Snarky Sermon on the Blog: The Minneapolis Bridge Collapse From A Church Marketing Perspective

Of course, the first thing we all thought of --after hearing news of the bridge collapse in Minneapolis-- was how to use the tragedy for free publicity and potential monetary gain... NOT.

But some people did.

I-35W Bridge Collapse: A Church Marketing Perspective
(Filed under: The Christian Walk)

You've surely heard by now, that the I-35W bridge over the Mississippi River in Minneapolis collapsed yesterday, killing at least four, injuring 79 and at least eight more are still missing. I live in the Twin Cities and while I don't normally take that bridge I did drive over it with my daughter the day before it collapsed. It's kind of surreal here and I'm having trouble tearing myself from the coverage (I've blogged about it here, here and here already).

I know church marketing and tragedy don't fit well together, but the reality is that churches still need to communicate--especially in times of tragedy. I feel a bit like a broken record trying to talk about churches communicating during tragedy (Virginia Tech, Katrina, Tsunami), but the need is still there and it often happens best through action, either by offering cold water ("We're out here because we think that's what Jesus would do.") or taking part in a prayer walk (Facebook login required) or whatever works. It's that simple.

And the single reader comment confirms the importance of such a "marketing strategy":

I was wondering how this was affecting you there, Kevin.

Great reminder. In fact, the best instance I saw of this was the day after the Vir(ginia) Tech shooting. Very near the beginning of the NBC News broadcast, Brian Williams interviewed a local Baptist pastor. Now this guy looked like your normal southern Baptist preacher. I cringed and waited.

I'll tell ya...he nailed it. He oozed the love and compassion of Christ. He had been part of telling the families of the victims and all he did was communicated grace and love.

One of those few times in my life I was proud to be associated with the church in America...

Thus endeth today's sermon.

Go forth today and consider why these guys believe that God needs a marketing strategy.

Just think about it.

I mean it, damn it!


Best bar bet in the world: Delilah didn't do it.
Judges 16:19-- And she made him (Samson) sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and she caused him to shave off the seven locks of his head.