Issue 3 from Church Relevance’s monthly newsletter has now been posted.

It highlights 101 marketing tips for your church in 2006. Not every point may be for you at this moment, but you should be able to find one or two points that really inspire you. I encourage you to focus on at least two points to practice and near perfection in 2006. There are 101 to choose from. Perhaps a few bold readers will attempt all of them.

Read: Church Marketing 101

Imagine being able to change the decor of your church within a matter of seconds. Sounds farfetched, but it may be possible sooner than you think.

London’s Royal College of Art has created Chronos Chromos Concrete. It enables concrete surfaces to dynamically display patterns, numbers, and text. In simple terms, the concrete changes color when heated. In technical terms, it is the result of running an electric current through nickel chromium wires to heat concrete mixed with thermochromatic ink. Currently, they are able to change black, red, or gray concrete to white within five seconds.

What’s this mean to the church? Well, the technology is still very young, but as researchers perfect it, it will offer a whole new world of possibilities for your church’s facilities. It’s not just concrete either. Researchers are also pursuing the ability to create color-changing paint and fabric and liquid crystal display (LCDs) paint. It is not likely you will be using this technology anytime soon, but it is certainly something to keep in mind. In the future you could change your church at the touch of a button.

Special thanks to MIT Advertising Lab and Information Aesthetics for highlighting the color changing concrete.

I think History Church has latched onto a great concept. Ben Arment, the senior pastor, shared yesterday that they don’t simply create a monthly message series but also choose a corresponding worship song for the series. Without a doubt, it strengthens the delivery of the message series and leaves a more memorable imprint on the congregation’s minds.

Why shouldn’t every part of a church’s service focus on one central theme?

Willie George developed the concept of the central truth when he began ministering to children in the 70′s & 80′s. The concept of the central truth is that every segment of the service should keep in mind a basic spiritual principle. This concept certainly should not be limited to children’s ministry.

Adults can also benefit from the reinforcement of a central truth. Make the music the message and correspond a worship song with the sermon’s central truth.

More cool news from Dave Ferguson’s blog:

This past Easter weekend, Living Hope Church grew from 3,301 attending six services at one site to 7,446 attending fourteen services a six sites.

Let’s take a moment to honor an unsung hero of church tools: the power strip.

As ministries continue to utilize more and more electronics, power strips have developed a vital role in supporting tech growth. For this reason, church sound booths around the world will be pleased to know that Vanguard Industrial Design has created the modular power strip. Simply add a new module, whenever you reach a need for more outlets.

Special thanks to Yanko Design for highlighting the innovation.

Some may buy popcorn at movie theaters because of tradition, but many buy a buttery tub of movie theater popcorn because they can’t resist the smell. Smell is a very powerful thing.

Citrus awakes. Peppermint stimulates the mind.

Within the past decade, retailers and entertainers have begun to take the power of smell to whole new levels. Last week, USA Today reported that a theater in Japan will synchronize seven different smells to parts of a movie to enhance the experience. The company making it happen is NTT Communication Corp. They have created scents designed to trigger specific emotions, including joy and anger.

Influx Insights adds to this topic by mentioning the work of ScentAir. ScentAir enhances the consumer experience for over 1,000 clients. Their arsenal of over 1,500 smells creates the lush scent of Rainforest for Indianapolis’ Children’s Museum and  coconut for the swimsuit department at Bloomingdale’s.

I look forward to when churches discover the potential of scents. Imagine a children’s ministry classroom that smells like its themed decor. Imagine enhancing your sermon not with a visual illustration but a smell. If you have already done so, we would love to hear about it.

According to today’s Barna Update:

72% of Americans “claim they have made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ that is important in their life today.”

50% (roughly) of “America’s adult population attends religious services during a typical week.”

Less than 20% of American “adults firmly believe that a congregational church is a critical element in their spiritual growth.”

To learn more, read the entire Barna Update.

After seventy years, the Gallup Polls have changed and now report that high school students are more likely to attend church than their parents.

In addition, 70% of America’s college students consider religion to be either “somewhat” or “very” important in their lives.

These highlights are courtesy of The Church Report.