HowTo: Avoid Distractions in Church
I remember a few months ago being in a church service and running the “sound board”. The layout of the chapel was such that the sound board was next to the stage, instead of in the rear of the chapel (that has now been remedied … kudos to that church). But it gave me a unique perspective of the crowd (aka – “congregation” to the Baptists out there).
What I noticed was that we humans, at any church, have a very low tolerance for distractions. Children tugging at our clothes, fighting with siblings, and needing that oh-so-necessary pen and paper from mom’s purse so they can draw while the preacher “preaches” … all these things hinder your ability to pay attention.
And the frustrating thing is … you gathered to worship … not babysit!!!
I remember visiting SpringWell Church a few weeks ago. Their auditorium is set up in a gymnasium with 3 sections of seating (left, middle, right) with aisles between the center section and the other two. The problem was this … the doors were located at the end of the aisles. Every time the door opened, a flood of sunlight would enter the (by this time) dark auditorium. Naturally, people get distracted at this (I can imagine the pastor does as well).
The challenge is remedying these distractions.
At my church, they don’t allow children in the services (under 12). I got a clear demonstration of how distracting young children can be when a boy (obviously under 12 … not sure if the mom lied, or if he got in under the radar) had a full volume conversation with his mother during the message. Everyone in the area was looking at the kid.
But keeping children out of the service has been a GREAT idea for NewSpring. It allows them to learn on their level, and it allows us to worship and pay attention without distractions.
For the problem at SpringWell, where the light from the doors lit up the auditorium … the easiest thing to do would be use “pipe drapes”. Basically, they’d be a propped up structure that would hang some heavy black drapes. Put it about 5-8 feet in front of each entrance (inside the auditorium). Yes, people would have to walk around them to get to the seats, but it would block most of the light. (if you can’t imagine it, there’s plenty of room and pipe-drapes would work in their case). If you think pipe-drapes are tacky, have someone in the church build a more professional wood structure to do the same thing.
So how does a church with unique problems solve them? Well, you have to have a plan. I’d suggest something like this:
- Describe the problem … get on paper!
- Form a team (even if it’s only 2-3 people)
- Explain the problem with them
- Ask for suggestions for solutions
- Brainstorm with all the suggestions in mind
- Make it happen!!!
Yes, sometimes there’s just too much at stake to do anything about it. You know your church better than I do, so make sure there is a NET benefit in eliminating the distraction.
Bottom line … distractions KILL good services … and could get in the way of important things happening. If you’re a leader in your church, you need to be able to solve those problems efficiently. Who knows what it could accomplish?
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What to do with kids is a big question. Some have separate church for kids. Other’s keep kids in for part of the service, and send them to kids church for part. Other’s keep them in the whole time.
I don’t like option one very much because I believe there is something very valuable in families worshiping together. I don’t like option 3 for the reasons you stated in your post.
Right now we keep the kids in for the music portion of our worship service. The kids like to dance and sing along and our music is fairly energetic and loud so the distractions are minimal. During the sermon the kids leave the room and have their own lesson while the adults stay for the preaching.
It works for us right now.
I agree that distractions should be minimized, but the other side of the coin is that children have a way of forcing us adults to not be so pretentious in a worship service. Jesus said a few things about coming to Him as a child.
Finding the balance there is the tricky part. I’m sure a couple years from now we will be doing something totally different because the size of the church determines a lot with these things.
Ben,
You’re definitely right. Figuring out what to do with the kids is a big problem.
I heard Perry say something like this concerning the “worship as a family” thing. If your kids need to see you worship on Sunday in order to be convinced you’re sold out for Jesus, THAT’S your problem. Seeing you raise your hands on Sunday is just going to convince them that you are a hypocrite. Let them see you worship during the week, and you’re set.
I’m not saying that’s what happens at your church or anything though. It’s just a good little insight.
That’s freaking AWESOME that the kids enjoy the music at your church! I really like the balance you guys have. I really need to get up there and visit sometime.
Yeah, it’s something we constantly evaluate. At my previous church where I was before I started pastoring we were having to move to a different model where kids our in their own service the whole time.
The reason was that the church had grown with so many children that it became a distraction not only to the adults but among the kids as well. I think the key to most issues like this is being willing to constantly evaluate what you are doing because what worked last year may no longer be working. Churches should be organisms that grow and change.