Tag: Mom

Hey Church – What Moms Really Want for Mother’s Day

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Did you know after Christmas and Easter, Mother’s Day is the third-highest attended Sunday at your church? A lot of moms (whether they regularly attend church or not) will have no shame in asking their family to attend church with them for their special day. And they should because it’s a day dedicated solely to mothers.

So, here’s what that means: you’re not only going to see a lot of moms visit, but you’re likely to see the people that matter most to them as well. With that in mind, plan your services knowing that just like Easter and Christmas, you will have people visiting that aren’t connected to a church community and may not be connected to any faith whatsoever.

Know What Matters Most. Getting their families to church is only part of what moms really want. What they really hope and pray for is that their loved ones will be impacted enough to come back again. Moms care about their loved ones being connected to a church and hopefully to a faith. Make sure you have a plan to connect with and follow-up with these new faces. By doing so, you’ll honor the moms in attendance with their kids and other loved ones.

Be Hospitable. Mother’s Day may be the only time all year that some people accept an invitation to attend church (because again…moms have no shame in playing the mom Mothers Day 1 (2019)card). There are so many ways you can connect with these people and make a great first impression. You probably have some of these ways figured out already, but if not, we’ve given you some ideas here.

Be Sensitive. There will be all kinds of moms visiting your church this Mother’s Day. This means that mothers who have recently lost a child, moms that are estranged from their kids, foster moms, hopeful moms that struggle with infertility, anxious moms waiting for the adoption papers to go through, stepmoms doing their best to connect with their bonus kids, and so many more. Be sensitive to all of these situations and provide encouragement to them as well.

Whatever your church plans this year for Mother’s Day, just remember that focusing on what moms really want is the most important thing. Showing that you care about the people that they care about is key. A mother’s work is never done, especially when caring for those around her, but the church can provide a significant and practical way to help.

3 Ways to Honor the Whole Family this Mother’s Day

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Mother’s Day is one of the most highly attended holidays, coming in third behind Easter and Christmas. Why is it such a popular holiday to attend church? One probable reason lightstock_340788_full_kateis many moms tell their family all they want for Mother’s Day is to have everyone attend worship together. Another is it’s a simple, yet meaningful way to honor mom. Although most churches do a great job of honoring moms on this holiday, they fail to make the whole family feel welcome. Fortunately, you can honor moms while also honoring the rest of their family.

Be Inclusive

No matter how you choose to incorporate Mother’s Day into your Sunday service, remember to honor moms in all stages of life. Some women are trying, and perhaps struggling, to have a child. New moms may be struggling with all the changes and adjustments that occur as a new parent, some of which can be especially hard such as post-partum depression. Others may have lost a child. There are stepmothers and adoptive mothers. Others have young children or teenagers, while some are empty nesters. Some women have healthy children while others have a child with an illness or disability. By honoring all types of mothers, you’re honoring each family and the many different blessings and challenges they face.

Honor the Kids

Mother’s Day is a day to celebrate mothers, but keep in mind that not everyone in attendance is a mother. You may also have adult children who have lost their mother or lightstock_325774_full_katehave a strained relationship with her. Some of your attendees may now be their mother’s primary caregiver due to an illness or disability. Adopted children may long to know their biological mother.

Be just as inclusive when talking about children as you are when talking about mothers. Acknowledge their struggles and hardships. Honor their losses and grief. Being a mother isn’t always easy, and neither is being a child. These relationships are complicated, so recognize that. In doing so, you’ll make everyone in attendance feel welcomed and accepted in your congregation, which may make them feel more comfortable returning for worship on non-holidays.

Share & Connect

Honoring mothers and their children is important, but you also need to find ways to connect with them on a personal level. There are several ways to share and connect:

Increase the number of people serving on Mother’s Day. This is a highly attended service and we read often in our Mystery Guest Reports how guests are ignored because the church is so much busier than they are accustomed to being. lightstock_169732_medium_kate

Prepare your volunteers. Coach your first impression teams in the parking lot, at the door, and anywhere else to be cheerful yet sensitive to all your guests on this day.

Include personal testimonies. Consider asking in advance if a few mothers (or their children) would like to share their experiences and journey in faith with everyone. This could be done by video or live.

Give them something to come to. Plan a future family-friendly event they can participate in, like a spring festival or fair. The mothers in the congregation can pull the “mom card” one more time and ask the family to come.

Don’t forget to follow up with mothers and their families in the days and weeks to come. Ensure they know they’re welcome back and suggest programs or events that might interest them. For example, new parents may be interested in bringing their children to Sunday school, so they can enjoy fellowship with other parents.

Honor moms this Mother’s Day, but don’t forget to honor all moms—and their kids—by providing them support and making them feel welcome and accepted year-round. If you aren’t sure how effective the services you provide mothers and their families are, consider our mystery guest program. Through this program, we send mystery guests into your church to provide unbiased feedback on a broad spectrum of services, from parking lot volunteers to Sunday school. You can then use this feedback to improve and better serve your community. Contact us today to get started.

6 Ways a Church Can Really Honor Moms on Mother’s Day

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After Christmas and Easter, Mother’s Day is the third highest attended Sunday of the year. Not only will you see lots of moms on Mother’s Day, you’ll also see the people they care about…the ones who don’t usually come any other time of the year.

Moms have no shame in playing the “All I want for Mother’s Day is for my family to come to church with me” card. And since moms work really hard all year, often without any thanks, and don’t get paid for their mom duties, that card usually works.

While you may have already planned what you are going to do this weekend to honor moms, here are six things that you should be thinking about:

  1. Know What Matters Most. Moms know that getting their family to come to church this Sunday is only one part of their plan. Inside, they are praying and hoping that aside from being acknowledged and appreciated, something even more important will happen – something meaningful that will influence those they care about to come back again. Plan your services knowing that just like Easter and Christmas, you will have people visiting that aren’t connected to a church community and may not be connected to any faith whatsoever. If you really want to honor moms, make it a point to also connect with the people they care about.Picture1
  2. Remember Moms. This is probably obvious, but I’ve actually attended a service on Mother’s Day where moms were barely even acknowledged. Moms get that they aren’t going to be the main attraction (and shouldn’t be), but it is nice when they are at least remembered on a day that’s supposed to be dedicated to them. Take time to sincerely thank and encourage mothers, including those women who have been “spiritual mothers” to others.
  3. Encourage Other Mothers. At one church service I attended, the pastor invited three women in different stages of motherhood to join him at the front of the church for a short interview. One mother had preschool aged children, one had teenaged children, and one was an empty-nester. Even though this was a very short portion of the service, it was significant and gave them an opportunity to encourage other moms. Testimonials are powerful and who better to encourage a mom than another mom?
  4. Make them Laugh. Even on Mother’s Day, moms don’t get a break from the daily routine of getting kids ready and getting everyone out the door. Why not start your service out with a funny video like this that will make them laugh and acknowledges the everyday challenges of being a mom.lightstock_90290_full_kate
  5. Be Sensitive. Remember that there will be mothers of all kinds attending your service on Mother’s Day. This includes those moms who may have lost a child (or a child who lost their mom), those that are estranged from their kids, foster moms, those who struggle with infertility, or those waiting on the adoption papers to come through, stepmothers, etc. You’ll want to be sensitive to those situations and provide encouragement to them as well.
  6. Be Hospitable. For some, this is the only invitation to church they will agree to all year. There are a plethora of ideas and ways you can connect and make a positive first impression with people, and we’ve already written about them here.

Whatever your church decides to do for Mother’s Day, honoring moms should be a focus. A key way to do that is by not just remembering them, but by reaching out to those they have brought with them. How is your church honoring moms this Mother’s Day?

 

 

About Faith Perceptions
Faith Perceptions is a market research firm that provides churches and faith-based organizations with research about church visitors. We send unchurched people into churches across the country each week to report back to us on what their experiences are like. We use this information to help churches improve the way they welcome and connect with guests. Faith Perceptions has been helping churches gain an outside perspective of their church since 2008.