Creative Names - May 12th, 2008

The Blue Book of Building and Construction has ranked the top 20 most appropriately named portable toilet companies in the country including:

• Tanks A Lot (Texas)
• Doodie Calls (Louisiana)
• Johnny On The Sport (New Jersey)
• Drop Zone (Illinois)
• Loader-Up (Florida)
• Wizards of Ooze (Washington DC)
• UrinBiz (Michigan)
• Willy Make It? (Oregon)
• Gotta Go Potties (Pennsylvania)
• Happy Can Portable Toilets (Georgia)
• Ameri-Can Engineering (Indiana)
• Bobby’s Pottys (Maryland)

While it’s fun to read this list of names, it’s important to realize that people form an impression of you every time they hear or see your church name. Every church has a brand; every church has a vibe within its community. What does your community think of when they hear your name?

A recent trend is for churches to change their name, but the question is not as much about whether you should change the name of your church, but what is the vision and mission of the church and does your name accurately reflect who you are and where you are going?

The follow-up question is does your name inhibit your calling to reach your community for Christ?

Realize that a person’s subjective reality, even if confused, becomes his objective reality. It is nearly impossible to self evaluate how people see your church. You are too close to the action. You see your intentions; others only see your follow-through. To look at your church “on the outside” you need the help of an outside partner who can help you evaluate the impact your name has on accomplishing your mission.