Church announcements: 27 examples to copy, and how to write your own

A good church announcement answers four questions in two or three sentences: what is happening, when, where, and what the listener should do next. Copy any of the examples below and change the names, dates and rooms to your own. Each kind of announcement also shows where it will be seen, on the screen, in a text or on the printed bulletin.

The four parts

Part	Example
What	”Our fall church dinner”
When	”is Sunday, November 8, right after the morning service”
Where	”in the fellowship hall”
What to do next	”Bring a side dish to share, and sign up on the sheet in the foyer.”

Say the day and the date together, because “next Sunday” means two different days to people who read it on Friday and on Monday. For a sign-up, name one way to respond, such as one sheet or one person to ask. A weekly meeting needs only its day and time, and a prayer request may have no place or next step to give.

Welcome

For	Announcement
Opening welcome	”Good morning, and welcome to Grace Baptist Church. If you are visiting, we are glad you came. There is a card in the pew in front of you, and if you fill it out and drop it in the offering plate, we will send you a note this week.”
After the service	”After the service, the pastors will be at the front doors. If you are new, stop and say hello, and ask any of us where to find the coffee.”
Children	”Children from age four through second grade go to children’s church after the second song. Parents, check them in at the desk in the hallway and pick them up from room 4 after the service.”

This week

For	Announcement
Midweek Bible study	”Wednesday night Bible study meets at 6:30 in the fellowship hall. We are in Philippians chapter 2 this week, and there is child care for children under five.”
Prayer meeting	”The church prays together every Tuesday morning at 6:30 in the chapel. Come for half an hour before work.”
Youth group	”Youth group meets tonight from 6:00 to 8:00 in the gym, for students in grades six through twelve. Bring $5 if you want pizza.”
A new study	”The women’s Bible study begins the book of James this Thursday, November 12, at 9:30 in room 12. Sign up at the welcome table today so we have a book for you.”

Events and sign-ups

For	Announcement
Church dinner	”Our fall church dinner is Sunday, November 8, right after the morning service in the fellowship hall. The church provides the meat. Bring a side dish or a dessert to share, and sign up on the sheet in the foyer so we know how many tables to set.”
Members’ meeting	”Our members’ meeting is next Sunday, November 15, at 6:00 in the evening in the sanctuary. We will vote on next year’s budget, and copies are on the table in the foyer today.”
Membership class	”The next membership class is Saturday, November 14, from 9:00 to noon in room 10, with lunch. If you have been attending and want to join the church, sign up at the welcome table.”
Vacation Bible School	”Registration for Vacation Bible School opens today. It runs Monday through Friday, June 14 to 18, from 9:00 to noon here at the church, for children who have finished kindergarten through fifth grade. Register at the table in the foyer.”

The same dinner announcement works on the screen before the service. Cut it to three short lines, since people read a slide from the back of the room.

Fall church dinner

Sunday, November 8, after the service

Fellowship hall. Bring a side dish and sign up in the foyer.

The church dinner as an announcement slide. The church slides tool makes this layout from a heading and two lines.

Baptism and the Lord’s Supper

For	Announcement
Baptism	”We will baptize three new believers next Sunday, November 22, during the morning service. If you want to talk about being baptized, speak with one of the pastors after the service today.”
The Lord’s Supper	”We will take the Lord’s Supper together next Sunday morning, December 6. Take time this week to pray, and to make right anything that stands between you and another member.”
New members	”This morning we welcome four new members into the church. Please greet them at the front after the service.”

Serving

For	Announcement
Nursery	”The nursery needs two more helpers for the 10:30 service on the first and third Sundays. Every helper completes a background check and serves with a second adult. The sign-up sheet is at the nursery desk.”
Work day	”Church work day is Saturday, October 24, from 8:00 to noon. We are raking leaves and painting the children’s hallway, so meet at the front doors with gloves, and lunch is on us.”
Meals for a family	”The Carter family brought their new daughter home on Tuesday. If you can take them a meal in the next two weeks, the sign-up link is in this week’s church email.”

Giving

For	Announcement
The offering	”You can give this morning in the offering plate, at the box by the door, or on the church website. If you are our guest today, please let the plate pass.”
Budget update	”Through September, our church has given $212,400 toward a budget of $285,000 for the year. Thank you for your faithful giving. The full report is on the table in the foyer.”
Special offering	”Next Sunday, December 13, we will take our Christmas offering for missions. Our goal is $8,000, and all of it goes to the missionaries our church supports.”
Giving statements	”Giving statements for the year will be mailed by the end of January. If your address has changed, tell the church office this week.”

Care

For	Announcement
Prayer for surgery	”Please pray for Tom Reyes, who is having surgery on Thursday, November 19. Tom asked us to share this, and the deacons will send an update by email.”
A death in the church	”With sadness we share that our sister Margaret Hill went to be with the Lord on Friday. Her funeral will be here on Wednesday, November 18, at 11:00, with visitation at 10:00. Please pray for her husband, Jim, and their family.”
Funeral meal	”The family meal after Wednesday’s funeral needs six more side dishes and four desserts. Bring them to the church kitchen by 10:30 that morning.”

Weather and schedule changes

For	Announcement
A cancelled service	”Because of ice on the roads, both services are cancelled this Sunday, January 17. We will send the sermon by email, and we plan to meet as usual next week.”
A new service time	”Starting next Sunday, June 6, we move to one service at 10:00 for the summer. Sunday school begins at 9:00.”
A room change	”Tonight’s Bible study has moved from the fellowship hall to the sanctuary because of the roof repair.”

A cancellation has to reach people before they start the car, so it goes out as a text. Here is the cancelled-service announcement cut to fit one message.

Grace Baptist: Both services are cancelled Sunday, Jan 17, because of ice. The sermon will come by email at 10. We meet as usual next week.

A cancellation text. It names the day, says what to do instead and promises the next step.

Try writing your own in the box below and see how it reads on a member’s phone.

Free tool you can try here

Text a cancellation to the church

Choose who gets it, type the message and see the thread. Free Church Texting sends it from one shared inbox.

Who gets it

Your message 0 of 160 characters

Everyone
Cedar Hill, shared inbox

Grace Baptist: Both services are cancelled Sunday, Jan 17, because of ice. The sermon will come by email at 10. We meet as usual next week.

Count us in!

We will be 10 minutes late.

Open Free Church Texting

The software is free. A church opens its own Twilio account and pays Twilio’s rates directly, and nothing is added.

Church Posting partners with Free Church Texting and recommends it. They share owners.

Where each announcement belongs

Read four or five announcements aloud on Sunday and put the rest in print, so the ones you read aloud are heard.

Kind	Spoken on Sunday	Bulletin	Church email	Text
Something for the whole church this week	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
A sign-up for one group	No	Yes	Yes	To that group
A death or a funeral	Yes, with the family’s permission	No	Yes	No
A cancelled service	It is too late by Sunday	No	Yes	Yes
A need for volunteers	Once	Yes	Yes	No
Budget and giving	Once a month	Yes	Yes	No

Run an announcement for three weeks at most, and then take it out. The printed lines go in the bulletin maker, and the screen lines go in church slides.

For the person who reads them

Write every announcement out in full and read from the page. Practice any name you are unsure of with someone who knows the family. Ask before you share a person’s health, a birth or a death, and say only what they agreed to share. Leave children’s last names and anyone’s home address out of what you say from the front.

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