Father’s Day is coming up, and there’s never been a better time for your church to celebrate the dads in your midst. Because God is a good father to us and created fatherhood, we should recognize and esteem the extraordinary things fathers do every day. Hardworking dads don’t hear “thank you” nearly enough. Your church can make sure fathers feel appreciated by hyping up Father’s Day this year. Whether you have a big budget or a small one, there’s undoubtedly something on this list you can do. Which one do you think will make the dads at your church feel most applauded?
1. Give Dads a Gift
Sometimes a simple gift says more than words can. Extend your gratitude to the fathers in your church by handing out a small gift like a coffee mug. If your congregation includes business owners, ask if they will donate small items, or use the church budget to support a local business by purchasing gifts from someone in your own community!
2. Gift a Free T-Shirt
Dads love to rep their favorite brands or sports teams, so why not give them a T-shirt to celebrate? You can keep it simple by giving out a basic Father’s Day shirt or a shirt with your church colors and logo. If you’re connected with a graphic designer or illustrator, you could even commission them to design a shirt that looks super cool so the dads receiving it won’t ever want to take it off! You can gather a few dads to wear the shirt for a group photo, which could make an excellent Father’s Day appreciation post for your social media pages. Announce a Father’s Day hashtag, so the rest of the fathers in your group can post their photos with your hashtag.
3. Provide a Free Breakfast for Dads
Nobody can turn down a free meal, especially when it’s filled with all the best breakfast foods. Find a few people in your church who are known for their amazing cooking, or have some of the best food around catered. You can mail a postcard the week prior or send out an email invitation for fathers to enjoy an epic breakfast before the service. If an early start time interferes with other plans, consider hosting a Father’s Day BBQ after church!
4. Give Out Father’s Day Treats
When providing a whole meal isn’t realistic, think about having delicious treats that are just for fathers. These could be homemade baked goods or even special Father’s Day cookies from a nearby bakery. If they’re home-baked, you can display them on a table for fathers to select as they leave. Or if they’re packaged or wrapped, volunteers can hand them out to fathers as they come in.
5. Do a Raffle Giveaway
Even a limited budget doesn’t have to mean you do nothing. Invest all the Father’s Day money into one big prize, and then hype it up. On Father’s Day, anyone who’s a dad can enter the raffle, and one lucky guy will win! You could give away a car detailing package, a grill set, a gift basket with the local sports team’s merch, or gift cards for a dinner and movie. Get creative! What’s an epic gift that will make your winner feel like they hit the jackpot?
6. Offer Root Beer Floats
A classic root beer float never gets old. After the church service, invite the dads to join you in the foyer or parking lot for a sweet treat that will brighten their day. If you have the budget for it, you can even give the floats out in mugs that the men can take home. Use one of the traditional national brands of root beer like A&W, or find a locally made craft root beer that will give your dads a treat to remember!
7. Get the Kids’ Ministry Involved
Father’s Day wouldn’t be the same without children! Every father’s origin story starts with their own kids. So why not include kids in the celebration? Task the children’s ministry with writing colorful cards every dad will enjoy. If you have time, you could also put together a small children’s program, choir performance, drama, skit, or video made by the kids to say “thank you!” Including them in your service will make the children feel special and bring a big smile to their parents’ faces!
8. Stage a Family Event on Father’s Day
Family fun is a great way to celebrate the dads in your church and engage with other families from your community. Host a Father’s Day outreach event by renting big inflatables and setting up memorable yard games or carnival games for the whole family. To spice it up, you could even include a dunk tank where kids dunk their dads or dads dunk their kids. An inflatable obstacle course and a tally of the fastest teams can introduce a little competitive fun to the day. Or rent a jousting ring and host the ultimate tournament of the year! Whatever you do, it’s sure to be family fun that your entire congregation will be talking about for weeks!
9. Plan a Church-Wide Game Day
A game day is easy to set up and provides hours of fun for the whole family. You can feature games like kickball, softball, soccer, flag football, frisbee, and more. If your church owns property, you can host your own field day on-site. But even if you don’t have a place to play, many churches rent out pavilions or athletic fields on game lands, nature preserves, schools, or local parks to get their games on. Just be sure there’s enough space for multiple games to be played at once. Encourage attendees to bring picnic blankets and lawn chairs. Game day is a great time for fellowship!
10. Hold a Guy-Centric Event
To celebrate the dads in your midst, think about putting together an event they will want to invite their friends to. What’s better than a guy-centric event like a car show? Most churches have large parking lots that would make this incredibly feasible and a lot of fun. Other events could include ax throwing, Nerf wars, escape rooms, golf, go-kart, laser tag, or a men’s campout. In addition to including the dads who regularly come to church—and even those who don’t attend as frequently—this is a great opportunity for them to invite their friends too!
11. Host a Food Truck Sunday
Contact a few of your favorite food trucks from your area to set up shop in your parking lot for a feast worth telling the entire community about! This is a no-hassle event to host after church on a Sunday. Your congregants can go straight to the parking lot and enjoy meaningful fellowship with others from your church as well as those in your community—all while trying delicious food!
12. Rent a Father’s Day Photo Booth
Everyone wants a picture with their dad, and you can make this happen! Rent a photo booth and watch the fun begin. You can have this at your big event or just offer it after church. Set up a bulletin board nearby so families can pin a copy of their picture on a Father’s Day collage you can display. To make it even more meaningful, include a chalkboard or display nearby where kids can write down what they appreciate about their dad!
13. Initiate a Service Project
When you perform a service project, your dads have the opportunity to come alongside and help another dad. Select a few people who need help with yardwork or a handyman and watch your dads get to work. To provide a powerful discipleship opportunity, consider making it a father-son work day. Start the day with a brief devotional or prayer before dispersing to work on projects. Make sure you have a designated photographer on hand to capture the hard work!
14. Host a Movie Night
Hosting a fun movie night is effortless when you already have a sanctuary full of chairs and a big screen. Pop a bunch of popcorn and show a movie like “Courageous,” which focuses on fatherhood from a Christian perspective. If that’s not your vibe, show your favorite action or adventure movie you think the dads in your midst will enjoy. Design some postcards or flyers for the event so people can invite their friends and neighbors!
15. Fill Their Cup with Java
Dads really love their coffee. If they’re getting up early to come to church, then a great way to treat them is by giving them a hot cup of coffee “on the house.” Make it even more delectable by hiring a couple of baristas from your congregation to mix coffee drinks you can’t get on a normal Sunday.
Brainstorm Your Own Ideas
Fathers do so much for their families. They are worth celebrating and honoring. So pick one or two ideas from this list or brainstorm to develop your own events, and make this celebration one to remember. This Father’s Day, your church can express its gratitude and engage with dads throughout the community using these simple ideas. It doesn’t take a huge budget or extensive logistics to pull off something meaningful. A small gift, sincere gesture, or memorable event shows the fathers in your community they are truly loved!
Comments 1
God bless you