You’ve probably thought to yourself, “If only my pastor knew the work that goes into what we do.” You’re not the only one. But how do we get the pastor(s) to understand the importance of what we do? The answer might be simpler than you think.
Just tell them.
A post was made on our Facebook group by Michael Lukaszewski. He asked church communicators what they would tell their pastor, if they had the chance. Here’s what our members had to say:
Comments:
“Have our back. Treat what we do as a vital ministry…” Beth Beaty
“Putting together a short video takes a lot longer than you think… Allow the appropriate time for us to complete them and try to think about things more than one week out.” Katie Shifflette
“Once in a while, recognize the value of our contribution. And please, for the love of all that is Holy, do not take it into your own hands to do your graphics or posts!” Sharon Moore Jenkins
“Don’t say things like, “I know church just isn’t the same right now.” We need to stress in these times that Online Church IS CHURCH. This will be especially important for those who will still be unable to reincorporate when the time comes because of health concerns. Removing the stigma of Online vs. In-Person has never been more vital.” Justin Womack
“Time Distance to Deadline matters. Try to understand the human hours from idea to the internet, for a single person and team of people. Manage your requests and expectations accordingly.” Joshua Wiley Sims
“Appreciate… the work, labor, time, commitment, dedication, love, care, attention to detail that the online ministry does it too is a MINISTRY. It promotes God to a larger audience, and those who labor in it love God just as much as the Pastor and strive to do our best, too. Respect our time, be disciplined in getting the items to us on time, so we have time to put it all together.” Tuwanda Peters
“Assess the vision and the team structure, then roll out requests (with time allowance) according to what is in place. Trust the design team. What they are creating shouldn’t be solely to please the Pastor, but to grab the attention of the church’s target audience. I would also recommend that they read 7 Habits of Leadership and potentially invest in Lean Management Training to understand the takt time and production process.” Vanika Lewis
“Instead of giving us what they think we need, ask us what we need.” Ann Papenfuss
“Probably just to remember boundaries. Just because he’s thinking of something on an off day doesn’t mean I am.” Chris Queen
“Let me do what you hired me to do. I know my role, I love my church, and my ideas on how to best communicate to them should count. I’m not a machine to just output whatever you want whenever you want. Also, for the love of all things good and pure, get me a budget!!” April Mantle
“Social media is not a bulletin board. Treat it as a ministry. And less is more when it comes to the information that does need to flow through there. If everything is important, nothing is important.” Jenna Stensland
“I can only help you as much as you help me to help you. Telling me what to do (e.g. “live-stream the service”) is only as effective as your strategy, whereas telling me what you want to accomplish (e.g., “I want to reach every unchurched family with children in our community with the Gospel”) empowers me to propose real solutions or even solve your problem for you. In contrast, you do something else that only you can do. Every member of the body of Christ is best suited to do what they’re gifted and positioned to do that nobody else can do. We undercut our teams when we insist on being involved in everything….” Joshua Michael McKenna
Conclusion:
Here’s the deal. A lot of times, the pastor won’t know how much something means to you unless you tell them.
We hope this thread will help church leaders understand their church communicators better, and at the same time, push communicators to express themselves more.
