Truth in Advertising
By Danny Carlisle
Chickasha, OK

(great post by Danny)

We had seen posters, fliers, advertisements, etc all around town for the circus that was coming. We planned to take our daughter and her friend last night...so we loaded them up, went out to eat first, then headed to the circus. Oh what a surprise it was! And not a good surprise either!!

We pulled up to the fairgrounds only to find a guy standing next to a pickup directing traffic around the fairgrounds and telling us to follow the signs to where the circus was now being held. We went round and round until we finally got there...only to pull up and see what was being billed as a circus. The had a moon bounce, one clown, a trampoline, and a ring the size of my living room. They let the kids in free...but it cost $8 each for me and my wife to get in. They should have given me $8 to have to sit through that joke of a circus. I am almost sure the ringmaster was drunk! He had a bit of trouble walking and talking. They had two guys that did everything. They'd go behind the curtain and put on a new mask then come back out with a new name and do another trick or two. The best part was the 3 little dogs that did a couple of tricks.

I sat there and wondered about how they could knowingly advertise to be one thing...only to be something completely different. Then it hit me that I know of MANY churches who do the exact same thing. They say they're accepting, loving, growing, vibrant, etc, etc, etc...only to find out that they are none of those things unless you fit their mold of what a Christian should be. Why can't we just say what we are? Wouldn't it make everything easier if we just labeled ourselves according to what we are? People would know what to expect and we would attract people that are looking for that type of experience/environment.

Figure out what you are...and slap that label on yourselves. It's going to be much better for you than having people show up expecting one thing...