How would you like your church to deal with a massive lawsuit over the security of children in your ministry? You’d hate it, right? Dumb questions? Not really.
Here’s a fact: we live in a dark world full of broken people who do sinful things, and those things are sometimes directed at children…even children in church.
Here’s another fact: we live in a litigation-happy-society full of people who sue people and organizations hoping to assign blame, punish for damages and monetarily compensate for damages. Churches are prime targets!
Here’s a third fact: many churches blissfully ignore these facts because they truly believe these kinds of things will never happen to them.
These facts are causing a trend in churches today: Church security is the fastest growing ministry!
Shootings, sex abuse, and kidnappings mandate this unfortunate trend, but no church can afford to neglect serious security procedures, policies, personnel and technology. Technology, really? Yes. One of the best technological innovations of the last 20 years is electronic child-check-in.
The technology has been available for quite some time, but churches have often been slow to adopt it to save money. But no amount spent on kid’s check-in software will ever surpass the cost of a lawsuit. Now is the time to get children’s check-in nailed down. Don’t wait.
Here’s how your church will benefit from children’s check-in software:
- Only the correct adult(s) will be able to pick up a child after church. Check-in systems require the adult picking up a child to present a tag or card that matches the number on the child’s tag. This prevents kids from being picked up by anyone who has is not authorized.
- Your church will appear savvy and relevant. Young Americans are tech savvy and they want to know their churches are too. This may seem shallow, but that doesn’t make it less true.
- Your church will show that security matters. Appearances matter because they make impressions. What impression in your current check-in process making? If you have solid check-in procedures in place, parents will know that security matters to your church and this will make them feel better about your kid’s ministry.
- Your church might start benefiting from a program you’re already paying for. Some church management software systems (ChMS or CMS for short) already include children’s check-in software, but many church leaders don’t realize this fact. Our church uses Churchteams for our ChMS and we love the kid’s check-in software. We love it because we pay a monthly fee for Churchteams and it includes every feature, including kid’s check-in, at no additional cost. We also love it because it’s so easy to use! Check out your ChMS and see if there’s a check-in component.
- Your church will be insulated from litigation. While no church will ever be immune to lawsuits, you can be insulated from them. Every layer of security is an extra layer lessening the likelihood that your church will be targeted for litigation.