I visited your church this Sunday

I visited your church this Sunday

I came to your website first. It was very well done. The colors were good. The information was up to date. I could not find your service times. I could not find directions to your church. It was not under the “About Us” tab. I did eventually find it on your site and several clicks later, I finally had the information I needed. I didn’t feel much like going to your church after completing the hunt, but I still came to your church, but only because someone else had made the suggestion.

I came to your church this Sunday. There was no clear signage telling me which door I was to come in. Once I found the door, you did have someone standing outside to greet and hold the door open. A welcome surprise. As he held the door for us to enter, he smiled and said hello. Once in the doors I was greeted by a staircase with no clear indication what to do next. I saw a sign advertising your vacation bible school and encouraging people to register their kids. I noticed it because it was the same one my church had just completed. Your church had completed it too, the event had already passed. I wandered up the stairs and through a doorway, following the smell of coffee. Coffee is always good to have. Good job on that.

I came to your church Sunday, but I did not come alone. My children were with me. Considering the size of your church, I figured you probably had children’s programming during the service. I didn’t know for certain, because it was not on your website, or if it was, I never found it. I looked around for some sign telling me where to go with my kids. There was none. The room I was in, the one with the coffee, did have a desk with a large sign hanging over it that read “Information.” I went there to learn about your kid’s programming. The person at the desk was engaged in a conversation with a friend. I had to interrupt your conversation, I am sorry for intruding, but I needed some information and I was a visitor. I asked if there was any programming for children. Your information person did not know and she suggested I check with the children’s desk and pointed across the room. You did not take me over to the children’s desk. You left me to find my own way. This was made extra difficult because there were no signs indicating what was the children’s desk (in fairness to you, as we left your church, I did finally see in very small letters “Children’s Ministry” on a screen over the desk).

I came to the desk we had been pointed to and asked if there was children’s programming. The person at the desk said he did not know, but offered to check my kids in. I wondered if I was at the right desk. I asked what I was checking my kids in for. He did not know. I said I would keep my kids with me. I really wanted to leave.

I tried to enter the service, but my kids protested having to go in. They know how the church system works and they wanted to do the kids stuff. Now did not seem to be the best time to explain to them my fears and so I relented and took my kids back and decided to try your children’s programming, whatever it was.

I registered my kids and then asked what to do. I was told us to go through a locked set of doors and go upstairs. As I tried to comprehend these instructions, a woman, mercifully, intervened and offered to take us to the room. This was good because once we entered through the locked doors we came into an empty dimly lit hallway. To our left was another set of double doors. Opening them revealed the stairs we were to take. We would have never found them without our guide. At the top of the stairs and through another set of double doors we again found ourselves in an empty hallway. Other children, if they were around, were nowhere to be found. We heard some noise and found a room with a couple others watching a Veggie-Tales movie. Our guide asked if this was the place for the kids. Your leader said it was, but she did not get up to greet me or my kids. I asked if I was supposed to come back here to get my kids. She didn’t really answer but smiled and nodded. As we left our kids with your children’s worker I pleaded with my son to watch out for his younger sister. I will admit I tried to say this loud enough for your children’s worker to hear and maybe sense that I was not comfortable with this situation.

I found my way on my own back to the worship center. As we came into the space there was no person passing out bulletins at the doors I came in. These were the doors immediately off your common space: the room with the coffee. I walked across the room to another doorway to ask a person for a bulletin and then walked back across to find a seat.

You seating was comfortable with a good amount of spacing between rows. The room was well lit. The stage was clean and uncluttered. You made good use of stage lighting. The image on your screen welcomed me to the service. Upbeat music with life in it was playing in the background.

Early in the service you asked me to complete a tear off card and place my information in the offering bag that went by, but you did not give me a pen to use to complete the card. Which was okay, because at this point, I was not sure I wanted you to have my information.

I am sorry to say I cannot evaluate your sermon. I was too distracted by the experience of having to work to be a visitor and was wondering what my kids were doing that I didn’t hear a word that was said in the sermon.

When the service did come to a close the pastor prayed and the band started to play. I was not sure if the service was over or if this was another song we were going to sing. There was no clear indication that the service was over. Either way I got up to go rescue my kids.

Finding them, the worker did not attempt to match the tag we had been given to the two children I was taking with me. Fortunately, I am pretty fond of my kids and really didn’t feel like trading them in for new models.

We left your church, only having been greeted by the person standing outside the door as we came in.

Back in our vehicle I asked the kids if they enjoyed the children’s area. They said they had fun. They watched a movie, played with clay, and played indoor volleyball. There was no lesson. Thank you for providing an hour’s free daycare.

I visited your church this Sunday, but I will not be back, it was too much work to be a visitor. Thankfully, I also already have a home church.

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Dear friends,

I am sharing with you the recent experience I had visiting a church while on vacation. I do not say, nor will I, which specific church we visited. My purpose is not to publicly shame a particular church. All churches have bad Sundays when it seems, that despite the best planning, everything falls apart. I will accept this may have been the case with this church. My purpose for sharing is for each of us to think about what it must be like to be a visitor in our own churches. Have you ever attempted to see your church through the eyes of a visitor? Could our experience happen at your church? What needs to be changed?

Pastor Stephen