Greg Atkinson

While turnover is a reality of “doing the business-side” of church … a church cannot afford to go any length of time without handling its payroll or financial records properly. A third-party firm that you can trust can eliminate risk and exposure due to staff turnover. One thing as a church leader that you do not want to mess up is payroll.

At a time when the IRS and other government agencies are looking more closely at non-profit organizations, it is essential that your church is constantly meeting all legal, accounting, and taxation requirements. Being a good steward of your resources your attendees expect … also means that you and your church remain in regulatory compliance.

Have housing allowances? Want to be paid via direct deposit? Need to see an accurate pay stub? Is your church reporting the necessary forms to the government on a quarterly & annual basis? Need to send out W-2(s) or 1099(s)? Stressed yet?

Need help? Go HERE.

Need a bookkeeper? Current bookkeeper leaving? Can’t find an accounting report on Budget vs. Actual? Are you on top of your cash flow? Need financial oversight & counsel? Balance Sheet is not balanced? Going to a 2^nd or 3^rd campus and need help scaling your bookkeeping?

Emerging churches of all sizes (and larger ones too) often struggle with the cumbersome duties associated with bookkeeping. MAG works with churches that are pre-launch to in excess of several million in annual income/budget. MAG Bookkeeping performs bank reconciliation, accounts payable, and produces financial statements … all in an effort to reduce the possibility for fraud or mishandling of funds and bring you peace of mind. While leveraging significant technology, MAG eliminates the risk of inconsistencies in record-keeping. Our ministry-minded team knows church finance inside and out.

MAG Bookkeeping offers objective perspectives that produce insights which are vital for a church to reach its potential. We assign a team of outsourced bookkeepers, which costs you less than hiring a part-time bookkeeper on staff. Imagine reducing your staff costs and not needing to lead/develop another staff member.

Want more info? Watch a short video on MAG Bookkeeping HERE.

Hello and welcome to MAG week on my blog. I had the pleasure of breaking bread with Bryan Miles about a month ago and I was fascinated to learn of what a resource they are to the local church. I thought I would take this entire week to tell you all about the Miles Advisory Group.

You should know up front that MAG is not a sponsor and is not paying me to say this. I’ve always tried to be a resource to the Church by telling you all of resources available and that’s what we’re going to do this week. Today we’re going to focus on the bread and butter of MAG and that is their MAG EAs. Let’s dive in…

Do your voicemails need answered? E-Mail inbox blowing up? Staff and attendees need your time? Calendar out of control? Have time to prep for your next message/series? When is the last time you posted to your blog? Need to travel somewhere? Feel the stress yet?

Many churches have the need for a qualified, professional Executive Assistant (EA) to support a senior-level leader, such as a Sr. Pastor, Lead Pastor, Campus Pastor, and/or Executive Pastor but cannot find or afford a full-time person. A virtual/remote EA represents the Pastor, so it’s a position that requires poise, discretion, confidentiality, and exceptional people skills. In addition to the clerical, reporting, and administrative duties required of an assistant, an EA job description also typically includes a working knowledge of the leader’s duties/habits/preferences, so as to be able to effectively schedule the leader’s calendar and time. MAG can help.

MAG recruits and vets highly qualified, responsive, skilled EAs to work in a remote/virtual capacity. We staff an EA specific to your church based on the types of duties they will need to perform. The EAs can work with your church as little as 5 hours a week, or as many as 40 hours a week, with most engagements averaging 15 to 20 hours a week per Pastor.

I’d just like to add that no one would ever know where your virtual EA is located. To the outside world/congregation, it would appear that she lives in your city and is a true part of your church’s staff. She, her phone number (with appropriate area code) and email address, would be listed on the church’s website and no one would know that they are talking to someone in Atlanta that is working for a pastor in Texas. Pretty cool.

To keep up with and get to know the MAG Group better, check out these links:

• www.milesadvisorygroup.com – main website
• www.MAGsays.com – blog
• http://www.youtube.com/user/MilesAdvisoryGroup – MAG’s YouTube site
• http://www.facebook.com/MilesAdvisoryGroup – MAG’s Facebook site
• www.twitter.com/bryanmiles
• www.twitter.com/shannonkmiles

I’m in a season of life where I’m praying through some huge decisions for me and my family and will probably have some news to announce soon. Whenever I’m trying to discern God’s will for my life, I always go back to what Henry Blackaby taught in his study Experiencing God.

Experiencing God was foundation in my spiritual life and is a study I’ve been through numerous times. In it, Blackaby says that there are ways to know God’s will for a situation in your life. He teaches that God uses Scripture, prayer, the Holy Spirit, people and circumstances. Whenever I’m praying about big things, I look at all 5 ways that God speaks to us.

Scripture

God never contradicts His Word. If what we are praying about doing lines up with Scripture, then it’s in good company. God also speaks to us through His Word and can open our eyes and hearts to new things through reading His Living Word.

Prayer

Prayer is a two-way conversation. Having the discipline to pray is one thing. Having the discipline and sensitivity to stop and listen to God speak is another thing entirely. When we be still and know that He is God and stop talking long enough to hear from Him, great things happen. God can impress a thought, idea or dream in your heart in times of dedicated prayer.

Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit has guided me countless times in my life. I can’t tell you how many times the Holy Spirit has woke me up in the middle of the night to speak to my heart OR the Holy Spirit won’t let me fall asleep and I lie awake communing with God. When we stop to listen to that still, small voice – God can lead, guide and direct our steps.

People

Simply put: God speaks through people. Many will say God speaks through His Church. I believe that’s true, but I’ve also seen God speak through lost people, troubled people, hurting people, music and movies. God speaks to me in a number of ways. I have had many life-changing conversations with people that God used to lead me.

Circumstances

It’s important that we take our circumstances into consideration when trying to discern God’s will in a given situation. Many times our circumstance can be God’s way of saying, “This is what you need to do.” I’m praying through something big right now and our circumstance is a big part of why I believe God is leading me to something new and different. ]

My prayer for you all is that you will consider these five things when you’re praying about God’s will in your life.

Today, my youngest child, Katie turns 7 years old. What a joy and honor to be her dad. She lights up my world with one little smile. Below is her getting her ear pierced this weekend for her birthday. You can see the tears in her eyes after they had finished and she saw herself in the mirror. I thank God for this precious gift.

This past weekend we went on a family mini-vacation to Charleston, SC. We got to do a ton of fun things and I loved every minute of it. We went through the market in downtown Charleston and I gave each of my kids money to shop for something special. I loved seeing their faces light up. They also had fun exploring downtown and spending a day at the beach.

I started thinking of the Scripture that talks about if I, as an earthly father, love giving good gifts to my children… Wow. I was struck by my Heavenly Father’s love for me and for my family. Read the following verse and reflect on God’s love for you. He truly loves each and every one of you.

If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! - Matthew 7:11

As I said in my last blog post, children’s ministry is key to having and creating an irresistible church. It’s one of the big 3 things that I look for as a secret shopper (First Impressions, Children’s and Security). I should also mention I’m a dad of 3 elementary aged kids, so how your Children’s Ministry comes across is huge to me.

When I visit churches, the three things that I must see and look for are… Is your Children’s Ministry clean, safe and secure?

Let’s look at each of the 3 things every children’s ministry must be:

Clean

Germs – every church has them. However, if my kids consistently comes home sick from church, I’m going to catch on and not return. One of the best practices I’ve seen many churches do is to place hand sanitizer dispensers throughout the building and in every classroom. This is wonderful.

When I say “clean”, I don’t just mean germs. I mean neat and well-kept rooms. If a room is messy, dirty and cluttered, it gives me a bad impression as a parent and makes me want to take my kids out of the room or I sit in the worship service thinking about it.

Safe

Every room where children are and playground or outdoor area where children play must be safe. This is a pretty simple concept. You can’t have any jagged edges or rough corners, sharp objects that can poke out a kid’s eye, etc. If your room is not safe, I’m not leaving my kid. For parents that do leave their kid, they may not be able to concentrate and worship during the service because they fear for their child’s safety.

Even worse, God forbid something happens and a kid gets hurt – If your room was not safe and the accident could have been prevented, you and your church will be liable and could get a bad reputation. One single accident or accusation could lead to news coverage and bad PR for the church. Much worse – a child could be hurt or damaged for the rest of their life. Kids are precious and should be protected at all costs.

Safety also includes those that work with your kids. Every kids worker must go through a background check. Period. I was recently talking with a pastor that said none of their kids’ volunteers had been through a background check. I was disturbed and shocked. He knew he needed to change that, but I don’t think he’s moving fast enough.

Safety also includes that you are staffed properly and adequately. If I’m dropping my baby off into a nursery with one volunteer and ten babies, I’m turning around and leaving. Make sure you have a good ratio of kids to volunteers.

Safety also includes the view into the room. Many kids’ rooms have big windows that parents can look into. Also, most churches have windows in their doors or a half-door that allows people to see in, but keeps the children in the classroom. You don’t want kids wandering down the hall.

Lastly, always escort kids to the bathroom (same sex) and make sure they are not messed with, molested or kidnapped. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been able to stand and wait in a kid’s bathroom at a church that didn’t have proper security. This is a nightmare. We must protect our kids and do whatever it takes to see that they grow up without shame.

Secure

When I say “secure”, I’m mainly focusing on the children’s check-in and check-out procedures with a laser focus on their check-out procedure. You need to do whatever it takes to make sure that whoever is supposed to pick up a kid is the one that picks up the kid. I was just talking with a pastor the other day that had a divorced dad pick up his kids without the mom that had dropped them off knowing it. There was a lot of drama and it could have been avoided.

Security also means that every entrance and exit of the children’s area and facilities are covered with volunteers that only let parents in and out. I was just at a great church in California last week that had every single entry and exit covered and it was a beautiful thing to see.

My friend, Tim Stevens, has written about his theory on three growth lids. One of the growth lids that he says every church ought to keep an eye on is children’s ministry. Tim says, “If it looks like a child is entering a room that is too small, understaffed, or unsafe, then the parents will not return.”

Obviously, I look at the kid’s facilities, decor, atmosphere, curriculum, and what my kids think after I pick them up. Creativity goes a long way in children’s ministry and you can never emphasize enough how important that kids’ ministries are FUN. I want my kids to learn about Jesus, but also have the time of their life and love going to church.

These three things I shared today (clean, safe and secure) are just basic building blocks of a next-level children’s ministry and unfortunately, are often overlooked by some churches. If you will focus on the entire experience for your kids, including these three keys, you’ll have an irresistible children’s ministry.

Let me preface what I’m about to write by saying that basic and foundational things like prayer, discipleship and evangelism (having an externally-focused church as I’ve stated before) are all a given. Each church should take the Great Commission seriously and have an emphasis on the “Go” and on the “make disciples”. I start everything with prayer and so please know that what I’m about to discuss is with the above stated things as must-haves and what I consider foundational to a healthy church.

With that being said, let me share with you the big four that I look for when I visit a church, secret shop a church or consult with a church. As the title says and Scriptures encourages us – we should compel them to come in. The big four that I look for when I do a secret shopper are First Impressions, Children’s, Security and Worship. Yes, worship is last and I have listed them in the order that I weigh them.

As many studies have shown us, people make up their mind whether or not they will return, long before the worship service and especially the sermon. Most visitors will know in the first 10 minutes if they will return to your church.

First Impressions

Let’s start with what I consider to be the most crucial of all ministries at a church. Whether you call it First Impressions, Hospitality or Guest Relations – it matters and is paramount to breaking down walls and making guests feel welcome at your church.

“You’ve got 10 minutes. Somewhere between the parking lot and the children’s center, the ten minutes pass…They should know they matter to us before they hear how much they matter to God.”- Mark Waltz, Granger

Something I tell all the churches I work with is: “You must be strategic and intentional about breaking down any barriers of intimidation. You must be strategic and intentional about creating warm, welcoming environments.”

Now, I could spend an entire series on just first impressions. This is everything from your online presence (social media like Twitter, Facebook – as well as your website). For example, I did a secret shopper this past weekend and I had created 13 pages in my report on just online presence before I ever left to attend their physical campus.

Once one comes to your physical campus, the real fun begins. First impressions then includes the parking lot, greeters, ushers, and people that greet you at your church’s Welcome or Information Booth. First impressions also includes things like smell (your church may stink), signage (your church may be intimidating and confusing for new people) and how your facility is kept up and maintained. All these things play subtle parts in a guest’s first impression of your church and their subconscious.

Children’s Ministry

Maybe I’m biased because I’m 35 and have three elementary school-aged kids, but I believe in having a strong and attractive children’s ministry. A lot of churches target parents in their mid-twenties to mid-forties and the best way to compel them is to offer a children’s ministry so dynamic that kids drag their parents to church.

I’ll dive deeper into the Big 3 that I look for in every children’s ministry in the next blog post, but for now, let me suggest that you make children’s ministry a priority. I’ve seen churches that spent millions on their worship center and have dumpy children’s facilities. I’d never return with my family to churches like that. Show me – show your community that kids are important and that you care about partnering with parents to be a help in their spiritual growth. We all know the statistics on the likelihood of people accepting Christ after age 18. Student ministries (children’s through youth) are vital to fulfilling the Great Commission.

Security

This is probably the most overlooked part of most churches I visit. Most church leaders have never set down and intentionally and strategically thought through how and why they do security. I wish this wasn’t important and that you didn’t have to have some kind of security presence, but unfortunately, that’s not the case. If their had only been one church shooting, that would be enough. I’m sad to say that several churches have experienced the tragedy of shootings – not to mention molestation and kidnapping.

Bottomline: If I’m worried about my kids’ safety, I’m not going to enjoy the worship service and I will miss what God wants to do in my heart through the experience of corporate worship.

Security includes everything from people’s cars in the parking lot, to the safety of infants in the nursery, to children’s facilities, check-in and check-out procedures, mentally ill people acting out in the middle of a service and protecting the senior pastor. Every great church with a well known senior pastor that I’ve worked with had a body guard standing next to the pastor for his protection. This is not for show or something for rock stars – this is something real and needed to protect that man of God from people that mean to do him harm. When you stand for truth and speak against sin, you become a target for many that live in darkness. If you haven’t already, think through every aspect of security in your organization. I just returned from a church in California that had security people covering every single entrance and exit to their children’s ministry. It was a beautiful thing to see and made me feel safe as a parent.

Attractional Worship

I know there’s a lot of discussion and debate about whether a church should be attractional or missional. I’ve talked extensively about it all over the country. I’m a both-and person and like for a church to seek to be both, but when it comes to the corporate worship service – I look for an attractional model. Again: COMPEL them to come in. Blow your people and your community away with excellence and an environment that allows the Holy Spirit of God to move.

I never got over Sally Morgenthaler’s book Worship Evangelism. I think lost people can be moved by witnessing genuine and authentic worship happening. I also know God moves through the preaching of His Word. Please know I’m not talking to just large churches. I work with large churches, but my home church in Georgia is a church of 350 people. They do things with excellence and for a small church, blow me away each week that I’m home.

Regardless of what size church you are, you should think through worship flow, song selection, authenticity, communication/preaching and every aspect of what you want people to experience each week when you gather. Are sound, video and lights important? I think so, but you don’t have to have the best of the best to see God move. One of the most special and memorable services we did at Bent Tree when I was there was have a stripped down music set with no technology. Below is a picture of the worship team singing with an unplugged band around a single light bulb.

Whether you’re in a school, movie theater, gym or worship center – you can seek to create an environment where people encounter the Living God.

Please know these are not Biblical laws or Scriptural requirements. These are just four keys that I look for when I visit a church and I’ve found over the years that the churches that do these four things well, see God bless their church in amazing ways. Think through each as a team and prayerfully consider how you can do each to the best of your ability.

Did I miss something? What are your keys to creating an irresistible church?

Today, I’m flying back from San Diego, CA after doing a secret shopper visit for the Rock Church.  As a secret shopper or mystery worshiper of churches around the country, I’ve found there are some reasons that I will tell a church I would not return for a second visit and some may be news to you. Whether I’m working with a church plant of 60 people or a mega-church of over 15,000, some things are universal and should be present regardless of church size. Throughout this post we’ll look at actions and areas every church needs to address.

The Front Door

Before a guest ever steps foot on your church’s physical campus, he or she has probably already checked out your church website. What every church should have clearly visible on their homepage is a section or button for first-time guests. Once clicked on, this should take you to a page that addresses FAQ’s, service times, directions, parking instructions (Is there a side of the building that is better to park on if one has kids?), what to expect (upbeat music and relevant, practical, Biblical preaching in a come as you are atmosphere, etc.), what to wear (Are jeans okay? Are shorts okay?), and encouragement for them to be sure to stop by Guest Central or your church’s Information Booth to pick up a first-time guest packet.

What Stinks?

It’s important that no church ever underestimates the sense of smell. While sight is the strongest sense for short term memory, the sense of smell is the strongest and most vivid for long-term memories. If you’ve ever smelled something and had memories you hadn’t thought of in years come flooding back, that’s your sense of smell in action. Every church has the potential for positive or negative smells. Mold is a bad smell. Coffee is a good smell. Bleach is a bad smell. Citrus is a good smell. Many churches have restrooms that are disgusting and smell like urine. This lack of attention to detail can be costly and discourage many from ever returning. As best you can, try to walk into the lobby or entrance of your church with a new nose.

Park Here

One of Tim Stevens’ three “growth lids” that he thinks every growing church should have someone who is constantly watching is parking. Tim says, “This is why Visitor Parking is so crucial. If it’s difficult for newcomers to go to your church, they won’t go.” Some would argue that guests want to remain anonymous and don’t want special parking. Of course some want to go unnoticed and will choose to park in regular parking (a minority), but for the rest of newcomers, they are appreciative for a close parking space; it’s a kind gesture in an already intimidating and nerve-racking experience of attending a church for the first time, especially a large one with a huge campus.

This Way Parents

One way to assure guests will not return is to have a confusing, long or hard to find process for getting their kids registered and in the right classroom. Wise churches have signs for first-time guest kids’ check-in and make the process quick and painless. Regular attendees may know to go up to the check-in kiosk and enter their phone number or swipe their card, but guests will be clueless and need a manned station that is clearly marked for guests and have a volunteer walk them through the registration. Then have that person or another helper walk you to your kid’s class explaining what will be going on and how to go about picking their kids back up. If they must have a sticker with corresponding numbers on it to get their kids, this needs to be explained to them. Signage for the kids check-in should start in the entryway of the guest parking. Do not assume people know where to go once they enter the building.

Give It Away

Something subtle, but powerful is a church that has a generous spirit. Chris Hodges at Church of the Highlands in Birmingham, AL is big on this. They have a coffee shop, but they also have a designated area where people can get free coffee and not pay anything. They also give away their message CDs. Too many churches charge for everything and wonder why no one buys CDs of the message. If you want to bless people and create a generous spirit throughout your church, give away free coffee and message CDs (and other surprises throughout the year). Chris Hodges will have ice cream trucks pull up outside the church doors and give away free ice cream to congregants leaving on a hot, summer day.

Security Counts

One issue that is huge to a secret shopper and visiting families is security. If a parent is worried about their child’s safety, they will not enjoy the service and will likely not return. A children’s classroom must be clean, safe and secure. Security also includes the check-out process. If anyone can walk into a classroom and pick up a kid, you’re asking for trouble and will turn off potential newcomers. It’s important that your kids’ volunteers are trained well and know to ask for the parent’s sticker when picking up their kids. This is vital and goes a long way to ensuring a tragedy doesn’t occur and a parent has peace of mind.

The Visible Pastor

Accessibility of the senior pastor is another subtle and powerful statement of a church. Even pastors of the largest churches in America make an intentional and strategic effort to be seen, greeted and hugged after a service. They may have a body guard present for security reasons, but they are available and willing to pray with people that need to speak to their pastor. Some churches have a designated “Guest Central”, like Steve Stroope at Lake Pointe in Rockwall, TX or Brady Body at New Life in Colorado Springs. Some have a “Meet and Greet” like Charles Hill in Utah. Some pastors stand down at the altar and meet and pray with people like Kevin Myers at 12Stone in Atlanta. Some walk around the campus shaking hands like Don Wilson at Christ’s Church of the Valley in Phoenix. Erwin McManus at Mosaic LA has an “After Party”, at which the pastor is present and available to meet with newcomers. This, especially in a large church, goes a long way toward countering the rock star or unavailable pastor stigma that so many guests walk into the church expecting.

Finish Strong

It’s simply not enough for greeters and parking lot attendants to say “Hello” or “Welcome” when one walks into their church. To go to another level, have your first impressions team stationed at their posts when the service ends to say “Goodbye” or “Have a nice week”. This goes a long way to wrapping a bow around the entire morning experience and will send them off with a lasting positive impression.

Do these 8 things and you’ll see a greater return and higher percentage of second and third-time guests.

*This article originally appeared in Outreach magazine.

Lately, there’s been a ton of controversy over Rob Bell and his new book Love Wins. I’ve read several book reviews of the book and as I stated on Twitter and Facebook, it gives me great cause for concern. Let me first say that I love Rob Bell, respect him and think he’s a great communicator. I’ll talk more about that in a future blog post. What I disagree with him is in the area of theology, our view of Hell and what seems to be a universalist view (even though I know he doesn’t like that label).

I’d like to point to two great blog posts by people much smarter than I that express what I’ve been feeling for weeks and haven’t put into words, yet. It’s only after much thought and debate that I even write this blog post because I don’t want to be labeled as a hater or critic. Again, let me state: I love and respect Rob Bell. I just hold high the teaching of sound doctrine and feel I need to speak up if someone with a large following leads people astray.

First, on Rob Bell – I’d like to suggest that you read THIS blog post and book review that was posted on ChurchLeaders.com. I thought it was very well done and expressed my concern and a warning about what he writes in his book. I’ll let you read the review yourself and come to your own conclusion.

Second, on Hell – I believe there is an actual Hell and believe the Bible supports that belief. Pastor Mark Driscoll wrote an excellent blog post on Hell and he sums up the Scripture’s teaching on Hell much better than I could. I really respect when a pastor is clear, definite and straightforward. It’s the vagueness of Bell that concerns me. Read Driscoll’s thoughts on Hell HERE and see what you think.

Third, on why I’m not a Universalist – let me share with you three Scriptures that mean the world to me and that I simply can not shake or ignore.

For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus… – 1 Timothy 2:5

Jesus is ”‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’ Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” – Acts 4:11-12

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. – John 3:16

Watch the intro of this interview with Rob Bell on MSNBC and listen carefully to how the reporter explains Bell’s book. He says that all people will go to Heaven and that people can change their mind post-mortem. From the questions that the reporter asks, he is clearly puzzled by Bell’s mixed message of  ”No, I’m not a Universalist”, but “In the end God wins and everyone goes to Heaven.” This is dangerous stuff in my humble opinion. Watch and see for yourself.

This is my humble attempt at not bashing on anyone, but explaining my position and belief on this recent controversy and the issues of Rob Bell’s new book, teachings on Hell and Universalism. My only encouragement to you, my friends, is to search the Scriptures and teach sound doctrine.

“Jesus is not one of many ways to approach God, nor is He the best of several ways; He is the only way.” ~ A. W. Tozer