There Is No Summer Slump; You Just Suck.
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No need to think of it as a slam, even though it totally is.
Spring is here and churches are (rightly) gearing up for Easter. They call it the Super Bowl for churches; go time numero uno. They pour capital into events like they’re going out of style, creating egg hunts that last for miles and are done in minutes. All the time, ????, and people resources for a single event that is sure to make an immediate impact, without a plan for what happens next. As important as Easter is, Monday is just as (or more) important. There are fifty-two Mondays, just like there are fifty-two Sundays (duh). So while we hype up Easter, we need to plan out what is next.
The Dreaded Summer Slump.
Yes, that was capitalized for emphasis, almost like you could hear the ba-buh-duh ring out loud in a speaker near you. Were ramps up in Spring, prep for Easter and the masses that follow our community efforts, and then almost like clockwork, we shut everything down. I want to stop you wherever you are and tell you this one thing: don’t buy into the dread. Summer is the greatest opportunity your church has ever had.
- Most churches shutter during the summer (cause they bought the Summer dread hype)
- Small groups take extended breaks in the summer (we all need a break, right?)
- Families vacation in the summer … but they also have more availability in the summer (like me)
- This availability creates opportunity for new strategic plans for outreach (availability)
- Most families if given the choice would like to do things together if the opportunity presents itself
Here’s the dynamic you need to wrap your head around: While most churches are taking the Summer off, you can leverage the opportunity to reach all those people they are missing. Think about it: how many people move during the Summer versus during any other season? Yeah; like everyone moves in the Summer. They move so they can be settled before school starts. even if a local church has an offering during the Summer, it’s most likely either limited or lame. Sure, not all churches have lame offerings during the Summer, but they are limited and they don’t have the resources to pull off a major Summer calendar. You do, because you saved the capital for the times when competition is at a minimum and the people exposure is at a maximum.
“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” – Seneca
If you can beat the competition and attract the right audience, then you will win the Summer.
It really is as simple as that. No one else in your neighborhood is doing anything this Summer. Why should you take a break? You can seriously win this ???? while everyone else is sleeping. Need another reason to go hard during the summer, besides a more focused congregation and a growing Fall audience? It’s actually one of my favorite reasons: it’s cheaper to vacation during the Fall. So stay hard during Summer and vacation harder in the Fall. Your church and community will love you for it.