Entertainer and Speaker: Ideas

“My mouth will speak words of wisdom; the meditation of my heart will give you understanding.” Psalm 49:3 NIV

If you are having an event (conference, retreat, training, workshop or even a camp) you will most likely need to find a speaker OR an entertainer – maybe many of them, depending on how long your event is. Here are a few tips for finding them:

** WHO WILL BE SPEAKING OR ENTERTAINING?

If you already know who your speaker or entertainment is… Tell your potential attendee ..this can be part of the “why” they should come.

If you do not already have your speaker or entertainer, but you know what topic or the type of entertainment you would like to have; then, talk to other church or community leaders to see if anyone knows of someone. You can also do an Internet search for speakers or entertainers.

** BUT WE CAN’T AFFORD A BIG NAME?

Do not overlook people in your own community, or extended community. Worship leaders, choirs, quartets, even pastors from nearby churches often can offer their services for little or no cost to you. Consider exchanging or trading services: for example, you may be able to exchange choirs for different events, or do a pastor exchange for one weekend. These can become win-win situations for both churches.

Don’t be afraid to try some different leaders for topical speakers. Church leaders (Sunday school teachers, deacons, maintenence, etc.), scout leaders, sports coaches, even teachers can be great topical speakers (especially if you have a Christian College nearby – college professors can be excellent topical speakers). Also consider local members of Rotary or Toastmasters organizations, OR professional associations that may deal with your topic.

Let the Spirit guide you to some of the God’s local leaders for some different insights into the way God works. He may have a special story He wants your group to hear.

God calls to us to listen to what He says and follow His way….

"This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.” (Isaiah 48:17)

Prayerfuly and specifically ask God to guide you to the best person or group for your event. Inspirational stories can come from all walks of life. God’s ways are beyond our understanding, so be sure to consider different sources - if God seems to place it in your mind. You may be the start of someones “new” (or different) walk with God.

** SPEAKER AND PARTICIPANT

In some events, the speaker will also be a participant in different parts of the event. This is especially true if your church is doing an event for other members of the church.

The best example I have comes one of the larger churches we used to belong to. They were starting a new satellite church which was to be held in a local theater. The leadership team wanted volunteers to receive basic training for every aspect of the new church. This way all of the volunteers could answer most of the questions they would receive and/or fill in if necessary.

Every leader (or their chosen team member) of the main church was sent in to help coordinate this training. I was sent to train the hospitality team – that was our greeters, ushers, information team and connection team. I had to teach everyone about the attitude and duties of these teams, but, also had to learn about all of the other teams and their responsibilities.

At first, training everyone on everything seemed like an impossible task, but when it was divided up into our smaller parts, it worked well. I was both a teacher and a participant in these training events. In this case, I was a leader of the “Welcome Team” and a participant for the other teams.

Another simpler example could be your Music team is providing the Worship Time at an event and then staying and listening to the speaker/ trainer.

No matter what kind of event you are having, Relying on God is the best way to have the best event possible! After all…

“Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’” (Matthew 19:26 NIV)