Referring Church Shoppers

We often get calls- I'd say several a month- asking if our church has a certain children's program or uses a certain version of the Scriptures.  Most of these calls are sincere- they're not looking to pick a fight and are genuinely seeking a church that has what they are looking for.

Nothing wrong with that at all.

And so I have two possible responses with these callers- I can simply say 'no' and then end the call.  Or, I can say no and then refer the caller to churches that do offer the specific program or use the certain version of the Scriptures.

I most always choose to refer the caller to churches I know who offer what they are looking for.  The caller is almost always pleasantly surprised and thankful for the referral.

In churches, and is in almost any other place in life, there's a tendency to get territorial and competitive.  And there have been times in the past when I have felt territorial or competitive so I had a different response to those calls.  I would either try to a) convince the caller that what we offered as a church was as good if not superior to what they were looking for or b) argue with the caller (especially with the caller looking for a certain version of the Scriptures).

Both responses were non-productive to say the least.  While trying to sell your stuff or picking a theological fight may make one feel good in the short term, the best long term strategy is to simply be helpful.