Announcements

Rev. Joshua Patty

Regional Minister and President

Ever feel that announcements take too much time in worship?

Announcements can be a challenge. There are lots of people gathered for worship -- and we want to communicate upcoming events and important information to a large gathering of our congregation. If worship leaders are not careful, though, this can be a missed opportunity -- especially if our communication is too long and too unfocused.

Here's a short essay about how to focus announcement time in worship. It has helpful reminders, including that some information may be better shared in other ways outside of worship.

As a congregational pastor, I tried to limit announcements in worship to just three concise items each week, believing that more would probably just be forgotten (and likely make people restless). At worship services, we also offered information on more things on a scroll of information slides on the screen and detailed calendar and activity information in bulletins.

Plus, we found ways to share some of this information at other points in the service. Funeral arrangements were shared separate from announcements, usually as part of the welcome. Past activities with lots of volunteers to recognize, were celebrated before the offering.

I think worship leaders will benefit from considering how announcements are handled in services. More attention, even to the point of explicit scripting, can make the shared information more memorable and less like distracting commercials that interrupt worship.