Building Momentum, "Pulpit Announcements"

I have been to a lot of different church services lately. Have seen and experienced lots of great hospitality. Seen a lot of the same things I used to struggle with though too in the pastorate: like balancing all that sometimes needs to get included in a particular service. On my first Sunday in one of the churches I served, I received 13 different requests for special, pulpit announcements at the last minute that included virtually everything, including the kitchen sink. That can really kill the momentum of a service. I have found that a pulpit announcement is sometimes a poor substitute for inviting someone personally to your event. I tried to teach my folk all the many ways that they can create momentum and interest in their event or program. Ministry is, at the heart, relationship building, and not program promoting. Announcing something from the pulpit was very strategic though when trying to mobilize the whole church behind a key initiative supporting the overall vision of the church. Our attention spans are only so long, 22 seconds the last time I checked. We already speak “at” them in our preaching. Maybe one more moment at the max, but much more than that can kill the Spirit’s movement and flow in the service. Reading all the prayer requests and then praying all the prayer requests can be more than enough sometimes too. Town and rural churches, though, seem to love that, however sometimes our practice inadvertently keeps us small. There are creative ways to incorporate it all. Found anything that worked effectively for you?