Got Rules?

I hate rules. I hate them more now than any time in my life. Which of course can be a challenge when raising a teenager, living as a responsible citizen or pastoring a church. Still, I hate rules. Most rules, that is. Rules that ostracize. Rules that alienate. Rules that create outsiders to the club, to the business or to the church. I hate those rules.

In fact, most of us hate those rules. And we know an "offing" rule when we see one. We interpret rules as rules even when the organization or person doesn't call it a "rule". When we hear policy from a company, we think rules. When we read the fine print on a contract, we think rules. When we hear repeated expectations from a spouse,

 

boss or a peer, we hear rules.

Generally speaking again, rules seem to repel us. We feel confined, closed in, limited. Now, don't go theological on me just yet. I'm not suggesting that rules don't have their place. Fact is, many rules serve a good purpose.

For instance, in the medical field there are red rules and blue rules.

• Red rules can't be broken. Rules like: "Nothing is to be administered to a patient without first consulting the patient's chart." Now, you can break the rule - but at the risk of the life of the patient and/or the employee's job. Red rules. Can't break 'em.
• Blue rules are in place to assist in a smooth operation. Rules like: "The shift schedule is to be placed on the bulletin board at the nurses' station, left of the visitor check-in chart." No one's going to die or lose their job if this rule gets broken, but it'll create a little frustration for people. Blue rule. There's a reason for it, but it can be bent... even broken.

Here's the challenge. Every church has rules.

• No running in the halls.
• No drinks or food in the auditorium.
• We call the big room where we meet for services, the sanctuary, not the auditorium.
• No jeans in the service.
• We always use the KJV in the public reading of the Bible.
• No parking at the curbside.
• No use of the center auditorium - er, sanctuary doors after the service prelude.

Here's the question: Do your people, do your guest services teams know which rules are red and which rules are blue?

• What's at stake if a child runs with sheer delight toward the 4-year-old room?
• What happens if a guest takes a cup of coffee into the service?
• Is it okay to use a phrase like auditorium that everyone is familiar with?
• Do guests know they can wear whatever is comfortable to your church? Can they?

You get the point. Now, here's the deal. You may have some expectations in place for very good reasons - but if there's confusion about which rules are red and which rules are blue, your people will likely "enforce" the rules as red. And when they do, your guests - new people and members alike - will bristle.

They hate rules, too.

Review your expectations - for everything - with your teams, with your staff, with your board.

• What's red? What will risk life?
   
• What's blue? What makes things more efficient... but really doesn't risk life or the honor of God?

Then communicate what really matters and focus on loving people, not the loopholes we want them to jump through to be one of us.

For more on this topic see chapter 10 of First Impressions: Creating Wow Experiences in Your Church.