I drove past this sign the other day on a sidewalk beside a busy street in the middle of a weekday afternoon.
There was a small group of people gathered waiting.
(About half this many people and there did not appear to be food.)
Really? Who is the target audience?
Would you stop?
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Probably depends on whether I was walking or driving by. Curiosity may have kicked in if I was on foot.
This is the sort of thing the introvert in me would cross the street to avoid.
Yeah, if I was walking by I might stop. If nothing happened in a while though, I probably would leave. Was this a church, by any chance?
Well, there was a church van parked around the corner.
My first instinct would be to run.
I wonder why it feels like bait rather than an invitation.
Maybe it’s just me (and you).
the whole marketing monster turns my stomach these days..
I found a tract that looked like a $20 in front of the ATM at my bank a few days ago..
Really? Is Jesus doing that bad that he needs to resort to deception to get people to hear his message?
I think I would just drive on by and laugh, maybe shout something out the window.. or not .. but definitely laugh and then feel sad that they think they are doing God’s work.. Maybe some of them are. IDk
Shaun, I wonder if it was deception in this case. Is it really a free party? I tried to imagine what it would be like to stop. As the outsider walking into this small group of people, what would the party be like? Would they entertain me? Would I have fun?
Personally, I find tracts in general to be the worst and most offensive “method” of evangelism ever devised. As a non-Christian, allow me to explain my perspective on that particular subject. (I’ll comment on the party in a different comment.)
Okay, a Christian believes that I desperately need Jesus in my life. They believe that this is the most important decision I will ever make in my life, with life- (and afterlife-)altering implications. So they want to make sure I give this decision careful consideration.
So they drop a few tracts in a public restroom and hope I just happen to wander in and pick one up? Or they hand me a tract on the sidewalk and scurry away to the next person as quick as possible? Gee, thanks being so concerned that you invested all that effort into helping me make the right decision.
Seriously, it doesn’t seem to send the whole “this is an important decision and we care about what choice you make” message they tend to pay lip service to.
So Jarred, are you saying that you expect a Christian to actually care about you enough to want to know you and be involved in your life?
Interesting concept. :)
Interesting. It seems almost radical to a lot of people, I find. ;)
It just made me realize again how suspicious I’ve become of marketing schemes in general – offering a fantastic deal just to lure me in and make me pay the big bucks later!
If it was supposed to be some kind of evangelistic outreach, the absence of food and music would turn me off immediately. Offer a PARTY, period! Nothing wrong with that. If anyone wants to get into deeper conversations, let THEM take the initiative! Don’t ever betray the gospel by making it a sales pitch!
Yes, the absence of food, music, games, etc. made it seem like an awkward situation to walk into. I wonder what the strategy was for engaging those who might stop.
What I find ironic is that even in “outreach,” there is an expectation of others to come to us on our turf. Really?
It is probably due to the general content of this blog, but I find it funny that we automatically assume this could likely have been a church thing.
I live in a college and university town. I immediately thought it sounded like something a house of 5-10 university students would have done just for fun some afternoon. Who knows…other students stop by and ask where the beer is and maybe someone offers to go grab some. Someone else eventually comes and orders pizza. It could end up being a real student party started by only an invitation to come. I’ve seen stranger things done by university students here. (One mid-afternoon driving past a couch set up right beside the road holding four twentysomething guys, each with a beer in their hand, and a sign that said “honk and we’ll drink” comes to mind.)
Jon, I asked my college-age daughter about whether she would stop at an invitation like this. Her response was similar to what you describe, if it were college-age kids, if it were in the evening, if there were a lot of people around, etc… This was definitely not that.
heck, if they did have free beer & pizza or setup a BBQ with hamburgers & hotdogs i would have stopped by to be proselytized. i am an equal opportunist by nature. i would have asked the standard questions & maybe even ratcheted it up a notch to get to the real nitty-gritty of the theology behind such a marketing ploy.
on the other hand, if it was simply a college/frat/party thing, i would think it would have been quickly obvious if i wandered up to the group & asked what was going on. and being the older guy there they would have let me know just what was going on.
my curiosity not so great as to change course or stop for the offer of a free party. cold-call free parties are not my thing since it is to gather with people i actually know (& like) to share food+libations that is the enjoyment factor for me. however, if i were a finanically challenged college student the attraction would be far greater…
Interesting Joseph, especially the comment about cold-call free parties versus gathering with people we know.
On a weekday afternoon, if I’m out and about, I’m either headed back to work or am on an errand. Either way, I wouldn’t have time to stop at a party, free or otherwise. I’d also find myself wondering who has a party in the middle of the afternoon on what is a work day for most people.
The problem with these types of marketing schemes is that they are not congruent with our personalities. The people who do them, are not particularly party people, they have just read about some technique and are reproducing it in their particular venue. It comes across as artificial. True party types just have a party following them all the time. They’re the ones who have to turn off their phones in the evening, lock the doors, and pull the shades. People hunt them down because they are fun to hang with and so personal time is at a premium. Now on the other hand, I’ve lots of time to read blogs, my phone is on and the doors are open.
That’s probably true David because these people weren’t actually already having a party, instead they were advertising a party but waiting for participants.
There appears to be no party.
The people appear to be conspiring in a lie.
Recently Mrs and I, with the help of friends ‘adopted’ a couple of the poorest blocks in our town. we conspired to bring expressions of love to the people there.
In October, we bought 20 fresh loaves of Italian Bread, knocked on doors and said words tot the effect of, ” Hi, we brought you a gift. We know it isn’t much, but we want you to know someone cares.” Each loaf was tagged “You are not forgotten. God knows your name.” No preach. No church name.
People were cautious, and many were obviously wondering what the ‘catch’ was.
In November, on thanksgiving day we took about 40 loves of homemade pumpkin bread to the same homes, and about 20 more. People we warmer, and some volunteered their names. Many still looked puzzled. One man invited us in for a few minutes.
Mrs and several donors bought beautiful, good quality scarves for the moms. ( A local charity ensures all of the children in our town get gifts). They wrapped these gifts nicely, and we packaged up 50 bags of potatoes, onions and carrots.
The people this time were very open. Many invited us in, and shared their stories. You should have seen their faces. the ladies smiled politely about the food, but when asked their favorite color and given a gift wrapped box…they were delighted. One went running to get her friend (“SHE’s a Mom, TOO!”). After we went to the next house our driver watched them modeling their new scarves to one another, saying, “look at me. I’m beautiful!!!”
One guy asked if he could ‘come to church’ with us.
The fellow that invited us in at Thanksgiving did so again. He shared that on Thanksgiving Day he had injured his knee, and couldn’t sleep well at night all month. We prayed for him. He said the pain was completely gone.
Marketing Shmarketing.
Love people. Let Jesus love them through you.
He is irresitable!
Let His kingdom come, and His will be done, in your neighborhood as it is in heaven!
I’d stop…for sure.