enjoyed?
- Which type of event helped us achieve our goals the most?
- What could you have done better/what did you learn from last year?
Looking back at the past is a great way to plan ahead – armed with new lessons and confidence.
Your target audience
For whom are you truly conducting this event? Is this an event catering to:
- Kids in the community,
- Youth groups,
- Young families,
- Senior members,
- New believers
- Any other groups?
There are different things to consider for each group, such as the day of the event, the kind of activities to include, and which type of church event idea will work best for them.
The community’s needs
How can I make my church more inviting?
We got you there.
As much as a church event is about you, it is even more about your church members and the local community. How do you make visitors feel welcome at church? Keeping in mind your community’s needs while coming up with church event ideas is a significant step towards ensuring high engagement and good karma.
Does the community need a light-hearted get-together after a challenging year? Will the community appreciate a fundraising event for a particular cause? Will inviting a guest speaker help them feel closer to the faith?
Whatever you identify as your community’s needs can be incorporated into a fabulous event with just the right kind of planning and execution. Remember to base your objective on these community needs.
Read Also: 16 Church Growth Ideas to Acquire and Retain People
Keeping these factors in mind, let’s move on to the best part – coming up with church event ideas. Below are some for you to explore.
15 church event ideas to explore
So, what are some fun church activities?
There are always fun church event ideas to explore, no matter the occasion, constraints, objectives, and budget. Here are 15 event ideas ready for you to choose from!
- Church picnic: An all church picnic is a perfect way to go out with church members, enjoy the sun, good food, and conversation. Young families can find this as an ideal platform to meet other young families, and their kids get to interact with each other.
- Fundraising walk-a-thon: Is there a church member who might need help with funds? Are you trying to raise awareness for a church initiative? A walk-a-thon could be a great idea to involve members and raise funds from the community. You could organize a walk through the neighborhood, going door-to-door asking for donations.
- Church carnival: Ask members to put up stalls, sell food, products from their small businesses, and bring their family out for a day of fun and games. A carnival is a great way to break free from routine, support local businesses and use church premises for an event.
- Sports day: A good game of tennis, basketball, or soccer gets your whole community excited? You can host a church sports day. Add in a few medals or trophies for winners to take back. This church event idea can increase the bond between members and encourage them to visit church more often to meet their teammates-turned-friends.
- Marital success workshops: Why should couples get help only when things go wrong? The Bible has infinite knowledge about making a successful Christian marriage work. You could conduct marital success workshops and help couples work towards maintaining their holy union.
- Visits to care homes: You can organize a day-long visit and volunteering trip to a care home – whether for children, senior citizens, ailing patients, or a hospice. It encourages feelings of service, compassion, and empathy. The church and its members could really make a difference that day!
- Talent competitions: A day where kids get together to showcase their talents— America’s got talent but your local church edition! How encouraging would that be! This is a great church event idea to get parents and children involved. Of course, grandma and grandpa would also be there to cheer on their precious little ones!
- Bible reading club: A great post-school initiative for kids. Parents can be encouraged to send their kids to bible reading classes free of charge and get two precious hours of alone time in return—an excellent way to spread the word of the Lord and gain brownie points from parents. You could also host a bible reading day once a year on a theme that benefits the community.
- Dinner party for volunteers: Church volunteers working through the year, spending their time improving the church, need a day of appreciation too! Host a fancy dinner for your team of volunteers to appreciate them for their continued support.
- A local awards night: We all love the appeal of a good awards show. Why not appreciate local heroes like firefighters, healthcare workers, or the police by recognizing all their good for the community? You could also acknowledge good samaritans. Host an awards night, encourage the community to dress up in their best to celebrate people who make their lives better!
- A free medical camp: Reach out to local doctors to see who is willing to volunteer their time and expertise for the local community. You could set up a free dental, eye check-up camp, or a blood donation drive.
- Zoom courses: Set up zoom courses on various topics relevant to the church such as catholicism, how to build a home altar, reading the bible, good practices for Christian living – the ideas are endless. It is also a good practice in geographical pockets still practicing social distancing.
- Community garden: Looking for a fun but productive church event idea? Dig up a small plot of church land and start a community garden. Grow things people would love to have in their kitchen and keep the garden open for all! Get everyone in the community involved for ‘Community garden day’ and sow the seeds for a merrier future!
- A guest lecture: Invite a respected figure to talk Christian values to the community. Open the stage for asking tough questions about the faith and staying true to the path the Lord has set before us.
- Craft workshop: From rosary making to decorating a family cross, you can conduct so many craft workshops while still staying relevant to the church. Get the crafty mamas and papas into the church!
So, there you go- a list of church events. Incorporate these church event ideas for the next calendar year and see how events transform the way the Church functions.
Conclusion
Church events promote the interests of the church and forward the cause of Christianity by involving more people with the faith. Studies have shown that non-practicing Christians in the United States have grown from 35% to 43% from 2000 to 2020. At the same time, the number of practicing Christians has declined to 25%.
Conducting church events is crucial to any church, and CallHub can help you further with resources designed especially for such needs. Check out our article Here’s What To Include In Your Church Event Planning Worksheet to help you plan and execute your church event ideas!
Feature Image Credit: Pixabay
